Curried Red Lentil Soup


Visit the Indian Food Glossary for information on the ingredients in this recipe
Curried Red Lentil Soup

Modest cook that I am, I must say this must be one of the best lentil soups I have ever prepared. Easy to prepare, this dish is a good choice for a mid-week meal or anytime for that matter served with rice or an Indian flatbread. Slightly smoky, spicy and creamy, this healthy blend of ingredients is warming and won't fail to tickle your taste buds.

I served this as part of a rather unconventional vegetarian Christmas meal with fresh cooked white rice, a Caesar salad, cheese biscuits and assorted vegetables.


Curried Red Lentil SoupCurried Red Lentil Soup
Recipe by
Cuisine: Indian
Published on December 28, 2010

Simple but astonishingly flavorful spiced red lentil soup — a comforting and nourishing bowl at any time of year

Preparation: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 1 hour 10 minutes

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Soup:
  • 1 cup red lentils, rinsed
  • 4 cups water or vegetable stock
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
  • 1 medium carrot, diced
  • generous handful of parsley or cilantro, chopped
Seasoning:
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 small onion, chopped
  • 1 inch fresh ginger, grated or minced
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon ground coriander
  • 1 teaspoon curry powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cayenne
  • 2 large tomatoes, finely chopped
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt, or to taste
Instructions:
  • Thoroughly rinse the lentils and combine with the water or vegetable stock in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil. Add the turmeric, carrots and parsley or cilantro, partially cover, and reduce the heat to low. Simmer for 45 minutes or until the lentils are soft and tender, stirring occasionally.

  • For the seasoning, heat the oil in a frying pan over medium heat. When hot, add the onion and stir for 5 minutes or until the onion is softened and begins to brown. Now add the ginger, cumin, coriander, curry powder and cayenne, and continue to stir for 1 minute. Now add the tomatoes and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the tomatoes are softened — about 10 minutes.

  • Add the tomatoes and spices to the cooked lentils and let the soup simmer, covered, for another 10 minutes, stirring occasionally and adding more water if necessary to achieve your desired consistency.

  • Remove from heat and blend a portion of the soup with a hand blender or in a food processor or countertop blender. Serve hot.

Makes 4 to 6 servings

Curried Red Lentil Soup

More lentil soups from Lisa's Vegetarian Kitchen:
Curried Carrot and Lentil Soup with Cashews
Green Lentil Soup with Cashew and Coconut Milk
Lentil Soup with Prunes and Apricots
Greek Lentil Soup

7 comments:

Unknown said...

wow, that looks so tempting and healthy at the same time. Please do send it to my MLLA event :)

Ivy said...

Good looking soup, with an easy to follow recipe, and great ingredients.

Astra Libris said...

Ohhhh, your lentil soup looks like just the thing to chase away the winter chill... *dreamy sigh* :-)

Veggie said...

I love lentil. This look delicious. Seems that you can also use green lentil for the same.

Aparna Balasubramanian said...

Its just perfect for this weather! Love the taste and the way red lentils just melt in your mouth.
Season's greetings and best wishes for a very happy new year.

Jeanette said...

Yum, I love lentil soups and this one with curried flavors is definitely one that I will try.

stools said...

Not only looks fantastic but also healthy. Thanks for this delicious recipe for tomorrow! Happy New Year!