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Craving something warm, creamy, and full of flavor but don’t have hours to spend in the kitchen? This 30-minute vegan Thai coconut soup is my gift to you. It’s a quick and cozy take on the classic Tom Kha, made with tender mushrooms, sweet carrots, and creamy cashews for a satisfying, plant-based soup.
The rich coconut broth is infused with bright notes of lime, lemongrass, and a hint of heat—comfort food with a Thai-inspired twist. I’ve made this soup more times than I can count and I never get tired of it. I love it so much that I included it in my cookbook, Simple Green Meals.
Thailand Origins
Thai Coconut Soup, often called Tom Kha Gai, traditionally includes chicken and hails from northern Thailand, usually served with rice. My plant-based version swaps the meat for cashews and keeps it grain-free with zucchini noodles. Classic ingredients like ginger, lemongrass, and kaffir lime leaves add bold, aromatic flavor—feel free to include them!
Why This Thai Coconut Soup Rawks
- It’s a one-pot wonder. Simmer fresh veggies right in creamy coconut milk, soaking up every drop of Thai-inspired flavor. It’s got a cozy, spicy kick—just enough to warm you up without setting your mouth on fire. Not into heat? No problem. Simply dial back the curry paste and skip the serrano peppers to keep things milder.
- This soup actually gets better with time. Make it a day ahead and let those bold flavors mingle overnight. Just hold off on adding the zucchini noodles until you reheat—it keeps them from getting mushy and makes the whole bowl taste fresh and vibrant.
- It’s packed with plant-based nutrients. Between the mushrooms, carrots, zucchini, and creamy coconut milk, you’re getting fiber, antioxidants, and healthy fats in every spoonful—aka fuel that tastes amazing.
- It’s ridiculously fast. This soup comes together in about 20 minutes, making it perfect for busy weeknights when you want something warm, nourishing, and not boring.
Storage Tips (Without the Mess)
One of my favorite things about soup? You can make a big batch and enjoy it all week—or freeze it for future “I-don’t-want-to-cook” nights. Thai coconut soup stores beautifully, but here’s a few pro tips:
- Skip adding the zucchini noodles if you plan to freeze it. Zoodles tend to turn mushy and slimy after thawing, and they’re super quick to toss in fresh when you reheat.
- Store your soup in a freezer-safe container or bag. I love Souper Cubes Freezer System.
- If you’re using glass jars, leave some space at the top for the soup to expand as it freezes (learned this the hard way with a shattered mason jar—zero stars, do not recommend).
Vegan Thai Coconut Soup (Tom Kha)
Ingredients
- 6 cups coconut milk light
- ¼ cup Thai curry paste red
- 2 tsp pure maple syrup
- ½ tsp sea salt, unrefined
- 1 carrot very thinly sliced
- 1 cup baby bella mushrooms thinly sliced
- 2 zucchini spiralized
- 14 oz extra firm tofu pressed and cut into 1" cubes
For Serving
- ¼ cup raw cashews chopped
- ¼ cup green onions chopped
- 1 serrano pepper thinly sliced
- 1 lime cut into wedges
Instructions
- In a large saucepan, whisk together the coconut milk and curry paste.
- Bring to a simmer over medium heat. Stir in the maple syrup and salt.
- Add the tofu, carrots and mushrooms and simmer for 20 minutes, or until the carrots are tender.
- Add the zucchini noodles. Taste and add more salt, if needed.
- Ladle into serving bowls and garnish with cashews, scallions, chile pepper, and lime wedges.
- Serve immediately.
Video
Notes
- If zucchini ‘noodles’ aren’t your thing, then swap for brown rice or millet ramen
- You can use a vegetable peeler to create zucchini strips if you don’t have a spiralizer.
- Use full fat canned coconut milk for the richest flavor, use light canned coconut milk for less fat
- The nutrition facts are based on full-fat canned coconut milk. Use light canned coconut milk for fewer calories and fat.
- Omit the chili pepper and halve the amount of Thai curry paste for a less spicy meal
Nutrition
Did you make this recipe?
Leave a review for a chance to win signed copies of my cookbooks! Winners announced each season in my newsletter.More Vegan Soup Recipes You’ll Love
After making this Thai coconut soup, try my other vegan soups —you won’t miss the meat for a second.
- My light and creamy celery soup takes 30 minutes and it’s easy to prepare a big batch and enjoy throughout the week to get in lots of fiber, nutrients and plant-based protein.
- This spicy black bean soup is bold, hearty, and bursting with flavor thanks to the smoky chili powder, warm cumin, and fragrant oregano.
- Experience the rich, smoky flavors of fire-roasted tomato soup. This hearty blend of roasted tomatoes, herbs, and spices delivers warmth and comfort in every spoonful.
Food shouldn’t be boring, and it should be easily shared. Grab one of these recipes today and help your family try something new!
Absolute winner in my house! Satisfying and soooo tasty, with lots of options for toppings. This one is so quick and easy, I make just enough for the meal at hand. A+++
We think you’re a total winner for giving this one a try! Yay Nicole! 🙂
Good soup! I like it. Its different and yet simple to make. Thank you.
I wasn’t sure how I would like this but it was really good! Will definitely make this again, might add some more spices and veggies . Loved that it was so simple to make. I definitely would have never taken it upon myself to make this recipe if it wasn’t for the soup challenge! So, thank you for introducing varied recipes!
The soup is a good based but lack vegetable variety. I will add snow peas and bell pepper next time. In addition, I will cut the spiral in shorter string to make it easier to serve and not have to cut it when serving.
The flavors were phenomenal, especially with some Tajin sprinkled on top and mixed in my bowl! I’ll definitely be testing some leftovers of it with rice tomorrow for lunch! I even wonder if blending it all together could help it taste even better, like the vegan tomato soup.
This soup was very tasty! Because of a head injury last year (I’m fine now), I have very little taste and smell. I was able to sense some tastes with this soup. The texture was good as well.
Love Thai curries and this one did not disappoint! Looking forward to having this one again!! One change I made was swapping out the mushrooms for the tofu. It was delicious!!
This was such an easy recipe to make, yet so flavorful! I should have listened to your advice and used the canned coconut milk, but chickened out and used 5 cups of carton, thin kind and 2 cups of the canned one. So, it was not that bad, but I am sure this would have been even more awesome if I had used all canned coconut milk 🙂
Canned coconut milk is the way to go for this Thai Coconut Soup. We look forward to you getting to try it that way one day soon! 🙂
Love it! I halved it (we still have leftovers from earlier recipes this week!) and used half broth/half coconut milk and it still turned out great!
This soup was very easy to make and the cashew topping was a nice addition instead of the usual peanut topping . This was a warming and tasty soup for a weeknight dinner. So good.
This soup was very tasty and creamy. I used low fat coconut milk but I think I will mix it with full fat next time. It was a little runnier than I would like. Overall good soup though!
This soup was surprisingly lovely. I added extra mushrooms and no zoodles, little black pepper and a dash of paprika.