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Make Samin Nosrat’s Butternut Squash and Green Curry Soup to Share With Others

September 22, 2025 @ 5:00 pm-6:00 pm

Join us to make a Butternut Squash and Green Curry Soup (based on this recipe from Samin Nosrat).

“This creamy, vibrant soup is a Thai-inspired version of the puréed squash soup you know and love. The green curry paste, which is relatively easy to find in the international aisle of the grocery store, along with coconut milk and fish sauce, perfectly complements the butternut squash’s sweetness. But it’s the topping — a spin on miang kham, a snack in Thailand and Laos full of peanuts, coconut and chiles — that’s the real standout.”

After completing your soup, freeze and label it for donation, then drop off at one of our participating food assistance providers, with a person or family that is in your heart, or anyplace that you prefer, when convenient. Finally, report on where you shared your KindSoup and spread the word: Post a picture or two of you and your soups on social media with #DoKindWorks and tag us @DoKindWorks.

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Butternut Squash and Green Curry Soup

Ingredients

For the Soup

      • 1/3 cup coconut oil or neutral-tasting oil
      • 9 medium (or 5 large) shallots, diced
      • 1 (6-inch) piece of fresh ginger, peeled and thinly sliced
      • 3 lemongrass stalks, cut into 3-inch pieces
      • Kosher salt
      • 3 large butternut squashes (about 12 pounds), peeled, seeded and cut into about ¾-inch cubes
      • 6 (13½-ounce) cans coconut milk
      • 1 cup Thai green curry paste, or to taste
      • 1/2 cup fish sauce
      • 9 cups water or chicken stock, preferably homemade, more as needed for consistency

For the Garnish

      • 2 cups raw peanuts
      • 2 cups unsweetened raw coconut flakes
      • 6 tablespoons fish sauce
      • 20 small dried red chiles, such as Japones or chiles de árbol, thinly sliced
      • 3 tablespoon neutral-tasting or melted coconut oil
      • 3 tablespoon minced lemongrass
      • 1 Tbsp sugar
      • 30 lime leaves, thinly sliced (optional)
      • 3 Handfuls of Thai or Italian basil leaves
      • 6 to 9 limes, quartered
Instructions
Step 1 – Heat oven to 300 degrees. Melt oil in a large Dutch oven or soup pot over medium-high heat. When oil shimmers, add shallots, ginger, lemongrass and a generous pinch of salt. Reduce heat to low. Cook, stirring occasionally, until shallots are tender and just starting to brown, about 18 minutes.
 
Step 2 – Add squash, coconut milk, curry paste, fish sauce and water or stock. Increase heat to high. When liquid comes to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cook the soup covered until squash is tender, about 25 minutes.
 
Step 3 – Make garnish while soup cooks: In a medium mixing bowl, toss together peanuts, coconut flakes, fish sauce, chiles, 1 tablespoon oil, the minced lemongrass, the sugar and the lime leaves, if using.
 
Step 4 — Spread mixture out onto a baking sheet in a single layer. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, stirring every 3 minutes after the first 10 minutes. Remove from oven when coconut is deep golden brown, and pour mixture immediately into a bowl to prevent overcooking. Stir to combine, and set aside.
 
Step 5 – Remove soup from heat. Remove lemongrass stalks from pot. Use a hand blender to purée soup. Alternatively, transfer soup in batches to a blender or food processor and purée. Taste and adjust for salt and curry paste. Add water or stock to thin soup to the desired consistency.
 
Step 6 – Thinly slice the basil leaves and arrange on a small plate or platter, along with lime wedges and peanut mixture. Serve soup hot with garnishes.

 

Health and Safety Information

In order to protect the the quality of our KindSoup program, we ask that volunteers conscientiously observe the following guidelines:

  • Start with clean hands and wash again frequently as needed throughout the cooking process.
  • Start with clean kitchen surfaces and utensils (antibacterial wipes do a great job).
  • Keep longer hair tied back.
  • Follow other common sense procedures, such as never returning a tasting spoon to the pot!

Thank you for maintaining a high cleanliness standard for our KindSoup donations!

How to Donate Your KindSoup

Seal containers with a tight lid and freeze. Label each container with: date prepared, your first name and last initial, “Butternut Squash and Green Curry Soup” and any relevant food allergy info. When convenient, drop containers of frozen soup off at one of the following participating food assistance providers, with a person or family that is in your heart, or a place that you prefer.

  • 5171 Manning Place NW (in the Palisades neighborhood in DC). 
  • Rainbow Community Development Center 12120 Tech Road, Silver Spring (this takes you to the rear parking lot and loading dock – there is usually a large RAINBOW truck parked here): Drop-off Monday-Friday 9am-2pm. NOTE: If you go during Rainbow’s food distributions on Tuesdays/Thursdays from 9am-noon, you may see a long line of cars – you can drive past the cars to drop off your KindSoup. If you go at other times and the garage or back door is not open, call or text Anna on her personal cell at 301-852-4184 (if she doesn’t answer, leave a message and she should get back within a few minutes, or try calling the Rainbow Pantry cellphone: 240-639-2293).   
  • So What Else 4924 Wyaconda Road, Rockville, 240-705-4345. (Look for the Dogtopia. Drive straight past Doptopia to get to our parking lot. The entrance will be on the right hand side as you pull into the parking lot. After you park, walk up to the glass door at the bottom of the black ramp, ring the doorbell, let the team know you’ve arrived to drop off KindSoups): Drop-off Tuesday-Friday 10am-4pm and Saturdays 7am-12pm.
  • Upcounty Consolidation Hub 12900 Middlebrook Rd., Germantown (supporting 1,000 families with food and other supports). Drop off Tuesdays, Wednesdays, or Fridays 8 am-4:30 pm.
  • Embry Rucker Shelter 11975 Bowman Towne Drive, Reston, 703-437-1975. Leave donations on the table around the back. Drop off anytime!

Here are some options for donating outside the DC area:

See you in the KindSoup kitchen!

Learn more about this KindWorks program

 

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