lentil soup with ras el hanout

Cory’s brother Casey moved back to the Midwest a couple weeks ago. On his last night in San Francisco, we invited Casey over dinner. It was a gym night, which meant dinner consisted partly of leftovers, prepared Trader Joe’s food (sweet potato gnocchi!), and a quick salad I made from whatever we had on hand. It had been an exhausting and busy week for the both of Cory and I. I checked out early that night, promptly falling asleep soon after dinner. I didn’t even have the chance to say goodbye to Casey, but he and Cory got to hear me snort in my sleep (the joys of living in a studio apartment!). Casey cleared out his pantry and fridge before coming to our apartment and brought us a bunch of goodies – 18 eggs, 4 pounds of red lentils, vegetable broth, canned olives, canned mushrooms, and more frozen okra than I’ll ever know what to do with.

The first meal I made with Caseyfood was soup, of course. Making a soup from the lentils and vegetable broth was the easiest choice, since I could happily eat lentils everyday. I used a mixture of red and brown lentils, since red lentils tend to get mushy and brown lentils stay firmer so long as they’re not overcooked. I flavored the soup with ras el hanout, a North African spice blend, that means “the grocer’s head” – a mixture of the best spices the seller has to offer. Ras el hanout blends vary, but generally include cinnamon, dried chili peppers, ginger, nutmeg, turmeric, and clove. Some mixtures include harder to find ingredients like dried rosebuds, golden green Spanish fly, grains of paradise, and cubebs. I made a mixture myself with what I had on hand, but ras el hanout blends with exotic spices can be found at Middle Eastern and gourmet groceries. And just a small warning: this makes a very large batch of soup!

Lentil Soup with Ras el Hanout
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2 tablespoons cooking oil of your choice
1 onion, diced
1-3 garlic cloves, minced
6 cups broth (chicken or vegetable) or water (I used 4 cups vegetable broth and 2 cups water)
1 28-oz can crushed tomatoes
1 1/2 cups red lentils
1/2 cup brown lentils (I ended up using a little more than 2 cups total, I measured 500ml on accident)
ras el hanout (see recipe below)
salt, to taste
1 cup cilantro, chopped

In a large stockpot, heat oil over medium heat. When hot, add the onions and cook until translucent, or 5-7 minutes. Add finely chopped garlic and stir for another 30 seconds, or until fragrant.

Add the tomatoes, broth or water and lentils to the pot. Add salt and ras el hanout and stir. Bring to a gentle boil and simmer for 20 minutes, or until the lentils become tender. Stir in the cilantro and add more salt to taste, if needed. Ladle into bowls and serve. Enjoy!

Ras el Hanout
(from the epicentre)

1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon cayenne (I recommend a half teaspoon, but it really depends on how much heat you like)
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/3 teaspoon coriander
1/4 teaspoon all spice
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon clove

Mix all the spices until combined, add the spice blend to the soup.

Serves 8-10

Try the recipe index for more ideas.

Related posts:

1. lentil and tomato soup
2. red lentil and sweet potato soup
3. lentil soup with tomatoes and swiss chard
4. puréed fava bean soup
5. white bean soup with olives

Tags: budget, dinner, gluten-free, middle eastern, soup, vegan, vegetarian