Red Lentil Soup
Makes 9 cups.
From Moosewood Restaurant Favorites by The Moosewood Collective. Reprinted with permission. St. Martin's Press ©2013.
This is taken from the recipe's introduction:
Lately, our favorite way to make warm, golden lentil soup flecked with red and green and wonderfully fragrant with cilantro and spices is this, a blending of the two recipes we’ve previously published. Red lentils don’t stay red when they are cooked; they turn a nice golden color, and in this soup we add turmeric to enhance that color. Ground cumin and coriander are both fresher and more aromatic and flavorful if you keep whole cumin and coriander seeds in your pantry and, when they are called for in a recipe, toast them in an unoiled skillet or on a tray in a toaster oven until headily fragrant.
Ingredients
- 1 1⁄2 cups dried red lentils
- 5 cups water
- 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
- 2 bay leaves
- 4 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
- 2 slices peeled fresh ginger
- 2 1⁄2 teaspoons salt
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 1⁄2 cups finely chopped onions
- 1⁄4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 1⁄2 cups diced carrots
- 1 cup diced potatoes
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin seeds
- 2 teaspoons ground coriander seeds
- 1 cup water
- 1⁄2 cup seeded and diced red bell peppers
- 2 cups chopped fresh tomatoes, or one 14-ounce can diced tomatoes
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1⁄3 cup chopped fresh cilantro ground black pepper
Directions
- Rinse the red lentils in a sieve. Place them in a soup pot with the water, turmeric, bay leaves, garlic, ginger, and 1 teaspoon of the salt and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally as they come to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook, covered, until soft, 15 to 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Meanwhile, warm the olive oil in a covered skillet or saucepan on medium- low heat. Add the onions and red pepper flakes and cook, stirring often, for about 10 minutes. Increase the heat, add the carrots, and cook for about 2 minutes. Stir in the potatoes, cumin, and coriander and cook, stirring constantly, for about 2 minutes. Stir in the water and bell peppers and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for about 10 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender. Add the tomatoes and simmer for another 5 to 10 minutes.
- Remove the bay leaves and ginger slices from the cooked lentils and discard them. Stir in the cooked vegetables. Stir in the lemon juice, cilantro, and the remaining 11⁄2 teaspoons salt. Season with black pepper to taste.
This soup tends to get thicker as it sits— just add more water for the consistency you like and then adjust the lemon and salt to taste.