Summer Creamy Vegetable Soup

Taste the flavors of summer in this creamy vegetable soup! This summer soup recipe uses Vermicular’s Musui Cooking technique, which allows you to cook the vegetables without any additional liquid. You’ll end up with a soup that’s rich with vegetable flavor!

Thank you Vermicular for sponsoring this post!

This luscious, creamy vegetable soup is truly an ode to summer vegetables. Inspired by one of my recent farmer’s market hauls, this soup is made with some of my favorite summer vegetables: tomatoes, corn, and summer squash. 

What I love about this creamy vegetable soup is that it doesn’t require additional liquid (such as water or broth) to cook the vegetables. As a result, I can taste all the robust flavors of the vegetables that go into making this soup. 

I know that cooking soup without liquids might sound crazy, but it is all made possible with Vermicular’s Musui–Kamado. 

VERMICULAR’S MUSUI–KAMADO

Vermicular is a Japanese kitchen brand that makes the country’s best-selling enameled cast iron pot, the Musui. The word “musui” means “waterless,” so the pot is specially designed to be able to cook a wide range of food without excess water or sauces. 

The Musui is coated in three layers of enamel except for the contact area between the pot and the lid, which gives the pot a tight-fitting seal. This precision seal is what helps to intensify and lock in the natural flavors of the vegetables as I cook them in the Musui. 

The other critical piece to Musui Cooking is the precision induction cooking unit, called the Kamado. There are 4 heat settings for the Kamado: Medium (where heat is maintained at 445ºF), Low (300ºF), Extremely Low (230ºF), and Warm (where the temperature can be adjusted at 1º increments between 90 to 200ºF). For this creamy vegetable soup recipe, I quickly sauté the vegetables on medium for a few minutes and then let the vegetables cook over low heat for an hour.

The Kamado has raised sides so that it can heat the Musui from the sides of the pot as well as the bottom. This helps food cook more evenly.

COOKING NOTES FOR THE CREAMY VEGETABLE SOUP

PREPARING THE PRODUCE

You’ll notice that this recipe uses a ton of vegetables because they release natural moisture as they cook inside the Musui. Preparing the vegetables isn’t complicated; it just involves a lot of chopping. You can save some time by chopping some of these ingredients in a food processor.

TOMATOES 

Make sure to save any juice that runs out of the tomatoes when chopping them. You’ll add them to the pot later.

CORN

For this recipe, I’m using fresh corn, and I save the cob after I cut off the kernels. The cob has a lot of flavor, so it is good for simmering with the rest of the vegetables. Just snap the cob in half so that it fits inside the Musui.

LEMONGRASS

I use lemongrass as one of the spices to flavor the soup. The lemongrass I use is quite fresh (you can tell by the green color). If you are buying lemongrass from the supermarket, and you notice that it looks light yellow with dry outer leaves, you’ll want to peel off a few of the outer layers. Then, chop off the top 4 inches of the stalk that’s the dry, thin leaves. Slice the remaining stalk into 3 smaller sections and bash it with a kitchen mallet or cleaver to release the flavor. 

COOKING THE VEGETABLE SOUP

To get the flavors going, I sauté the onions on medium for several minutes and then the ginger and garlic for another minute. Afterwards, I pour all the vegetables into the Musui, cover it with the lid and let the vegetables cook on low for 1 hour. 

What I loved most about cooking the vegetables in the Musui–Kamado was that I didn’t have to worry about the vegetables burning on the bottom or any liquids boiling over. The Kamado maintains a low cooking temperature. Essentially, after you cover the pot with the lid, you can just walk away and let the Musui–Kamado do its thing for an hour.

Once the time is up, uncover the pot. You’ll notice a lot of liquid has developed inside the pot (just over a cup of liquid). The precision seal of the Musui locks in the moisture of the vegetables inside the pot! Pour the broth and vegetables inside a blender, puree, and serve. 

I was impressed that I didn’t need to use any stock to give the soup umami flavor. I loved being able to taste all the robust flavors of the vegetables blended together! To make the soup more filling, add some cooked quinoa or jasmine rice to the soup!

Summer Creamy Vegetable Soup

Taste the flavors of summer in this creamy vegetable soup! If you want to make this into a fuller meal, add some cooked quinoa or jasmine rice to the soup!

• Author: Lisa Lin
• Prep Time: 30 minutes
• Cook Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
• Total Time: 1 hour 40 minutes
• Yield: Serves 4 1x

Scale 1x2x3x

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin coconut oil (see note 1)
• 2 large onions (about 4 cups diced)
• 2 tablespoons grated ginger
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 teaspoons red curry paste
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1 stalk lemongrass, chopped into 3-inch sections and bashed (see note 2)
• 1 pound tomatoes, diced (about 2 1/2 cups)
• 1 carrot, diced (about 1 cup)
• 1 large zucchini, diced (see note 3)
• 1 ear of corn, kernels sliced off (see note 4)
• 1/4 cup coconut milk
• 2 to 3 tablespoons lime juice
• basil leaves for garnish

Instructions

1. Insert the Musui (pot) into the Kamado (induction unit) and set it to MED. Let the pot heat up for 3 minutes. Once the pot is warmed, “GRILL OK” will appear on the touchpanel. Add the coconut oil and onions and sauté for about 4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Next, add the ginger and garlic, and cook for another minute.
2. Add the curry paste, salt, and coriander to the pot and stir to coat the onions with the spices. Transfer the lemongrass and corn cob into the pot. Then, cover them with the tomatoes, carrots, zucchini, and corn kernels. Cover the pot with the lid and cook on LOW for 1 hour.
3. Uncover the lid. You’ll notice that a lot of liquid has formed in the pot. Use tongs to remove the corn cob and 3 lemongrass sections. Scoop out about 1 cup of vegetables into a bowl and set them aside (see note 5). 
4. Transfer all the cooked vegetables and liquid to a blender and puree everything until you get a creamy soup. Pour the soup back into the pot. Stir in the coconut milk and lime juice. Taste and adjust the seasonings to your liking. Add the vegetables back into the soup and stir. 
5. Serve the soup in bowls and garnish with basil leaves.

Notes

NUTRITION INFORMATION: Amount Per Serving: Calories: 213, Total Fat 10.7g, Saturated Fat: 8.5g, Cholesterol: 0mg, Sodium: 680mg, Total Carbohydrate: 28.2g, Dietary Fiber: 5.3g, Sugar: 12g, Protein 4.7g

1. I used extra-virgin coconut oil for flavor. You can also use extra-virgin olive oil. 
2. I usually chop off the top 4 to 5 inches of the stalk of lemongrass (the portion that is very thin). If the outer leaves of the lemongrass look dry, peel them off before chopping the stalk into sections.
3. I sliced the zucchini into 1/2 inch slices before quartering each slice. The zucchini softens a lot when it cooks, so I purposely cut them into large chunks so that they don’t turn to mush.
4. After you slice off the corn, be sure to save the cob. Snap it in half so that it fits into the Musui.
5. I like eating some of the vegetables along with the creamy soup. You can also blend everything inside the pot if you want a completely creamy vegetable soup.

Disclosure: This post was sponsored by Vermicular! Click here to learn more about the Musui–Kamado. To learn more about their products and to get more recipe inspiration, visit their website or follow them on Instagram!