Lentil Soup
French Food and Lentil Soup
Being French, my husband knows a lot about good food. Even today, my mother-in-law is an amazing cook who sometimes spends days preparing one dish. No pressure there. This also means, however, that he sometimes requests things that sound less than appetizing. You want…lard in that? Can we even buy lard? His most recent request was lentils and so came into being this lentil soup recipe.
Not the Flavorless Soup I Was Expecting
I have had lentils in the past and found them unappealing. They were sort of flavorless and the consistency was unpleasant. Yes, yes, I understand people really like them and I am picky, but I am the one cooking. I tried, then, to make a lentil soup that was full of flavor. The lentils are the star here, but they are definitely not the only taste. This soup is on the spicy side and is full of onions, pepper, and tomatoes in addition to lentils. There is nothing bland about it – and there is no lard.
Adding Your Flavors
Lentil soup is a lot faster to make than I had originally thought. I assumed that the lentils themselves would take forever to cook, but it was actually only about 25 minutes. The soup begins by cooking the onion, pepper, and carrots in some olive oil. Once everything is soft and translucent, I added the tomatoes, vegetable broth, and water, then the lentils. For spices, I included some cumin, paprika, red pepper flakes, salt, and a couple of bay leaves. Note: my husband always asks if there are bay leaves.
Thick or Thin? You Decide.
I wanted my soup to be a bit on the thicker side, but if you want something more liquid, you can increase the water as the broth and water cook down. We actually ended up eating some of the soup as a side dish by draining off the liquid and it was delicious.
Lentil Soup – But No Lard
So while I will probably never make a dish that takes two days to prepare and I definitely won’t be using lard any time soon, this soup is a wonderful use of lentils. It produces a hearty, flavorful soup that will warm you up on the coldest winter days. Bon appétit!
Lentil Soup
Ingredients
- 1 medium onion
- 1 bell pepper any color
- 2 carrots
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 4 cups vegetable broth
- 1 1/2 cups water can add more if necessary
- 28 oz diced tomatoes
- 1 1/2 cups lentils
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 1 1/2 tsp paprika
- 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
- 2 bay leaves
Instructions
- Chop the onion, peppers, and carrots. Set aside.
- Place the lentils in a strainer and wash them, picking through and discarding anything that is not a lentil (i.e., small pebbles, etc.).
- Heat the olive oil in a Dutch oven or heavy stock pot.
- Cook the onion, pepper, and carrots in the heated oil over medium high heat. Cook about seven minutes until soft and the onions are translucent.
- Add the tomatoes with their juice. Stir.
- Add the lentils and stir.
- Add the vegetable broth and water. Stir.
- Add the cumin, paprika, red pepper flakes, salt, pepper, and bay leaves.
- Cook about 25 minutes over medium heat (a medium simmering should be happening), stirring from time-to-time. The lentils will be relatively soft when the soup is ready.
- NOTE: We like our soup on the thicker side. If you find you would like something with more liquid, you can add a bit of additional water (about 1/2 cup) as the soup nears the end of its cooking time. Always check to be sure there is sufficient liquid.
