Lentils soups are an ultimate comfort food. I generally use leftover vegetables that I have not had time to cook. In this soup I used four cups of finely chopped baby broccoli and baby cauliflower stalks. Generally, the stalks are left on the plate because they do not cook as quickly as the florets. Using them in the soup avoids wastage and makes it a complete meal with the lentils. This is a large batch of soup, but it freezes very well and can be used as a side dish or a main course as needed. Shwarma powder or curry powder can be used instead of all the spices listed in the recipe.
I did not have chickpeas on hand, so I used a mix of brown and green lentils. Use whatever is available, remember to vary the cooking time depending on the lentils. Since cooked lentils have a nice creamy texture, there are no thickening agents added to this.
Add some rotisserie chicken or left-over steak pieces for the meat lovers. I like to serve it with chopped avocado and some thinly sliced radish.
Harissa paste varies widely depending on the chilies used in the paste. If you have a tried and tested version, use accordingly to your heat tolerance level. This batch was made completely with guajillo chilies and roasted peppers and was not very spicy. If you have a batch made with dried habaneros, use wisely maybe with a dropper 😉
| Mild | Medium | Spicy | Â |
| 4 | 4 | 4 | cups cooked lentils |
| 4 | 4 | 4 | cups chopped vegetables |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | tablespoon coriander powder |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | tablespoon cummin powder |
| 1 | 1-1/2 | 2 | teaspoon harissa paste* |
| 1/2 | 1 | 1-1/2 | teaspoon turmeric powder |
| 1/2 | 1 | 1.5 | tablespoon ginger-garlic paste |
| 1-2 | 1-2 | 1-2 | cups chopped onions |
| 2 | 2 | 2 | cups finely chopped tomatoes or tomato sauce |
| 4 | 4 | 4 | cups vegetable stock |
| 1-1 1/2 | 1-1 1/2 | 1-1 1/2 | cups chopped parsley and mint |
| 2 | 2 | 2 | teaspoons salt |
| 1-2 | 1-2 | 1-2 | cups chopped parsley and mint |
| 2-3 | 2-3 | 2-3 | tablespoons olive oil |
| 1 - 2 | 1 - 2 | 1 - 2 | tablespoons lemon or lime juice |
- In a large pot add oil and once it is heated add the cumin powder, coriander powder and turmeric.
- Toast the spices for a minute or two and then add the harissa paste, salt, onions, and ginger-garlic paste.
- Cook until the onions have softened for about 10-15 minutes.
- Add the chopped vegetables and cook for 15-20 minutes stirring occasionally to prevent burning.
- Add tomatoes, cover and cook for about 20 minutes, checking occasionally.
- Once the vegetables have cooked, add the lentils and stir and bring to a boil.
- Add chopped herbs right before eating.
- Adjust for salt and lime/lemon juice.
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ALTERNATIVES
| Legume | Vegetables | Additional | Spices | Herbs |
| Moong beans | Cauliflower | Alleppo chilies | Harissa | Parsley |
| Chickpeas | Carrots | White pepper | Chili powder | Mint |
| Black chickpeas | Green beans | Chopped green chilies | Paprika | Cilantro |
| Green lentils | Broccolli | Â | Cayenne | Â |
| Â | Â | Â | Shwarma spice | Â |
| Â | Â | Â | Â | Â |
- Adjust spices according the heat level you can tolerate. Sweet paprika is much milder than indian red chili powder.
- If you do not have all the spices, use shwarma powder or curry powder. Most grocery stores have smaller bottles of ethnic mixed spice powder. (My go to for small spice bottle varieties is definitely Trader Joe's).
- Most hearty root vegetables can be used in this soup as long as they are chopped in small cubes to ensure even cooking times.
- Fresh herbs add a great deal of flavor. In this soup I used parsley and cilantro stalks. Most herbs with soft stalks can be chopped finely and used. I would not used mint or rosemary stalk (chopped or not).
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