The chipotle pepper

A warming sweet potato soup recipe for 4 people, ready in 35 minutes (and vegetarian).

I have always loved going home to see my family as (amongst other reasons) I can really dig in and cook in a way I can’t as a single city dweller. My parents have a fully stocked kitchen, whereas I have one absolutely bursting at the seams and still missing what I would consider essentials, like a food processor.

During my university years, when I was with my parents for summer holidays I made an important discovery for my food lexicon. An ingredient that really has the power to change a dish completely: the chipotle pepper. It is hot and beautifully smoky and can own whatever other ingredients it is put with – in the same way that truffles can.

We were having people over and I wanted to make a dip for sunset cocktails on the lanai (essentially Hawaiian for patio) that was not dairy based as dairy featured elsewhere in the meal. I had found a simple recipe for a dip: drain and put a can of cannellini beans into a food processor/blender with one canned chipotle pepper and blend. Voila, a deep, rich smoky dip in one step. How great is that? I definitely recommend trying it.

Fast-forward a few years to almost present day London. I went to The Taqueria on Westbourne Grove for a Mexican fix and noticed they had things for sale from cornhusks (for tamales) to tortillas presses and yes, bottled chipotle in adobo (essentially a preserving sauce). The chipotle is made by the Cool Chile Company (which I’ve also seen at Borough Market). So exciting!

I have done many a thing with this little pepper, but one of my favourites is to make a soup with it and another Central American star, the sweet potato. Inspired to make it by the constant rain of late, I love this soup on cold, wet days. Not just because it is a warming temperature, but because it tastes like sunny places to me, with creamy coconut milk, smoky, hot chipotle pepper and tangy lime.

The ingredients are:

• 1 leek
• ½ white onion
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 1 veggie oxo cube
• ½ can coconut milk
• 2 cups water
• 4 cups diced sweet potato (inch-ish squared pieces) 
• 1 lime juiced
• 1 generous tbsp. chipotle in adobe
• 8 peanuts – crushed
• Whole corriander leaves to garnish

Heat the oil on a low heat and cook the onion, leek and garlic until soft/golden. Then add the stock cube, coconut milk, water and diced sweet potato and turn up to a medium heat. Simmer until the sweet potato is soft. Blend. Stir in the juice of the lime and the spoon of chipotle in adobe. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Serve the soup topped with the peanuts and coriander.