A very simple lentil soup

When a friend asks you to to try to create an old family favourite

An easy to make, easy to eat, non challenging recipe which you might want to make when the weather gets colder in a couple of days….or prepare ahead and make it now - it will take moments, especially if you put the vegetables in a food processor.

I have a friend and neighbour who is newly home from what was supposed to be a relatively simple day surgery, but because of complications ended up being a week long stay. Her body has been telling her to eat all kinds of things (so important to listen to what your body wants when you are under par/recovering) and she found herself craving first of all her Jewish grandmother’s soups - a chicken noodle she needed no help with reverse engineering, and a lentil soup she had no idea how to recreate. I tried to pin down some details on the soup which was quite tricky, but we did establish it was very simple, no spicing, from the Ashkenazi tradition.

So this is what I came up with. She was happy - the texture was just right, the flavour almost there. We were walking a couple of days later when she remembered what her grandmother’s “secret” ingredient was - a bit of bacon. So while I have kept my written up version here bacon free, you could add some finely diced at the beginning, fried in a very little olive oil, or use as a garnish.

The soup without the bacon is virtually fat free as it is one of those when you just put everything in the pressure cooker, no need to fry or saute first. But I wasn’t too careful about skimming my chicken stock, as the fat you get on top is so good for you.

I rarely cook a soup as simple as this, rarely missing out on an opportunity to add spice - but everyone really liked it so I should really cook plainer things more often. It is so easy to eat. Relatively homogenous - everything breaks down a bit but not to the extent it is gloopy. Undemanding, uncomplicated, comforting and sustaining.

Simple Lentil Soup

200g red lentils, well rinsed

1 large onion, very finely chopped

2 sticks celery, very finely chopped (include the centre leaves if you have them)

1 leek, finely chopped

1 large carrot, finely chopped

2 cloves garlic, grated/crushed

1 bay leaf

1.2 litres chicken or vegetable stock

2 tbsp tomato puree

A squeeze of lemon juice

Put everything except the lemon juice in your pressure cooker and season with plenty of salt and pepper - lentils do need a fair bit of salt. Close the lid and bring up to high pressure.

Adjust the temperature to maintain the pressure and cook for 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and leave to drop pressure naturally.

Give the soup a quick stir - you should find that the vegetables and lentils will have broken down but that the lentils may still have a little texture. This is how it should be. Taste for seasoning and add a little lemon juice to enliven and bring everything together.

Variations:

Those of you with my first book will know that I do a Caribbean style red lentil soup. This is usually made with a ham bone or ham stock, but the bacon I mention above works just as well. What I do add is a pierced scotch bonnet, which is removed before serving. I usually chop it up finely and let everyone add a bit of it to their servings. I also add ground allspice berries and thyme. To serve: mango chutney or mango chutney stirred into some yogurt.

And of course you can add greens. Around 8 blocks of frozen spinach works very well. But you could also shred some chard, kale or collards. Cabbages, sprouts, spring greens, kalettes etc will overcook in the time so avoid those.

That’s it for today! I rarely do such short posts, so think of this as an extra weekend recipe for you. I have left it free to everyone to read, so please forward onto anyone you think might benefit from it. And as usual, please click through on the heart as it does mean more people will see it. Finally - and I don’t often ask this - if you like my work and find it useful, please consider becoming a paid subscriber. It really helps me justify the time allocation! Thank you!