Paleo Gobi Masala Soup (i.e. Spicy Indian Cauliflower Soup)

I may only be half Indian, but I have a whole lot of love for aloo gobi. And just plain gobi. "Gobi" is the hindi word for cauliflower, the life preserver of paleo people and gluten-free folks. It's so versatile it's almost unfair to the other foods.

This spicy, aromatic cauliflower soup is one for the books. As in, if I were to write a cookbook (which is the dream), this would be a headlining recipes in the soup section. So consider this a preview of my pretend-cookbook.

Aside from how pretty and delicious it is, this cauliflower soup is also an easy recipe to make for a group that has a lot of food issues. It can easily be adapted with small substitutions or garnish changes to be vegan, paleo, Whole30-approved... pretty much everyone can (and will) eat this. 

In fact, I eat the entire pot myself when I make it.

Gobi Masala Soup

paleo, gluten-free, vegetarian and whole30-approved (vegan and vegetarian with minor adjustments) | Serves 4-6

Ingredients

• 3 T coconut oil
• 1.5 cups onion, chopped (approximately 1 large onion)
• 2 cups carrots, chopped finely (approximately 3 medium carrots)
• 1 T garlic, chopped (approximately 3 garlic cloves)
• 1 T jalapeño, chopped finely
• 5-6 cups cauliflower, chopped (approximately 1 big head of cauliflower)
• 3 tsp brown or black mustard seeds
• 2 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• 2 tsp ground turmeric
• 4 cups chicken stock (vegetable stock or chicken broth will work too)
• 1 T lemon juice
• ~1 tsp salt (more to taste if you like)
• black pepper to taste
• optional garnishes: raita (recipe here!), toasted pepitas, tiny chopped cucumber, chopped cilantro, chopped mint
   

Instructions

1. Heat 2 T coconut oil on medium-high in a Dutch oven or stockpot. Fry the carrots for about 5 minutes.
2. Add the onions and cook for another 5 minutes or until soft. 
3. Make a little space in the pot and add the last 1 T of coconut oil. In that spot, fry the garlic, jalapeño, mustard seeds, cumin, coriander and turmeric until fragrant (a minute or so).  
4. Add the cauliflower and stir to coat. 
5. Add the chicken stock, bring to a boil and then simmer, covered, for about 10 minutes. 
6. Turn off burner. Careful of the splashy hot lava liquid, transfer everything in the pot into a food processor or blender and blend until smooth ( I have an older version of this food processor  and I can fit everything in it, but you may need to work in batches if yours is smaller).
7. Once smooth, pour it back into the pot and add the lemon juice, salt and black pepper to taste.
8. Serve garnished with raita, toasted pepitas, tiny chopped cucumber, chopped cilantro and chopped mint.

Notes

• If you aren't eating right away, you can transfer the soup back into the pot and keep it warm until you're ready. It also reheats very well if you want to make it ahead of time. 
• Leave out the raita garnish if you're not eating dairy. But it is so good if you are.
• Make the soup vegan by substituting vegetable broth or stock for the chicken stock.
• Serve this soup with this paleo naan from My Heart Beets, or regular naan from the regular store.
• You can freeze this soup in a freezer bag or another container for later. If there's been any separation with the soup, just give it a once over with an immersion blender after you reheat it and it should smooth out nicely.

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This Paleo Gobi Masala Soup recipe was originally in January 2014, but I later updated it with new photos and a few small tweaks to the recipe.