Coconut shrimp soup (dairy free)

Coconut shrimp soup recipe – Indulge in the warmth and deliciously irresistible flavour of this creamy coconut shrimp soup with a medley of nutritious vegetables.

Finally a coconut shrimp recipe to add to the blog. Yes it’s that time of year again, where all the comfort food is on rotation especially if you’re a food blogger, you probably have at least one bad boy soup recipe in your arsenal which you’ll probably share with your lovely readers before winter comes to an end.

Coconut shrimp recipe with a Caribbean twist

I wanted to share a soup recipe with a twist, this isn’t a Caribbean soup recipe at all. Rather I’ve borrowed a few common ingredients that you will find in island cuisines – thyme, scotch bonnet, okra, coconut milk and lime.

I would summarise this as fusion food, where the tropics meets the far east and you know what this coconut shrimp soup totally rocks!

I never in a million would have thought of adding shrimp to soup, I underestimated the idea. I’m so used to preparing soup with a whole, chopped up or a fillet of fish, that’s how I was taught to do it.

I feel as if this recipe has made me step outside of my comfort zone in a very positive way. I love this soup so much that I went back for seconds before the rest of the crew quickly drank it all.

Substituting scotch bonnet if it cannot be obtained

All of the ingredients are very easy to obtain excluding the scotch bonnet, if you’re not from a region where there is an African/Caribbean community this may present a problem.

However, scotch bonnet is only used for it’s warming flavour not heat, so it isn’t a crucial ingredient. You can substitute with a whole chilli instead.

For coconut shrimp soup you will need………….

a large stock pot to prep the soup.

A brief outline of the recipe steps

I sauteed the garlic, onions, scallion, carrots, okra, kale, red bell pepper than added the ginger and thyme.

When adding the liquid, add both the vegetable stock and coconut milk at the same time. If you want your soup to have thickness. I suggest mixing a tablespoon of tapioca starch with 2 tablespoons of warm water. Then stir  it in with the stock and coconut milk.

Don’t forget to remove and discard the stem of thyme and scotch bonnet/chilli.

Add the raw shrimp (the lighting makes them look slightly pink) last amount 5 minutes before cooking completion. Try not to reheat the soup with shrimp as they will become rubber in texture. What I do is either add then eat immediately afterwards or cook the soup and only add the amount of need nearer to consumption.

And there you have the finished results…….yum!

Looking for  other soup options?

• Carrot and red lentil soup
• Vegan cream of asparagus soup

Coconut shrimp soup (dairy free)

★★★★★

5 from 3 reviews

Paleo, gluten free, pescetarian, dairy free

• Author: Charla
• Prep Time: 15 mins
• Cook Time: 25 mins
• Total Time: 40 mins
• Category: Soup

Ingredients

• 600g of raw shrimp, devained
• 2 small onions, chopped
• 2 medium sized carrots, chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• 2 cups of kale
• 2 scallion, chopped
• a handful of whole okra (do not chop)
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tbsp ginger, minced
• 1 can of coconut milk
• 1 litre of vegetable stock
• 1 tsp of black pepper
• 1/8 tsp of himalayan pink salt
• 5 sprigs of fresh thyme
• 2 tsp of parsley
• 1 scotch bonnet (optional, can use chilli)
• 1/4 tsp of red chilli flakes (for heat)
• a squeeze of fresh lime juice
• ** coconut oil
• ————————–
• 1 tbsp of tapioca mixed with 2 tbsp of warm water (for thicker soup)

Instructions

1. Melt 2 tbsp of coconut oil in a large stock pot on medium heat.
2. Proceed to add the onions, scallions, thyme. carrots, garlic, bell peppers, kale, ginger and okra then sautee until the vegetables are slightly soft and fragrant. This should take approx 5 minutes make sure to stir to prevent the onions and garlic from sticking/burning.
3. Pour the vegetable stock and coconut milk into the pot and stir in the tapioca mix if you want a thicker soup base.
4. Bring the creamy soup to a rolling boil then season with parsley, black pepper, salt, chilli flakes and stir.
5. Add the scotch bonnet (DO NOT BURST OR PRICK) then reduce the heat to low with the lid on.
6. Simmer for 20 minutes until the soup thickens.
7. Discard the thyme stems and scotch bonnet before finally adding shrimp.
8. Gently stir and allow the shrimp to cook through for 5 minutes, they should turn pink when done
9. Squeeze the lime over the entire soup before serving
10. Serve immediately