Update 06/19/2011
This recipe was successfully tried by Dale Mackey.See her post here. Thanks so much!
P is a big time movie buff.So much so that he watches a movie every alternate day..sometimes daily too..or maybe two in a day.Needless to say that he resorts to renting, buying even borrowing movie CDs.Not to leave behind the regular rentals and purchases from Apple store.If any one of you need any suggestion on movies, please contact me..he ll be more than happy to help.I sometimes accompany him to the video library.Sometimes because while he is choosing from the vast collection, it becomes difficult for me to pass time. I like those stores which have a magazine stand or a telebrands counter or even a craft section to make it convenient for me to kill my boredom.
Anyhow,on one of such visits I picked up the Oprah Magazine Cookbook trying to wither away my impatience.My usual habit is to flip straight to the dessert section of the book.This time around also it was no different but somehow my eyes caught this beautiful image of a green soup called “callaloo“. The name of the soup itself was quite catchy [okay I found it too cute 
].The accompanying picture on the right hand page was no doubt gorgeous but a spinach soup didn’t quite ring a bell.I m not big on creamy soups.I like spicy soups preferably brothy which are chewy, with lots of vegetable or meat chunks.Again P is opposite-he adores bacon-potato, french onion, sweet peas soup and such sweetish stuff. As soups do not form a big part of meal in India, I never really had a chance to experiment or develop a liking.The only common soups we like are lentil and chicken noodle.Period.
Coming back to the recipe, as I started reading, first ingredient was spanish onion…well sweetish for me in a soup,second garlic…hmm…okay..followed by green chillies,coriander seeds & cumin (now we are talking)..then there was coconut milk,chicken stock and limes (I was already sold)..I must say it was the most amazing find of the day- a Caribbean spinach soup with coconut milk and known indian spices!! Given the fact that we are Thai food & hence coconut lovers freaks,I had to try this recipe,there was no choice.
I did not buy the book, came back,googled and found that callaloo is a Caribbean dish with a leafy vegetable as the main ingredient..its sort of a gumbo with okra, seafood, taro plant leaves etc.You can read about it here.I made this soup after our systems were crying out fibrous diet from all the eating out on memorial day weekend.It came out so amazing.I spiked the spice level a bit to overcome the sweetness of coconut milk & reduced the cream.No matter how green or plain it looks in the pictures,this soup is rich and luscious.The combination of spicy & creamy worked for me.The first thing that hits the tongue is the coconut flavor followed by smoothness from the pureed spinach and then spices hit at the back of the tongue.Its sweetish,spicy,salty & tangy – all in one.Need I say more? A lovely recipe which is a keeper.Below it goes:-
Adapted from The Oprah Magazine Cookbook, Recipe by Chef Marcus Samuelson of Food Network
Ingredients [Serves 2-3]
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup finely chopped spanish onion
- 2 Thai green chillies, minced [You can use jalapeno or remove seeds to reduce heat level]
- 2 garlic cloves,grated
- 1 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
- 1/2 tsp coriander seeds,crushed
- 1/4 tsp black peppercorns,crushed
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 cups chicken stock [ or vegetable broth/water]
- 1 cup coconut milk
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 10 oz fresh spinach,chopped [equivalent quantity of thawed frozen spinach]
- 2-3 tbsp fresh lemon juice [adjust to taste]
- Salt to taste [to be added at last]
- Red Chilli Flakes, Sour Cream etc for garnish
- In a heavy bottomed pot,melt the butter on medium heat.While it is melting add the grated garlic and green chillies.Let cook for 30-40 seconds till you start smelling the aroma.
- Next add the chopped onions and saute till translucent. About 3 -5 minutes.
- Next add the cumin,crushed coriander seeds, peppercorns and bay leaf.Saute for another 30 seconds.
- Now, reduce the heat to minimum and add the chicken stock, coconut milk.Let simmer on very low heat for 30 minutes.
- While the broth is simmering, add the chopped spinach and bring to a boil.Cook for 6-8 minutes till the spinach is cooked.In case you are using thawed frozen spinach, the cooking time will be less. Tip:-To preserve the color of the spinach do not cover the pot.
- Once the spinach has cooked, reduce the heat to minimum and add the cream and salt to taste.Simmer for a while and remove from heat within 2 minutes.Note:-After adding cream, do not let soup come to a boil.
- Once the mixture has slightly cooled down, discard the bay leaf & puree in a food processor until smooth.
- Serve warm in bowls garnished with red chilli flakes,dollop of sour cream/butter etc.
Hi Tanvi! Oh this looks not only healthy but REALLY look healthy. I love it. If you said this is a keeper, everyone must keep this.
I’m looking forward to taste “sweet + spicy + salty + tangy all in one” flavor!!!! And again, beeeeautiful pictures! Hmm after staying in this page for a while, I start to get thirsty. To bad the soup is in the computer. Grrrr…
Oops I meant “yummy”, instead of “healthy”… Do you notice I always have typo?! So embarrassing! >_<
I’m not a fan of sweet soups either. I love my soups spicy and really chewy with loads of veg. or meat pieces! But this looks really good. The green is sooo inviting and tempting and healthy!
This soup just looks really pretty! I’ll have to get an immersion blender just for this recipe. Great post!
The soup looks very beautiful. Loved the way you have captured every shot
This soup is so pretty! Soup to me is enjoyable year round!
