LENTIL SOUP IN THE SLOW COOKER
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 onion, chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 large carrot, chopped (about 1¼ cups)
- 2 celery ribs, chopped (about 1¼ cups)
- 2 cups / 400 g dried lentils, green or brown, rinsed
- 400 g crushed tomato
- 1.5 litres / 6 cups vegetable or chicken stock / broth, low sodium
- ½ teaspoon each cumin and coriander powder
- 1 ½ teaspoon paprika powder
- 2 dried bay leaves
- 1 lemon (zest + juice)
- ¼ teaspoon salt and pepper, each
- chopped fresh parsley, for garnish
- warm bread, to serve
Heat oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add garlic and onion, cook for 2 minutes.
Add celery and carrot. Cook for 7 – 10 minutes or until softened and the onion is sweet. Don’t rush this step, it is key to the flavour base of the soup.
Transfer the vegetable mix to a slow cooker and add the remaining ingredients except the lemon and salt.
Cook for a minimum of 6 hours on the low setting.
Remove bay leaves.
Thicken Soup:
Using a stick blender, do 2 or 3 quick whizzes to thicken the soup or transfer 2 cups to a blender, let it cool slightly, then hold lid with tea towel and blend, transfer back into the pot.
Add a touch of water if you want to adjust soup consistency. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Grate over the zest of the lemon then add a squeeze of lemon juice just before serving.
Garnish with parsley if desired and serve with warm crusty bread slathered liberally with butter!
Recipe and photo submitted by Bernadene Prinsloo
