Red Lentil & Vegetable Soup
A plain old lentil soup, can bring immense comfort sometimes.
The days when it is gray & rainy outside, & all you feel like doing is curling up with a throw in the corner of the couch & watch the kids play around. The rain relentlessly beat against the window. The window panes look frosted with patterns making the outside look shimmery. The trees outside are bent down with the weight of the rain & the clouds.
Some days I would be depressed with the gray, but this particular day I just loved it! So came this soup, without spending too much time in the kitchen. Some red lentils, some veggies & some fresh parsley in a bowl with some bread to dunk in it. Oh yes!! we made an adult version with some hot chile oil in:-D
Red Lentil & Vegetable Soup
Ingredients: (Serves 4-5)
- 3/4 Cup Red Lentils/Masoor Dal
- 1/4 Cup Black Eyed Peas
- 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
- 1 Small Onion, chopped
- 2 Garlic Cloves, minced
- 1 Big Tomato, grated
- 1 Teaspoon Ground Cumin
- Salt
- Black Pepper
- 1/2 Teaspoon Turmeric
- 2 Carrot, peeled and diced
- 1 Cup Zucchini, chopped
- 1/2 Cup Green Beans, chopped
- Juice of 1/2 Lemon (or to taste)
- 1/2 Cup Parsley, chopped (or Cilantro)
- 2 Green Hot Chili (Optional)
Preparation:Rinse the lentils & the black eyed peas, & drain.
In a pot, heat the Olive Oil. Add onion and garlic, and sauté until light golden
Stir in tomato, cumin, salt, turmeric, black pepper and green chili, carrots, zucchini, beans and sauté for about 3-4 minutes.
Add 3.5 cups water (more or less, as per the desired consistency of the soup), lentils and black eyed peas. Bring to a simmer, then partially cover pot and turn heat to medium-low. Simmer until lentils are soft & mushy, about 30 minutes (or more if needed). Add hot water if needed. (I use a pressure cooker to cook the lentils)
Once the lentils are soft, stir in lemon juice and parsley.
Serve soup drizzled with Hot Chile Oil (or More Olive Oil & Red Crushed Pepper).
Notes: Wash & soak the lentils & the beans while your prepare your vegetables; helps to cook them faster.
A simple soup with simple flavors but with lot of comfort, especially on lazy days like this. The Hot Chile Oil made it extra special on a wet day like this. Add any vegetables you want, use your favorite herb & make it your way. Sending the soup to Susan’s child – MLLA : Fifteenth Helping, hosted by Sia of Monsoon Spice.
Related Posts:
Methi Dal(lentil Soup with Fenugreek Leaves)
Soup season has definitely arrived! I made broccoli soup y’day. have lots of fresh corn, will try using it in your recipe.
Not too cold here Priya, just wet & pleasant:-) I would love to bite on some corn in the soup.
ohh wow!! soo mouth wateringg!!! yummmmmm!! sure gonna try this delicious looking soup.
cheers!!
This is what I need right now 🙁 but am making pakodas 😛
I think food bloggers should take a vacation every once in a while to other food bloggers’ houses.
I think the vacation is a fantastic idea:-D
And if the above idea is taken up – you’re booked. First.
ayyo, I dunno what is happening! Anyway, I shall give you a list of all the things 😛 once this idea is confirmed ok? 😉
OMG.. explosion of colors… love love the picture.. and I love soups like there.. they require minimal effort and taste great AND are healthy… Can’t beat that? Once A&N’s idea takes off, I am next in line 🙂
Perfect Soma. The next few days might provide the perfect opportunity to give this a try.
Complete meal in one cup soup! 🙂 Love the color of soup. 🙂
Thats so amazingly yummy!! felt like drinking it at once!!
It is raining incessantly in Dallas for the last four days now and I have been meaning to make soup everyday but somehow end up eating leftovers from the weekend. Tomorrow, red lentils and black eyed peas it is.
I have always cooked masoor as a dhal, never as a soup. Thank you for the yummy inspiration.
And thank you for leaving your kind comments from time to time on my blog. It means a lot.
I know the thingy about the rain:-) I am around the Dallas area too! But I am not complaining about the rain, really enjoying it after all that sun.
