Pumpkin soup

A good pumpkin soup is velvety, deep orange and exactly sweet enough. In our version half the pumpkin roasts in the oven until the edges brown, and the other half simmers in the pot with onion and leek, so you get both depth and silk, without a drop of cream.

Pot calculatorOrder Pumpkin soup

VeganGluten freeDairy freeParve

Updated

Pumpkin soupIllustration
Time1 h 15 minCook 50 min
Pot8 bowls2.8 litres
Per bowl134 kcal3.6 g protein · a 350 ml bowl
Cost of the pot₪32for the pot, about ₪4 a bowl

The story of Pumpkin soup

Pumpkin reached the Mediterranean from the Americas after the voyages of discovery, and soon found its way into the kitchens of the Jews of North Africa, Iraq and the Balkans. At Rosh Hashanah it is one of the symbolic foods eaten at the start of the meal, and many Sephardi and Mizrahi homes turn it into jam, stews and soups. Among the Jews of Iraq and Kurdistan a sweet and sour pumpkin broth is one of the classic homes for kubbeh.

Israeli markets sell three main kinds. The big pumpkin sold in wedges, with orange, fairly watery flesh. The chestnut pumpkin, small and round, with dense, dry, sweet flesh. And butternut, pear-shaped, with a long neck that is easy to cut. Any of them works for soup, but each needs a different amount of water, and that is what separates a thick soup from a thin one.

What makes Pumpkin soup itself

What sets pumpkin soup apart from orange soup is the clean taste of a single vegetable. There is no carrot or sweet potato to cover up, so the depth has to come from the pumpkin itself: from roasting, from onion and leek softened slowly, from a little nutmeg and from acidity at the end. Leek gives the gentle sweetness of onion without its bite, and roasting turns some of the pumpkin's sugars into caramel and nutty flavours.

Pumpkin soup for any number of people

Change the number of people and the bowl size, and every ingredient updates in grams, with the cost, calories and protein per bowl.

Bowl size
Units
2.8litres in the pot
4Pot to use, litres
₪32Cost of the pot
₪4.0per bowl
134kcal per bowl
3.6g protein per bowl
IngredientAmountCost
The pumpkin
Pumpkin, peeled and seeded1.6 kg₪21
Olive oil for roasting15 ml₪0.8
The base
Olive oil30 ml₪1.6
Onion, sliced200 g · 1 pcs₪1.2
Leek, white and pale green part, sliced150 g · 1 pcs₪3.0
Garlic cloves10 g · 2 pcs₪0.4
Fresh thyme sprigs3 g · 4 pcs₪0.7
Liquid and seasoning
Boiling water1.2 l
Salt13 g₪0.0
Ground black pepper1 g₪0.1
Nutmeg0.5 g₪0.2
Lemon juice15 ml₪0.3
To serve
Shelled pumpkin seeds40 g₪3.2
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Shelf prices at a large Israeli chain and specialty shops, October 2026. Nutrition from the ingredients in grams, before cooking.

How many calories in Pumpkin soup? Nutrition facts and calorie calculator

Change the amount of any ingredient, drop one, or pick a lighter version, and the numbers per serving update at once: calories, fat, carbs, protein, sodium and fibre.

Pumpkin soup has 38 calories per 100 ml. A 350 ml bowl made with our recipe has 134 calories: 3.6 g protein, 7.9 g fat and 14.3 g carbohydrates. A 250 ml cup has 96 calories.

Lighter

Ingredients, for the whole recipe

  • 1,600 g36 kcal per serving
  • 15 ml15 kcal per serving
  • 30 ml30 kcal per serving
  • 1 pcs10 kcal per serving
  • 1 pcs11 kcal per serving
  • 2 pcs2 kcal per serving
  • 4 pcs0 kcal per serving
  • 13 g0 kcal per serving
  • 1 g0 kcal per serving
  • 1 g0 kcal per serving
  • 15 ml0 kcal per serving
  • 40 g28 kcal per serving

What each add-on adds to Pumpkin soup

Values for the amount in the row, from the national food database.

