Curried Sweet Potato and Millet Soup

This soup is a lovely combination of flavors and texture. It has a mild curry taste, enhanced with the addition of orange and a hint of sweetness from the maple syrup. The toasted walnuts add taste and an appealing bit of crunch, while the optional yogurt provides a creamy finish. Although this is a great cold weather soup, it’s light enough to be enjoyed any time of the year — perhaps even for dinner with the addition of salad.

2016-09-21 20:06:05

Serves 6

Ingredients

1 tbsp vegetable oil 15 mL
2 onions, finely chopped
2 carrots, peeled and diced
2 stalks celery, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp minced gingerroot 10 mL
2 tsp curry powder 10 mL
1 tsp freshly grated orange zest 5 mL
2 cups sweet potato purée 500 mL
6 cups Homemade Vegetable Stock or reduced-sodium chicken stock 1.5L
3⁄4 cup millet, toasted 175 mL
1 cup freshly squeezed orange juice 250 mL
1⁄4 cup pure maple syrup 60 mL
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Toasted chopped walnuts or sliced almonds
Plain yogurt, optional

Instructions

1. In a large saucepan or stockpot, heat oil over medium heat for 30 seconds. Add onions, carrots and celery and cook, stirring, until carrots have softened, about 7 minutes.
2. Add garlic, ginger, curry powder and orange zest and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add sweet potato and stock and stir well. Bring to a boil. Stir in millet. Reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer until millet is tender and flavors have blended, about 30 minutes.
3. Add orange juice and maple syrup and heat through. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Ladle into bowls and garnish with toasted walnuts and a drizzle of yogurt, if using.
Variation
Curried Sweet Potato and Quinoa Soup: Substitute an equal quantity of quinoa for the millet. Do not toast it, but rinse thoroughly before adding to the soup.

Notes

Tips
To get this quantity of puréed sweet potato, bake, peel and mash 2 medium sweet potatoes, each about 6 oz (175 g). You can also use a can (14 oz/398 mL) sweet potato purée.
Toasting brings out millet’s pleasantly nutty flavor. To toast, heat in a dry skillet over medium heat, stirring constantly, until it crackles and releases its aroma, for 5 minutes.

Judith Finlayson https://judithfinlayson.com/