It’s SOUP time!

Keep yourself warm with these soup. Whether you like it meaty or no meat, creamy or broth style there is something for you in in my soup collection. Check them out.

I think I’m starting to turn into a soup monster. I’m not complaining at all, because I love it! With this cold weather,  all I can think of is a bowl of hot soup for morning, lunch and dinner.

I’ve done quite a lot of soup, from simple to complex, but nothing beats a simple and budget friendly soup like this Red Lentil Soup. Price is not an issue if you want to keep yourself warm with this soup. You can buy big bag of lentils for a low price, and it could be part of your meal for several days. What I like about this soup is its simplicity and vibrant sunny yellow color. For gloomy rainy or winter days, it’s always nice to have a soup that brighten up my day. This is that kind of soup. It’s simple and yet is very hearty and filling. It could have a lighter consistency or it could be thick and creamy depending on my preference when I make it. Sometimes I like having it with chunky bits of vegetables so I leave it as is. Other times, I feel like making it look fancy, with smooth and creamy texture. For that, I used my immersion blender to puree the soup and turn it to a smooth and creamy red lentil soup. However you prefer it, they are both good anyway. The choice is yours.

Optional Ingredients:

You would noticed that there are quite a lot of optional ingredients in this recipe. Even if you omit these ingredients, it wouldn’t really affect the taste of the soup that much. So don’t hold yourself back from making this just because you don’t have it. You can also replace it with something else, flexibility on thing that is good about this soup.

• Ginger paste – The quantity of the paste is so small and it basically just give additional heat. If you don’t even like ginger, then feel free to remove it, or just add more peppers.
• Carrots, potato and celery are good thing to add, but not a must. I like adding them to make the soup more filling, and to give it more texture. If you don’t have them, no need to rush out to get them. You can add more lentils instead, let’s say make it 1/2 cup instead of 1/3 cup. Chopped tomatoes are good replacement too, I did that before and it taste great as well.

Turmeric is one ingredient that I recommend you don’t omit or skip. Although it does not affects the taste, but it gave the soup the vibrant and sunny color that makes the soup stand out. But if that doesn’t make any difference to you, then by all means remove it. Ok, let’ go check how easy it is to make this soup. Let’s get started!

Careful in Adding Salt

I would suggest that you add the salt once the lentils and vegetables are cook through. lentils have a tendency to be salty on its own, and adding the salt at an early stage could make the soup to salty. Add salt gradually, as there is nothing worst than having a salty soup.

Ingredients:

• 1 tsp Olive Oil (or any flavorless oil)
• 1 clove garlic – minced
• 3 tbsp white Onion – chopped
• 1/4 tsp ginger paste  (optional)
• 1/4 cup potato – diced
• 1/4 cup carrots – diced
• 1 tbsp chopped celery (optional)
• 1/3 cup Red Lentils – rinse and soak for 5 minutes
• 2 cups vegetable or chicken broth
• 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp turmeric powder
• 1/4 – 1/2 tsp salt (Add gradually)

Instructions:

1. Rinse the lentils and soak for at least 5 minutes. Soaking will soften the lentils and will also make it expand.
2. In a heated pan, saute garlic, onion, celery, potato and carrots (if using).
3. Add lentil (drain the water) and pour the broth. Simmer for 30 minutes (medium heat) or until the lentils and vegetables are cooked and soft to your liking.
4. Season to taste. Add cayenne pepper, salt, ginger paste and turmeric powder.
5. Simmer for another 10 minutes. Stir from time to time as this is the stage where the consistency will start to get thick.
6. Taste and adjust seasoning as desired. If you want to have a smooth consistency, puree the soup or use an immersion blender. Otherwise, the soup is good to go.

Serves 2

Nutrition Information

Nutritional Information was calculated using Veryfitwell Recipe Calorie and Nutrition Calculator. For details about Nutrition Information in this website, please read the Nutirtion Disclaimer page.

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Enjoy! If you make this, share and tag me in Instagram #SweetNSpicyLiving. I would like to see your creations too.

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