| Spicy lentil and kumara soup |
This soup is very gently spiced - just enough to warm up the flavours. You could add more spice or chilli to give it a greater kick if you like, but I quite enjoy it this way. It's very comforting on a chilly day, and makes the kitchen smell good with very little effort.
| a drizzle of olive oil |
| 1 large onion, finely chopped |
| 1.5 teaspoons cumin seeds |
| 1.5 teaspoons coriander seeds |
| 1 teaspoon brown mustard seeds |
| 2 or 3 cloves |
| 1/2 teaspoon chilli powder |
| 3 cloves garlic, crushed |
| 2 x 400 g tins of crushed tomatoes |
| 3 cups kumara (orange sweet potato), cut into 1.5 cm cubes |
| 6 cups water or vegetable stock |
| 2 cups of red lentils, rinsed well in cold water |
| sea salt to taste |
| 1 bunch fresh coriander |
| plain yoghurt, to serve |
Heat the olive oil in a large pan over medium heat, then add the onions and cook for about 8 minutes, until they are softened.
While they are cooking, toast the cumin, coriander, mustard seeds and cloves in a small dry frypan until they are aromatic and the mustard seeds start popping. Remove from the heat and grind to a coarse powder in a mortar and pestle. Add these spices, and the chilli powder and garlic, to the pan with the onions and cook for a further 2 minutes.
Add the crushed tomatoes, kumara, stock and lentils. Bring the soup to the boil, then cover and simmer for about an hour, until the lentils are very soft and much of the kumara has broken apart to thicken the soup. Stir several times during cooking, adding more water if needed. Season with salt to taste, then serve with chopped coriander and a spoonful of yoghurt, with warm bread if you like.
Serves 6.
Comments (6)
14 August 2004
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