Lentil soup with rice. My wife calls it her favorite comfort food.
What I do is:
Preheat a dutch oven with a little olive oil over medium heat
Dice 2 small/1 large yellow onion
Chop (don’t peel) 2 small/1 large yukon gold potato
Chop a couple of carrots and sometimes a couple of celery stalks
Start the onions cooking down first (sometimes adding just a touch of brown sugar)
After a little bit I add the rest of the veggies and a lot of cumin powder
Wait until all the veggies are getting a just bit tender/browned, stirring occasionally
Add a little bit of white wine and scrape off bits at the bottom of the pot
Add 4 cups water and 4 teaspoons Chicken Better than Bullion
Add more cumin, a bit a ground cardamom, ground coriander, and garlic powder
Let it boil a bit for the veggies to get even more tender
Add 1 cup red lentils and simmer
At this point I start cooking some white rice in my instant pot, takes about 15 minutes
Just about when the rice is done, the lentils should be soft, so take an immersion blender and blend until smooth (should still be a little chunky)
Salt and add bit of lemon juice and/or white wine vinegar to taste
Serve over the rice, garnish with some fresh parsley if wanted
Ok writing it out maybe not the absolute easiest dish – but I think its pretty simple and most of it is totally on auto-pilot. Totally delicious and the leftovers are amazing too.
You can make a super easy version if you’ve got an Instant Pot / pressure cooker - just chuck all the ingredients into a ceramic bowl (I do this instead of putting it in directly as it makes it easier to clean, plus, you can eat right off the bowl when it’s done).
To elaborate, I rinse the rice and lentils together (approx 1:1 ratio but I prefer a bit more lentils than rice, for more protein and a creamier texture), add twice the amount of water, then chuck in veggies (at its very basic just onions and tomatoes; optionally ginger, garlic and chillies), plus spices and seasonings (at its very basic I’d just add turmeric and salt; for more variety I’d add cumin, coriander powder and a pinch of asafoetida -> this is a game changer btw). Close the lid and let it cook for about 15 minutes and then rest for 5-10 mins. Take out the bowl, adjust the water consistency if necessary, garnish with fresh coriander and you’re done. Optionally serve with microwaved or roasted papadoms on the side.
Lentil soup with rice. My wife calls it her favorite comfort food.
What I do is:
Preheat a dutch oven with a little olive oil over medium heat
Dice 2 small/1 large yellow onion
Chop (don’t peel) 2 small/1 large yukon gold potato
Chop a couple of carrots and sometimes a couple of celery stalks
Start the onions cooking down first (sometimes adding just a touch of brown sugar)
After a little bit I add the rest of the veggies and a lot of cumin powder
Wait until all the veggies are getting a just bit tender/browned, stirring occasionally
Add a little bit of white wine and scrape off bits at the bottom of the pot
Add 4 cups water and 4 teaspoons Chicken Better than Bullion
Add more cumin, a bit a ground cardamom, ground coriander, and garlic powder
Let it boil a bit for the veggies to get even more tender
Add 1 cup red lentils and simmer
At this point I start cooking some white rice in my instant pot, takes about 15 minutes
Just about when the rice is done, the lentils should be soft, so take an immersion blender and blend until smooth (should still be a little chunky)
Salt and add bit of lemon juice and/or white wine vinegar to taste
Serve over the rice, garnish with some fresh parsley if wanted
Ok writing it out maybe not the absolute easiest dish – but I think its pretty simple and most of it is totally on auto-pilot. Totally delicious and the leftovers are amazing too.
You can make a super easy version if you’ve got an Instant Pot / pressure cooker - just chuck all the ingredients into a ceramic bowl (I do this instead of putting it in directly as it makes it easier to clean, plus, you can eat right off the bowl when it’s done).
To elaborate, I rinse the rice and lentils together (approx 1:1 ratio but I prefer a bit more lentils than rice, for more protein and a creamier texture), add twice the amount of water, then chuck in veggies (at its very basic just onions and tomatoes; optionally ginger, garlic and chillies), plus spices and seasonings (at its very basic I’d just add turmeric and salt; for more variety I’d add cumin, coriander powder and a pinch of asafoetida -> this is a game changer btw). Close the lid and let it cook for about 15 minutes and then rest for 5-10 mins. Take out the bowl, adjust the water consistency if necessary, garnish with fresh coriander and you’re done. Optionally serve with microwaved or roasted papadoms on the side.
Fast, easy, fuss free and healthy too.