![Vegan Caesar Salad With Crisp Chickpeas](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2020/01/02/dining/bh-vegan-caesar/bh-vegan-caesar-mediumThreeByTwo440.jpg?width=1280&quality=75&auto=webp)
Avocado Soup With Chile Oil
![Avocado Soup With Chile Oil](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2021/08/17/dining/JR-avocado-soup-with-chile-oil/merlin_193269120_f3d40097-68a3-4195-8313-6451e356027b-articleLarge.jpg?width=1280&quality=75&auto=webp)
- Total Time
- 35 minutes
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
- 2tablespoons neutral-flavored oil, such as grapeseed
- 1medium yellow onion, coarsely chopped
- Kosher salt
- 4garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
- ½teaspoon ground cumin
- 4cups vegetable broth, plus more if needed
- 2cups unsweetened almond milk
- 4ripe medium Hass avocados, pitted, peeled and halved
- 1packed cup cilantro, coarsely chopped
- ¼cup fresh lime juice (from about 2 limes)
- 4teaspoons roasted salted pepitas, for serving
- 4teaspoons minced chives, for serving
- Tortilla chips, for serving
- ¼cup neutral-flavored oil, such as grapeseed
- ½ounce dried chiles de árbol (15 to 20 chiles), stemmed
- Kosher salt
For the Soup
For the Chile Oil
Preparation
- Step 1
Make the soup: Heat a medium pot over medium-low. Add the oil and heat, then add the onion and a pinch of salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until translucent and slightly brown, 7 to 8 minutes. Add the garlic and cook to slightly brown, another 2 to 3 minutes. Add the cumin and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds, then add the vegetable broth.
- Step 2
Allow the mixture to come to a simmer and cook until the onion and garlic are soft and cooked through, 3 to 5 minutes, then add the almond milk and turn off the heat. Allow the mixture to cool to lukewarm.
- Step 3
To finish the soup, combine the avocados, cilantro, lime juice, broth mixture and a pinch of salt in a blender. Blend until completely smooth, adding up to ½ cup of broth or water as needed if the mixture is too thick. (You may need to do this in batches.) Taste and season with more salt if necessary. Chill if you prefer the soup cold.
- Step 4
Make the chile oil: Heat a small saucepan over medium-low, then add the oil and chiles. Continuously stir the chiles in the hot oil until they become fragrant, deepen in color and stain the oil a red-orange hue, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly. Transfer the mixture to a blender or food processor with a pinch of salt and pulse until the chiles are finely ground.
- Step 5
Serve at room temperature or refrigerate until chilled to serve cold. Divide the soup among bowls and garnish with pepitas, chives, tortilla chips and chile oil.
Private Notes
Cooking Notes
Can regular milk be substituted for the almond milk?
Above all avoid heating or cooking the avocado It will damage the nutrition and texture and flavor
I would think so; I have seen other recipes for avocado soup that use cow's milk. Ms. Ramirez is vegan, so naturally she specifies a plant-based milk here.
It is ridiculous to add almond milk to this recipe - I have been making avocado soup for years with just veggie or chicken broth - the almond milk is an unnecessary distraction — the avocados add all the fat snd texture you need
I’ll bet chili crisp would be a tasty substitute for the chile de arbol oil…
Can coconut milk be substituted for the almond milk?
Did not add/need the milk…this is a little like liquid guac, what could be bad?
Easy though not instant, and so lovely! My changes: didn't bother with the almond milk which sounded yuck to me, but subbed two extra cups broth (I used chicken); I used Cholula hot sauce instead of making the chile de arbol oil, and didn't serve with chips. It was smooth and luscious and gentle--the cilantro and cumin were very subtle presences. Really delicious!
why not use avocado oil rather than grapeseed oil which is not healthy, almond milks vary so much in flavor, wonder which has the most neutral flavor.
Used Oatmilk instead of almond milk and no salt added chicken broth. No longer vegan but much less sodium. Delicious!
We really did not like this soup. It was bland except for the chile oil which was overpowering. I don't expect to make it again.
Stirring Chiles constantly very important. I left them cooking in the oil for a couple of minutes and the turned black and fumes came up from them into the air that choked us
Very easy to make and delicious. The 35-minute estimate is way off when you add in the fact that the broth mixture needs to cool before blending in the avocado -- added about an hour for us. I liked the almond milk for the texture and suggest using all of it. We also added an extra half lime for more brightness. Also added more salt to taste, and served it with flaked salt on top. The garnishes really make this soup pop -- do not leave them off or skimp.
I have been making my own chili oil for years. I use 1/2 cup of oil and 2 tbs. of red pepper flakes. Bring the oil just to a boil, remove from the heat, let cool and strain. It has a wonderful kick and when added to recipes it's makes things more flavorful.
Has anyone tried this with buttermilk? I imagine it would add a nice tang.
Oat milk worked fine for me. I also used gochujang sauce instead of making the chili oil--it added a nice salt/sweet complexity as well as a touch of spicy heat.
The soup is delicious (like liquid guacamole). I did not have chile de àrbol so used whole dried chile ancho for the oil. Unfortunately, when I put the warm oil and chile mixture in the blender, it turned to an unappealing greasy sludge with a gritty texture (I think the dried seeds were too hard to break down). I should have just strained out the chiles after heating and used the lovely oil. I'll know for next time!
I added more lime, more cumin and a bit of mint. I also added a dash of Worcestershire for depth of flavor. Really happy with how it turned out!
This was a tremendous crowd pleaser and so, so easy. I used oat milk instead of almond and it was fine. I have a good blender so the consistency ended up being thick and fluffy. One guest called it "green pudding" but it worked! Everyone was nearly licking their bowls. Highly recommend as a starter to a meal.
Easy though not instant, and so lovely! My changes: didn't bother with the almond milk which sounded yuck to me, but subbed two extra cups broth (I used chicken); I used Cholula hot sauce instead of making the chile de arbol oil, and didn't serve with chips. It was smooth and luscious and gentle--the cilantro and cumin were very subtle presences. Really delicious!
I added orange zest, curry powder, chili powder, black pepper, more onion, one more avocado and some sugar and it made it a lot better!
This is delicious and a great way to use up avocados that are too ripe. I used coconut milk because I did not have almond milk. Also, I did not have any chilies, and so dribbled Sriracha sauce on top. I will definitely make this again. Someone mentioned this is like a liquid gazpacho. The good thing about this is you do not need anything (like salty tortilla chips) to dip in it. So easy to make.
Used Trader Joe’s Honey Aleppo Sauce and an immersion blender. Yummy!
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