Add-onCaloriesProtein, gFat, g
A tablespoon of oil122013.8
A slice of white bread792.50.5
A slice of challah12641.1

How to make Pumpkin soup

In cook mode the screen stays on, tap a step when it is done, and the timers run next to each step.
  1. Heat the oven to 220 °C. Halve the pumpkin, scrape out the seeds and fibres well with a spoon, peel it and cut into 3 cm cubes.
  2. Toss half the cubes with 15 ml of oil and a pinch of salt, spread in one layer on a lined tray and roast for 30 to 35 minutes, until the edges are brown.
  3. Meanwhile heat 30 ml of oil in a 5 litre pot over medium-low heat, add the onion, leek and a pinch of salt and fry for 12 minutes, until very soft and just turning golden.
  4. Add the garlic and thyme sprigs and stir for a minute.
  5. Add the unroasted half of the pumpkin and 1.1 litres of boiling water, bring to the boil, lower the heat and simmer partly covered for 20 minutes.
  6. Add the roasted pumpkin, pour a spoonful of water onto the tray and scrape what stuck into the pot. Simmer for another 5 minutes.
  7. Remove the thyme sprigs and blend with a stick blender for 2 to 3 minutes, until completely smooth.
  8. Thin with boiling water to the thickness you like, season with salt, pepper, nutmeg and lemon juice, and bring to a brief boil.
  9. Toast the pumpkin seeds in a dry pan over medium heat for 4 to 5 minutes, until they puff and pop, and scatter over each bowl.

The science of Pumpkin soup

Kitchen science

Roasting versus boiling

In water pumpkin never passes 100 °C, and at that temperature there is almost no browning. In a hot oven the surface of the cubes dries and climbs above 140 °C, and the Maillard reaction and caramelisation of the sugars begin, giving nutty and caramel flavours. Half roasted is enough for depth, while the simmered half keeps the texture silky and the colour bright.

Kitchen science

Pumpkin is mostly water

Most pumpkins are about 90% water, so pumpkin soup needs less liquid than it looks. The water starts below the level of the vegetables, because the pumpkin releases liquid as it cooks. Chestnut pumpkin is drier and starchier, so soup made from it is thicker with the same amount of water.

Kitchen science

Silk without cream

Pumpkin cell walls are soft, and once cooked, blending breaks them into tiny particles of fibre and pectin that hang in the liquid and thicken it. The oil in the soup is dispersed into small droplets and gives a creamy feel. Long blending, 2 to 3 minutes, is what makes the difference.

Kitchen science

Colour lives in the oil

The orange of pumpkin comes from carotenoids, which dissolve in fat and not in water. A little oil for roasting and frying deepens the colour and carries the aroma, and a pumpkin soup with no fat at all looks paler and tastes flatter.

Pumpkin soup in every kitchen

Pumpkin broth for kubbeh

In Iraqi and Kurdish homes, pumpkin cubes cook in a clear broth made sweet and sour with lemon and a little sugar, and nothing is blended. Semolina kubbeh stuffed with meat cook in it, so this is a meat soup.

With coconut milk and curry

Fry a tablespoon of curry powder and 15 g of grated ginger with the onion, and add 200 ml of coconut milk at the end. The soup stays parve.

Dairy, French style

Soften the onion and leek in butter and stir in 150 ml of double cream at the end. Serve with croutons and grated cheese.

With orange and ginger

Swap the lemon juice for 150 ml of fresh orange juice and fry 15 g of ginger with the onion. Especially good with the big market pumpkin, whose taste is mild.

From frozen pumpkin, on a weeknight

Roast frozen pumpkin cubes straight from the freezer, 45 minutes instead of 35, and start with half the water, because they release a lot of liquid.

Common Pumpkin soup problems and how to fix them

Pumpkin soup is watery

The big market pumpkin is watery, and with water filled to the top the soup comes out thin. Simmer uncovered for 10 minutes, or roast another 300 g of pumpkin and blend it in. Next time start with the water below the level of the vegetables.

The soup is sweet but flat

It is missing salt, acidity and browning. Add salt gradually and lemon juice, and next time roast part of the pumpkin. A pinch of cumin or smoked paprika helps a mild pumpkin.

Pumpkin soup is stringy

The fibres around the seeds stayed in, or the blender did not run long enough. Scrape the cavity well with a spoon, blend longer, and if needed pass the soup through a sieve.

Pumpkin is hard to peel

The skin is tough and the pumpkin slips. Cut it into wedges, lay them on the flat side and cut the skin away from top to bottom. 2 to 3 minutes in the microwave softens the skin, or roast wedges in their skin and scoop out the flesh.

The soup burnt on the bottom

A thick blended soup sinks and sticks. Reheat over medium heat in a heavy-based pot and stir from the bottom. If it burns, pour it straight into a clean pot without scraping the bottom.

Storing, freezing and reheating

3 to 4 days

In the fridge

3 months

In the freezer

2+4

To cool

Bring it from 60 to 21 °C within two hours and down to 5 °C within four more. Split a big pot into shallow boxes.

75 °C

Reheating

Reheat over medium heat with a little water, stirring from the bottom. In the microwave, cover and stir halfway, because a thick soup spits.

