Secret Ingredient Curried Lentil Soup
Monday, January 10, 2011 I have been eyeing a new soup recipe for a while now and this Saturday night, I finally got around to trying it out. Unfortunately, I can’t take much of the credit for the fabulousness of this dish (it was originally from Bon Appetit), but I did add a couple of small changes to make it my own. I have a subscription to Bon Appetit, but their website is chock full of them! This soup hit all the right spots:
- Filling & Satisfying
- Full of protein, fiber, and texture
- Spicy
- Straight-forward and versatile
I am officially adding this to my recipe stash and will be making it in the future many times! Sometimes curries can be overwhelming and include a ton of ingredients or spices that most people don’t already have in their kitchen. Though I love them, I have to admit that I don’t make as many as I would like because they do require so much planning ahead. How is this soup any different? It only contains one spice. No, that’s not a typo! And trust me, you would never guess based on tasting the dish.
The rest of the ingredients are simple, easily available, and I’m guessing most people already have them right at home in their pantry. It comes together in about 45 minutes and makes excellent leftovers for a hearty lunch or simple dinner.
The secret ingredient (ok, ok—it’s pureed chickpeas!) adds a richness and creaminess to the dish. Top it with a nice dollop of greek yogurt of European yogurt (from Trader Joes—my personal favorite) and you’ve got dinner on the table.
Now, I absolutely love spicy food and have a high tolerance for it, but this soup was spiiiccccy. I originally went with the recipe’s call for two tablespoons of curry powder—but I suggest you start with a tablespoon and a half (all my adaptations are starred below!) and go from there. There are many different types of curry powder out there varying in quality and heat, so make sure you adjust according to your taste preferences. If you do find yourself with a soup that is way too spicy, add an additional cup or two of stock to dilute and continue to simmer slowly.
Remember it’s always better to add more spice as you go!
Healthy Curried Lentil Soup
Adapted Slightly from Bon Appetit
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided
2 medium carrots, chopped*
1 medium onion, chopped
3 large garlic cloves, minced, divided*
1 1/2 tablespoon (4 and 1/2 teaspoon) curry powder*
1 cup French, green lentils
5 cups vegetable or chicken stock, divided*
1 15 oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
salt & pepper
*ingredients changed slightly from original recipe
Directions:
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Using large soup pot, turn on heat to medium and add 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Once heated, add chopped carrots and onions and cook for 4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add half chopped garlic and cook for an additional 4 minutes, stirring. You want the onions to be translucent in color, but not brown.
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Add curry powder to the pot, stirring for 1 minute until fragrant.
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Add lentils and 5 cups of stock to pot. Turn up heat to boil and immediately lower, allowing the soup to lightly simmer for 30 minutes.
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Meanwhile, using food processor, puree canned chickpeas, remaining garlic, lemon juice, 1/4 cup stock, and 1 tablespoon olive oil. Put aside.
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Add chickpea puree and butter (please don’t leave this out—it adds great flavor!). Stir and season with salt. Add more broth until the soup has reached the desired consistency! It’s great on the thicker side.
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Serve & dollop with yogurt. Enjoy!
It’s great served with a nice piece of freshly baked bread..but that will have to wait for another post!
If you want, play around and try to create pretty designs with the yogurt, but don’t be surprised if the soup is already cold by the time you’re pleased with the result! 
Ok, go make this now! And be sure to report back. I promise you won’t be disappointed!
One more thing accomplished off my holiday (hmm..I think I need to re-name it to “Spring”) Culinary Challenge!
Reader Comments (16)
Laura! Happy New Year :) I've just nominated you for a Stylish Blogger Award... keep on cookin', girl!
This sounds amazing! My hubbs would never go for it though since he refuses to eat lentils AND curry. Crazy, right? We can never have Indian food!
This looks soooooo good!!!! I've been wanting to make lentil soup for a very long time and curry is one of my fav spices :)
Thank you so much! I'm excited to share some random facts with everyone :)
xo Laura
Oh no, I would hate that! Lentils and curry are some of my favorite foods/flavors. Hmm..maybe you could just make it less hot and disguise it somehow. It was that good! :)
It really is, I promise. Make it! Lentil soup is one of those perfect comfort foods and having a curried version steps it up a notch.
Looks like a fabulous soup!! Gave you an award on my blog today!! :-)
Thank you, thank you! I'm really excited to do this. Thanks for reading :)
this sounds and looks fabulous! I am not a huge fan of curry, do you have any suggestions for a substitute that would work?
Hi Jessica! Hmm..I'm going to think about this and get back to you. One idea might be a mixture of cumin and coriander, but I can't guarantee it would taste as good. You could try a very mild curry and decrease the amount (if you really dislike it, than maybe not...). Thanks so much for asking! :) I'll be racking my brain for ideas over the next couple days for sure...
xo Laura
This look so good! I love lentils in the wintertime, but I'm getting bored with my old soup recipe. Perfect timing. I need to make this asap:)
LOL! I have eaten my fair share of cold food because i played around with the look or took too many pics! Remember when we would just eat our food sans picture and with an ugly look?
Let me know if you try this one! It's one of my new favorites.
xo Laura
Oh geez, the things bloggers do ;) I've always been a big presentation person, but the whole photography part definitely adds a lot of time. I get hungry waiting!
WONDERFUL! Thank you so much!
Laura, when I wrote about saffron, I meant to say that the recommendation from the sardinian man to enhance the flavor was to place the saffron between something like parchment paper, not wax paper, and passing a warm iron over that the saffron layered between the parchment paper.
-Carol