If you were to ask me off the top of my head what my favorite dish was I would have to say lentil soup. Mainly because I have tried so many amazing lentil soup recipes and partly because I crave lentil soup more then any other food (besides chocolate of course). I can't quite put my finger on it but I think that I just love the rich full flavor that lentils posses. There is no guilt involved in eating lentils as they are healthy for you and require very little preparation. As I mentioned in one of my past posts lentils have the third highest level of protein of any plant-based foods next to the soybean and hemp, making them very valuable to a vegetarian diet.
I buy lentils in bulk (1-2kg bags, not from the bulk aisle) for three reasons. The first reason being that they add color to my kitchen and look great in glass jars! The second because you save money and the last and most important reason being that I use them so often it saves me the panic attack when I realize I don't have enough to make my favorite food!
As I have the utmost respect for Deborah Madison and her fantastic cookbooks and because I will never alter this perfect recipe you will have to defer to the library or book store and seek out "Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone" to score this life changing recipe. I will however advise that there are people that have gone against the copyright laws and posted this recipe online....but that is all I am going to say.
One more important fact you should know about lentils - like a chili or tomato sauce they get better with time. This particular recipe is at it's fullest and best flavor served the second or even third day. So never cut this recipe in half and always reheat for lunch the next day!
This recipe is from the New York Times and it blows the mind of anyone who tries it:
ReplyDeleteRecipe: Red Lentil Soup With Lemon
Published: January 9, 2008
Time: 45 minutes
3 tablespoons olive oil, more for drizzling
1 large onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, more to taste
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
Pinch of ground chili powder or cayenne, more to taste
1 quart chicken or vegetable broth
1 cup red lentils
1 large carrot, peeled and diced
Juice of 1/2 lemon, more to taste
3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro.
1. In a large pot, heat 3 tablespoons oil over high heat until hot and shimmering. Add onion and garlic, and sauté until golden, about 4 minutes.
2. Stir in tomato paste, cumin, salt, black pepper and chili powder or cayenne, and sauté for 2 minutes longer.
3. Add broth, 2 cups water, lentils and carrot. Bring to a simmer, then partially cover pot and turn heat to medium-low. Simmer until lentils are soft, about 30 minutes. Taste and add salt if necessary.
4. Using an immersion or regular blender or a food processor, purée half the soup then add it back to pot. Soup should be somewhat chunky.
5. Reheat soup if necessary, then stir in lemon juice and cilantro. Serve soup drizzled with good olive oil and dusted lightly with chili powder if desired.
Yield: 4 servings.