Sunday 31 August 2014

Carrot and Lentil Soup

This is a recipe we adapted from BBC's Good Food. We've made this version vegan because we are demonstrating it at the NBEX tonight.Chicken stock could be used to replace the vegetable stock.

Unless you're a real cumin lover, consider cutting the cumin in half for this recipe. We found that the flavour "bloomed" when the soup sat for a bit. The soup is quite thick, so be prepared to thin it out with a little additional stock.


Makes 2.5 litres or about 7 generous servings 

Ingredients:  
  • 2 tsp cumin seeds
  • pinch chilli flakes
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 250 ml - 1 cup onion, diced finely
  • 1-2 cloves garlic, finely minced
  • 600g carrots, washed and coarsely grated (no need to peel) – about 8-10 carrots
  • 200 g split red lentils – about a cup
  • 2 litre – 8 cups vegetable stock (from a cube is fine)
  • 1 Tablespoon lemon juice
  • Salt to taste
  • ¼ tsp nutmeg
  • plain yogurt to serve 
Directions: 


  1. Heat a large saucepan and dry-fry the cumin seeds and chilli flakes for 1 min, or until they start to jump around the pan and release their aromas. Scoop out about half of the seeds with a spoon and set aside.
  2. Add the oil, onion and garlic and sauté for a few minutes until the onion is soft.
  3. Add carrots, lentils and stock to the pan and bring to the boil. Simmer for 15 mins until the lentils have swollen and softened. Add the nutmeg.
  4. Whizz the soup with a stick blender until smooth (or leave it chunky if you prefer).
  5. Season to taste and finish with a dollop of yogurt and a sprinkling of the reserved toasted spices. Serve with warmed naan breads

2 comments:

  1. Carrot Lentil soup is delish! I sometimes add madras curry paste and coconut milk to a batch to change it up some. I garnish with toasted coconut.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Oh that sounds yummy. This is a great soup to use as a backdrop for all kinds of additions and modifications.

    Thanks for writing in. It's really encouraging to hear from our readers.

    ReplyDelete

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