This winter vegetable, coconut and lentil soup is excellent for using leftover roasted squash (or the end of a can of pumpkin purée).Julie Van Rosendaal/The Globe and Mail
The Globe is serving up a new comforting soup recipe every week this January.
January feels like soup month – the time of year we tend to crave warming, veggie-heavy, economical meals we can eat out of one bowl, with one spoon, or sip from a mug. And when you’re weary of both cooking and deciding what’s for dinner, you can simmer a big pot to dip into all week.
Often when I make soup, I wing it using ingredients that need to be used up. I rarely follow a recipe, but this gingery coconut and red lentil soup I make roughly the same way each time. It calls into service the kinds of deep-orange winter vegetables that store well – carrots, dark-fleshed sweet potatoes (often labelled yams) and those giant winter squash that were so enticing at the market last fall. With all that beta-carotene, plenty of ginger and a hit of garlic and chilies (if you like), it feels good when you have a cold. And if you’re the type who finds comfort in wrapping your hands around a hot drink at your desk, by your bed or in the car, a puréed soup is perfect to pour into an insulated mug to take anywhere you need to go.
This soup is excellent for using leftover roasted squash (or the end of a can of pumpkin purée), and if you have a gnarly squash that’s tricky to handle, poke it a few times with a knife to allow steam to escape and roast it whole, directly on the oven rack, even alongside something else you’re baking, for about an hour or until it starts to collapse in on itself. Once it cools enough to handle, you can break it open with your hands and scoop the soft flesh into your soup pot. Puréed soups are also ideal for frozen cubed squash, which will have a softer texture once thawed, and will cook more quickly. Split red lentils boost protein and fibre (on top of all the other veg), and cook through in about 10 minutes.
Winter vegetable, coconut and lentil soup
As with most soups, the measurements here are flexible – feel free to combine all kinds of yellow-orange winter veggies, and add a bit more stock or water if it gets too thick. If you don’t have a hand-held immersion blender, let the soup cool slightly and transfer to a blender to pulse until smooth.
- Canola oil, for cooking
- 1 onion, chopped
- Salt, to taste
- 1 handful of chopped cilantro stems (optional)
- 1-2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 1 thumb-sized knob fresh ginger, peeled and grated
- 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped (optional)
- 2 tsp curry paste or powder (or to taste)
- 4 large carrots, washed and chopped
- 1/2 winter squash or 1 medium sweet potato, peeled and diced (3-4 cups)
- 1/2 cup dry red lentils
- 4 cups (1 litre) vegetable or chicken stock
- 1/2 cup to a full 14 oz (398 ml) can coconut milk or cream (optional – and save a bit to drizzle overtop, if you like)
- A squeeze of lime (not necessary, but tasty if you have some)
- Chili oil, for garnish (optional)
- Fresh cilantro, for garnish (optional)
In a medium pot or Dutch oven, heat a drizzle of oil over medium-high heat. Add the onion and sauté for three to four minutes, sprinkling with salt (this will help the onions release moisture, keeping them from browning), until soft. Add the cilantro, garlic, ginger and jalapeno (if using) and cook for a few more minutes. Add the curry powder or paste and stir until heated through and fragrant.
Add the carrots, squash and/or sweet potato, red lentils, stock and 2 cups of water and bring to a simmer. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 20-30 minutes, or until the veggies are very soft.
Remove from the heat, add a pour of coconut milk or cream and purée with a hand-held immersion blender, right in the pot, until smooth. Taste and add more salt, if it needs it, and a squeeze of lime, if you have some. Serve as is, or drizzled with a bit of extra cream and chili oil and fresh cilantro, if you like.
Serves about eight.