Curried Red Lentil and Spinach Soup
Lentils are a high fiber small disc that is similar to a bean, but usually quick cooking. They are common in India and the Middle East and are generally cheap and nutritious which makes them a great choice for eating a healthy diet on a budget.
Did you know: Curry powder is not a universal flavor. It can be any range of flavors from sweet to spicy and usually gets its bright yellow color from tumeric. It’s high in antioxidants, and can be found in everything from stews to rice dishes and even desserts. Don’t dismiss it if you’ve had it once and didn’t care for it, it’s a mixture of different spices and the flavors can vary greatly.
Ingredients:
1 tsp olive oil
1 large onion, diced
1 1/2 cups red lentils, rinsed and drained
6 cups water
2 tsp curry powder
1 package chopped frozen spinach
Directions:
Heat oil in a large soup pot. Add onion and sauté over medium heat until golden. Add lentils and water, bring to a simmer. Stir in curry powder, cover and simmer gently 30-40 minutes. Stir in spinach and check consistency. If soup is too thick, add a bit of water. Season with salt, pepper and more curry if you’d like. Simmer for 5 more minutes. Serve.
(makes 6 servings)
Peanut Vegetable Curry with Brown Rice Noodles
Nov 12th, 2010
Here I used crunchy peanut butter and enjoyed the added texture, but smooth will work just
as well. When cooking brown rice noodles be sure to use a large pot with ample water and to
stir them every couple of minutes as they stick together very easily. They also need to be
rinsed well after cooking to avoid clumping.
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
1 medium red onion, sliced
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 inch piece ginger, minced
Large pinch sea salt
1 stalk lemongrass
2 small Thai chilies, finely sliced, most seeds removed
4 Kafir lime leaves
2 teaspoons homemade curry powder
1/3 of a medium squash, in ¾ inch cubes
1 medium carrot, sliced
2 medium Japanese turnips, cut in large wedges
4 cups filtered water
1 medium leek, sliced
10 sugar snap peas, cut in half
4 tablespoons peanut butter
2 large handfuls spinach leaves, chopped
1 14 oz package Brown rice fettuccini or other brown rice noodle, I used 3/4 of the package
Bring a large pot of water to boil. Cook brown rice noodles for about 12 minutes or until
tender, drain and rinse well with cold water, drain again and then return to pot and set aside.
Warm oil in a medium size saucepan over high heat. Add onion and sauté for a couple of
minutes. Lower heat and stir in garlic, ginger and salt and continue cooking for a few minutes
more.
Remove outer edge of the lemongrass stalk, finely slice bottom inch and chop the rest of the
stalk into 3 inch pieces, add it all to the pot. Stir in chilies, lime leaves, curry powder, squash,
carrots, turnips and water.
Stir in leeks and sugar snap peas. Remove about a cup of broth and place it in a bowl with the
peanut butter, stir until smooth and creamy and then return to pot. Once the peas are tender,
add spinach leaves and season to taste.
Add about half a cup of the broth to the pot with cooked noodles and gently warm, place in
bowls and ladle vegetables and broth over noodles.
Serves 4.
©Amy Chaplin 2012
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