Five Alarm Lentil Soup Recipes

FIVE-ALARM LENTIL SOUP

Steps:

• .Heat the oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the onions and carrots and saute until they begin to soften, 6 to 8 minutes.
• Stir in the garlic, paprika, cumin, bay leaves, tomato paste and sriracha, cooking for 1 to 2 minutes, until aromatic. (You might want to start with a lesser amount of the sriracha - it is powerful stuff).
• Add the tomatoes and scrape up any brown bits from the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon.
• Pour in the lentils and stock, stirring to combine. Bring to boil, lower the heat, and simmer, uncovered, for 20 to 30 minutes, until the lentils are softened and cooked through.
• Season with salt and pepper to taste, and discard the bay leaves. (I did not feel it needed either salt or pepper).
• Ladle into bowls and garnish as desired. (I particularly like a dollop of sour cream).

FIVE-ALARM LENTIL SOUP

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the onions and carrots and sauté until they begin to soften, 6 to 8 minutes. Stir in the garlic, paprika, cumin,bay leaves, tomato paste, and Sriracha, cooking for 1 to 2 minutes, until aromatic. Add the tomatoes, and scrape up any of the brown bits that have accumulated at the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon.
• Pour in the lentils and vegetable stock, stirring to combine. Bring to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer, uncovered, for 20 to 30 minutes, until the lentils are softened and cooked thoroughly. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Discard the bay leaves. Ladle into bowls. Garnish with a dollop of sour cream, a sprinkling of cilantro, and perhaps a last minute squiggle of Sriracha for color and zip.
• OVER THE TOP TIP
• Instead of garnishing with a spoon of plain sour cream, try a dollop of Sriracha Sour Cream (page 24) in your bowl to bring on some extra pain.

THE BEST LENTIL SOUP

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a large heavy-bottom pot over medium-high heat. Add the carrot, onion, celery and 1 teaspoon salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are starting to caramelize and take on a dark brown color, 8 to 10 minutes (this step is important as it will add tons of flavor to your soup!).
• Stir in the tomato paste and garlic and cook, scraping up the brown bits, until the garlic is fragrant and slightly softened, 1 to 2 minutes. Add in the lentils, stock, 4 cups water, thyme, bay leaf, oregano, red pepper flakes, lemon zest, 2 teaspoons salt and a generous amount of black pepper and stir to combine. Bring to a boil then reduce the heat to low. Cover and cook until the lentils are softened with just a bit of bite, 25 to 30 minutes.
• Remove the bay leaf. Puree 2 1/2 cups of the soup in a blender until smooth then stir back into the pot. Stir in the lemon juice and parsley. Ladle into bowls and garnish with more parsley.