Soup looks BEAUTIFUL Tanvi! I fall for all green things!! It’s something about he colour I guess… makes me feel like I am eating very healthy! lol!!
I love soups and make different kinds of soups for dinner very often. My daughter loves soup especially with lots of veggies… will try this recipe for sure
Absolutely gorgeous and healthy! I’m usually “detoxing” every Monday from weekends of “fun” eating!! This is going to be added into my Monday meal ideas!!
Looks s0 colorful and delicious!
Caribbean soup is PERFECT for the hot summer months
Hi Tanvi
The soup looks awesome. This is the most attractive looking soup that I have seen in years. Must have tasted delicious as much.
Deepa
Hamaree Rasoi
this looks AMAZING. i love green entrees, especially the little specs of spinach in the soup!
im such a movie buff as well..i mean ive seen all the movies running in the theatre that im now bored..
love tht colour, but i tried a coconut milk based thai soup last winter n dint like it
Lovely soup Tanvi. I’ve never had something similiar to it but I love everything green and spinach is by far my favorite veggy.
Hope you have a wonderful weekend.
Yun, looks superb and how tempting
Chef Marcus is one of my fav and his style of cooking is very different and unique. This story of yours reminded of a similar time when we were standing in the queue to pay the bill and I grabbed a magazine and started seeing the recipes and getting ideas.. not only that I even made a dish inspired from one of the recipe in the magazine.. sign of being a foodie
I am not much of a soup fan .. i like spicy chewy like you mentioned .. but spinach is one my of fav and this soup looks delicious.
Your pics are just too gorgeous .. so much light .. the food is just popping out !!
Omg, seriously this soup tempts me a lot,feel like finishing that bowl..yumm!
I’ve never seen a soup like this before — love the color and surely refreshing taste. I love spinach so much my boyfriend complains I put too much into our ramen hehe.
Thank you everyone for stopping by.
Lovee this, it sounds great
I’m not a big fan of spinach but this looks mouth watering good..
I do that too…skim through magazines looking for inspiration lol
This soup looks delicious and suppose one can’t go past coconut if there is a Caribbean influence
A very interesting combination. That soup looks delightful and so tasy. A beautiful speciality.
Cheers,
Rosa
My kind of soup… bonus with my fave spices.. When there is either cumin or coriander … i am all ears n eyes
And the photos are really awesome … inviting
Now that’s one colourful, fresh & zingy soup Tanvi, I love the sound of this
me too me too. I love brothy soups and infact I don’t even like adding any thickening agent to Indo chinese soups either. This sounds wonderful! My experience with spinach soups is limited by the one my MIL makes and a few of coconut milk ones but putting them together would be great!
This is incredible. I love your recipes!
Looks heavenly! Creamy cocnutty and spicy…yum!
Wow.. Awesome clicks… and a lovely and innovative combo for a soup..
http://krithiskitchen.blogspot.com
Event: Healing Foods – Banana
What a lovely color and a bowl of health that is! Beautiful recipe, Tanvi. Spinach has got it due credits in cooking here
This soup looks perfectly delicious. Perfect because of the creaminess, the spiciness, the healthiness. And so comforting!
It reminds me of this Indian ‘curry’ that my family makes – no masala, just cumin, coconut milk, garlic, onion, chili, and a green leafy vegetable (my mom usually used spinach too) – its almost a soup, but we eat it with rice.
My kind of soup: healthy and spicy! Wonderful shots.
You know I love spinach but I never thought to combine it with coconut milk and make a soup out of it. This is simply wonderful .
This looks yummy….you have a lovely blog…I am having a giveaway in my blog..Y dont you check and join that
http://yummytummy-aarthi.blogspot.com/2011/05/chocolate-recipe-and-chocolate.html
i’m not usually one for super creamy soups either, but this sounds delicious! Coconut milk is the best alternative to cream in my opinion!
Tanvi, this soup sounds and looks delicious, love the idea of coconut milk and all the green. Beautiful pictures as always
Have a great week!
I am glad that P is always taking his time selecting his movies, or you would never have chanced upon this gorgeous gorgeously green soup! Beautiful pictures!
It looks so healthy, but good at the same time
it is getting warm and summer is right here all i want is salad and soup, dinner time for me wish to jump straight into the bowl
yum!!
Callaoo is the national dish of my country:-) Your beautiful pics of it made me smile.Sadly I am not a fan of the Oprah recipe I saw it a long time ago and was disappointed but only because that’s not the soup I know. Still I applaud your daring to try something new.
I love this! I made callaloo once but it came out very thick and more like a stew than a soup. Your version looks lighter and would be better this time of year, with the extreme heat we’ve been having (over 100F).
Pingback: Make Caribbean Spinach Coconut Milk Soup « Dale Mackey
This soup sounds good! Great Photos!
I have to agree with my dear friend Wizzy! Being a Trini (to the bone!) I am so disappointed to see that there is not an ochro in site! And this is the first time I’ve ever heard anyone but a Trini call callaloo “beautiful”… But I like hearing it! I don’t know anyone who makes callaloo with chicken stock… A ham bone maybe… Copious amounts of blue crab DEFINITELY… but chicken stock? I don’t doubt that Oprah’s version is delicious but authentic it is not… Not even close. If you try a true Trini callaloo soup you will never make this one again
Thanks For sharing nice post about Coconut Milk Soup. The soup looks awesome. This soup sounds and looks delicious, love the idea of coconut milk and all the green. Such a nice post for me.