I’ve recently discovered red lentils and Im loving the experimentations on it… your combination definitely seem delicious.. specially the black eyed peas..
masoor dal is pefect for soupy stuff, i totally agree. i added jackfruit seeds to them once, following sunita’s recipe 🙂
Perfect soup for a rainy day, wholesome and healthy.
I have been making too many soups recently for the ill other half … and throw in a handful of masoor everytime as it is high in proteins.
Tobe eto thick banayi na … jodio amar thick soups e bhalo lage. Ek tukro bread diye gorom gorom … aaaaaahhhh! 🙂
The south indian in me almost thought you made sambar! hehe 🙂
Hehe:-D I did make sambar with masoor dal day before yesterday, i always use toor dal, but this time I had red lentils leftover & just used that up with some added veggies.
This soup reminds me of our twice-a-day stable while trekking in Nepal.
I used to always think that you couldn’t cook beans in a pressure cooker due to their tendency to biol over, but all of the cooks in Nepal use pressure cookers for both the dal (lentils) and bhat (rice). I still haven’t tried this myself, but now I’m tempted.
This is the kind of soup that I need right now 🙂
hmm protein packed soup..very comforting dear..
hi Soma,
Gorgeous outburst of colours! these kind of vegetable bonanzas are just too right for me anytime 🙂 oh ya u said it rains and gloomy weather is def. made more enjoyable by these kinds of preparations, good one dear 🙂
Enjoy
TC
Those dreary winter days are fast approaching and this soup will definitely be made when they arrive! 🙂
It’s hot and humid, but that cup makes me drool!
Lovely Soma! I am game for a bowl of red lentil soup any day 🙂
Gorgeous and delicious soup for winter..
have been seeing lots of soups on blogosphere today including mine…yours looks so delicious and spicy, the way i love it…
Love lentil soups Soma..so fulfilling and nutritious!
This really makes me drooling…how I wish I can try some:)
Lovely soup, my kind of food, now that I am eating more legumes and vegetables.
so comforting, just made a big batch of lentil soup yesterday 🙂
This is just lovely! Perfect for snuggling up to on a day like today! It’s cold and rainy – this looks delicious!
We still don’t have any sign of cold weather, but the bowl is tempting!
Is it soup season already?! It’s so cold today I can drink the whole pot!
What blend of health and taste !! lovely !I cant wait to try this out.
What a gorgeous looking soup! I have been eyeing a beautiful recipe with curry soup which I am planning to make over the weekend, but this looks like a great addition to. I bookmarked the recipe!
Hi Soma,
I would love to be pampered with a little bowl of this hearty goodness. As a matter of fact, I would love seconds as well …..and thirds…and f….you get the drill!
A very comforting soup!And simple soup is quite satisfying for sure:)
Yea..that almost looks like a yummy Sambar..!!:D:D..n I bet soup season is here..in Seattle atleast..:)
This sounds wonderful! I love the addition of hot chile oil! Beautiful pictures!
Wow! What an amazing flavors in that soup! Beautiful pictures as always.
This stew is a feast for the eyes. And rightly said– there’s no better comfort food than a simple dal. Delicious.
Thanks all!
It’s not quite soup weather for me yet (I’m very temperature sensitive and it’s sooo hot in the Bay area right now) but I’m storing this recipe up for the fall.
Soup weather is here and this is a great recipe!
I just bought some lentils!
I just made this soup tonight for dinner because its so rainy here in Montreal. It is absolutely perfect! I substituted the green beans for red bell pepper and used veggie stock instead of water. I also used a can of mixed beans instead of black eyed peas. Ate it with some warmed bread. So perfect!
Thanks a bunch for letting me know. i really appreciate. Red peppers are lovely things to add, I love red peppers.
Amazing pictures! Mouthwatering recipe too…..
I’ll definitely give it a try soon….
My site:http://shvetahora.wordpress.com/
have fun cooking.
-shveta
Amazing pictures! Mouthwatering recipe too…..
I’ll definitely give it a try soon….
My site:
http://shvetahora.wordpress.com/
have fun cooking.
-shveta
This recipe sounds delicious! I’ll have to try this later this week :).
Your soup does look so creamy and delicious. i can’t wait to try.. thanks for sharing