Gordon Ramsay’s parsnip soup is a festive, warmly spiced blend of grated parsnips, roasted chestnuts and apple, lightly curried with sage and simmered for just 5 minutes before blending smooth with cream. It comes from his Cooking for Friends book and his BBC Cookalong Christmas show, and it’s one of the fastest soups he’s ever made on camera.
What makes this different from every other parsnip soup is the combination of curry powder and chestnuts. The curry adds a gentle warmth that lifts the sweetness of the parsnips without making it taste like a curry, and the roasted chestnuts give it a rich, nutty depth that turns a simple root vegetable soup into something you’d happily serve as a Christmas starter. Ramsay grates the parsnips rather than dicing them, which means they soften in minutes instead of needing a long simmer.
You can watch him make this on his YouTube Cookalong where the whole thing comes together in under 10 minutes. Butter, grated parsnips, celery, apple, curry powder, sage, chestnuts, stock, cream, blend, done. The garnish is just fried sage leaves and olive oil.
Gordon Ramsay Roast Chestnut, Parsnip and Apple Soup
Course: Soup, Starter4
5
minutes10
minutes310
kcal15
minutesEasy
Festive parsnip soup from Gordon Ramsay’s Cooking for Friends and his BBC Cookalong Christmas show. Grated parsnips, roasted chestnuts and apple cooked with curry powder and sage, simmered in stock, finished with cream and blended smooth. Ready in under 15 minutes.
Ingredients
50g (2 oz) butter
2 medium parsnips, peeled and grated
2 celery sticks, chopped
1 apple, cored and chopped
1 tsp curry powder
Small bunch of sage
250g (9 oz) roasted chestnuts, roughly chopped
800ml-1L (3⅓-4 cups) hot vegetable or chicken stock
100ml (⅓ cup) single cream
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Olive oil, to drizzle
Directions
- Cook the parsnips: Melt the butter in a wide pan over a medium heat. Add the grated parsnips and cook briefly for a couple of minutes until they start to soften.
- Add the vegetables and spice: Stir in the celery, followed by the apple. Add the curry powder and tear in a couple of sage leaves. Season with salt and pepper and let everything soften together for 3 to 4 minutes.
- Add chestnuts and stock: Stir in the chopped roasted chestnuts. Pour in the hot stock, cover and simmer for 4 to 5 minutes.
- Finish: Remove from the heat and pour in the cream. Blend until smooth and creamy using a stick blender or jug blender. Taste and adjust the seasoning.
- Serve: Ladle into warm bowls. Finely slice a few sage leaves and scatter on top. Drizzle with olive oil.
FAQs
Why does Ramsay add curry powder to parsnip soup?
Parsnips are naturally very sweet, and on their own that sweetness can make the soup taste one-dimensional. A teaspoon of curry powder adds a gentle warmth underneath that balances the sugar without turning it into a curry.
You wouldn’t taste “curry” in the finished soup. You’d just notice that the flavour has more depth than you’d expect from a root vegetable.
Why grate the parsnips instead of dicing?
Grated parsnips have far more surface area than diced ones, so they soften in 2 to 3 minutes instead of needing 15 to 20. That’s how Ramsay gets this soup done in under 10 minutes on camera.
It also means they release their starch faster, which gives the soup body without needing to add potato or flour as a thickener.
Can you make this without chestnuts?
You can, but the soup loses its festive character and becomes a straightforward curried parsnip soup. The roasted chestnuts add a sweet, nutty richness that pairs with the parsnip in a way nothing else quite matches.
If chestnuts are hard to find, vacuum-packed roasted chestnuts are in most UK supermarkets year round, usually near the baking aisle.
Is this a Christmas soup?
Ramsay made this as the starter on his BBC Cookalong Christmas special, so it’s designed for that time of year when parsnips and chestnuts are at their best and cheapest. That said, there’s nothing stopping you making it in autumn when the first parsnips arrive. For a festive dinner, follow it with a chicken wellington as the main.
Can you make this ahead?
Yes, and it actually improves. The curry and chestnut flavours deepen overnight. Make the soup up to 2 days ahead, cool and refrigerate. Reheat gently and add a splash of stock if it’s thickened too much.
The sage garnish should be fresh though, fried just before serving so it stays crisp.