Nutrition of Pumpkin soup

From our recipe, per bowl and per 100 g, next to the national food database.

ServingkcalProtein, gFat, gCarbs, gFibre, g
Our recipe, a 350 ml bowl1343.67.914.31.8
Our recipe, 100 ml381.02.34.10.5
Typical Pumpkin soup, 100 g180.70.14.10.4

What the ingredients of Pumpkin soup cost

What each ingredient costs in one pot, and where to buy it.

IngredientPriceIn this potWhere to buy
Pumpkin, peeled and seeded₪13 per kg₪21Greengrocer
Shelled pumpkin seeds₪80 per kg₪3.2Supermarket
Leek, white and pale green part, sliced₪20 per kg₪3Greengrocer
Olive oil for roasting₪53 per litre₪2.4Supermarket
Onion, sliced₪5.9 per kg₪1.2Greengrocer
Fresh thyme sprigs₪6.9 each₪0.7Greengrocer
Garlic cloves₪34 per kg₪0.3Greengrocer
Lemon juice₪20 per litre₪0.3Supermarket
Nutmeg₪398 per kg₪0.2Supermarket
Ground black pepper₪139 per kg₪0.1Supermarket
Salt₪2.1 per kg₪0Supermarket

Shelf prices at a large Israeli chain and specialty shops, October 2026, VAT included. Vegetable prices change with the season.

Make Pumpkin soup a meal

Shabbat

Ready Shabbat food

Soup, hamin, mains and sides, with a quantity calculator and prices.

Plan Shabbat
Hosting

Hosting trays

9 trays to go with the soup, with a planner by number of guests.

Tray planner
Events

Catering

A whole menu in grams per guest, with a reheating table.

Menus

What to serve with Pumpkin soup

Serve with toasted pumpkin seeds, a drizzle of olive oil or tahini and toasted sourdough. With grated cheese on top it becomes a dairy soup.

The cuisine behind Pumpkin soup

Iraqi

Iraqi cuisine

Pumpkin reached the Mediterranean from the Americas after the voyages of discovery, and soon found its way into the kitchens of the Jews of…

Iraqi cuisine

Pumpkin soup in large quantities: events, offices and communities

How much of everything by number of guests, at a 350 ml bowl. For institutional pots, catering and community kitchens.

GuestsLitres30 l potsCost of ingredients
258.81₪100
50181₪201
100352₪401
200703₪802
5001757₪2,005

Every ingredient for any number of guests is in the calculator above: type the number of people.

Order Pumpkin soup

A ready pot for Shabbat, an event or the office, ordered ahead.

  • Cooked to order, for Shabbat, an event or the office.
  • Tell us how many people and when, and we send a quote.
  • Delivery in Tel Aviv from ₪35, free over ₪750.
Ask for a quote for Pumpkin soup

Order Pumpkin soup for a large event

Large orders in Israel and abroad: events, offices, synagogues, communities and institutions.

  • In Israel: cooked in Tel Aviv and delivered to events in the area, and to large events anywhere in the country on a quote.
  • Abroad: for communities, events and restaurants. Tell us where, how many and when, and we come back with a quote and options.
  • Institutional quantities and a shopping list for any number of guests, in the calculator above.
Ask for a large-order quote

Frequently asked questions

Which pumpkin is best for soup?

Chestnut pumpkin or butternut gives a thicker, sweeter soup. The big pumpkin sold in wedges works very well too, it just needs less water.

Do I peel pumpkin for soup?

Yes, for most kinds. Chestnut pumpkin skin softens when roasted, but it tints the soup greenish.

Can I make pumpkin soup from frozen pumpkin?

Yes. Frozen cubes release a lot of water, so start with half the water and add more at the end. You can roast them straight from the freezer, it just takes 10 minutes longer.

What is the difference between pumpkin soup and orange soup?

Pumpkin soup is built on one vegetable, and its taste is gentle and clean. Orange soup also has carrot and sweet potato, and it is thicker and sweeter.

Can pumpkin soup be frozen?

Yes, for up to 3 months. Freeze it before adding cream or coconut milk, and blend for a minute after thawing.

How do I roast the seeds from my own pumpkin?

Rinse off the fibres, dry them well, toss with a little oil and salt, and roast at 170 °C for 15 to 20 minutes, until golden and popping.

How many calories are in Pumpkin soup?

A 350 ml bowl of Pumpkin soup made with our recipe has about 134 calories and 3.6 g of protein. Per 100 ml: 38 calories.

How much does it cost to make Pumpkin soup at home?

A pot of 8 bowls costs about ₪32 at Israeli shelf prices in October 2026, about ₪4 a bowl. The calculator above works it out for any number of people.

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