Spiced Red Lentil Sweet Potato Soup
Recipe adapted from Nisha Vora at Rainbow Plant Life
Was anyone else from the Pacific Northwest freezing today? For those of you who aren’t currently here, we were graced with torrential rains and a high of 48 degrees today. It's May 12th for goodness sake! Given that I was cold all day, a warm and comforting soup was definitely the thing.
It was Nisha from Rainbow Plant Life and my trusty pressure cooker to the rescue again.
www.rainbowplantlife.com/instant-pot-spiced-red-lentil-sweet-potato-soup/#wprm-recipe-container-6756
This is such an easy soup to make. You simply chop the veg, toss in the spices, add some stock cubes and water, and walk away. It’s only 10 minutes on the high pressure setting, and dinner is on the table. That's my kind of cooking.
The only small changes I made to this terrific recipe were to leave out the oil, to add a bit of tamari for umami, and to finish with lime juice for extra acidity. I loved how thick and creamy it was, almost like a stew.
Special Equipment Needed: Pressure Cooker
Ingredients:
1 medium onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
2 tablespoons fresh ginger, grated
(This is much easier if you freeze the ginger knob beforhand. No need to peel it. The skin is edible and adds extra fiber. Plus it is so much quicker to leave it on!)1 serrano pepper, finely diced
2 tablespoons garam masala
1 teaspoon curry powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon turmeric
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon salt
4 cups vegetable broth
(I used 4 cups of water and 4 Masssel’s 7 stock cubes)2 sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into bite-sized cubes
1 cup red lentils, rinsed
1-2 tablespoons tamari
Added after Cooking:
The juice of 1-2 limes
1-2 teaspoons maple syrup
Optional for Serving:
Cubed avocado
Chopped cilantro
Lime wedges
Naan bread
Rice or other whole grain of your choice
Instructions:
Set the pressure cooker to the sauté setting.
Add the onion and a splash of water. Cook until the onion is translucent and starting to caramelize.
Add the ginger, garlic, serrano chili, and the ground spices.
Stir for approximately 30 seconds until fragrant.
Deglaze the pan with the vegetable broth, carefully scraping up any browned bits.
Cancel the sauté setting.
Add the sweet potatoes, lentils, salt, pepper, and tamari.
Stir well and secure the lid.
Cook on high pressure for 10 minutes.
Once done, release the pressure either naturally or manually.
Squeeze in the juice of 1 lime.
Add in 1-2 teaspoons of maple syrup.
Stir, taste, and adjust your seasonings, adding more lime for increased acidity, more tamari for added umami, or a touch more maple syrup for extra sweetness.
Optional - serve with cubed avocado, cilantro, naan, or rice.
This soup was everything you might wish for on a blustery day. It had tons of spice (cumin, turmeric, curry powder, and garam masala), a little sweetness from the sweet potato, and it was rich and comforting. We had it with cilantro, avocado, and naan bread. The omnivore hub really liked this one and said it was delicious.
Give this super easy, quick, comforting, and nutrient dense recipe a try.
Yay plants!
Thank you Nisha for another fabulous recipe!
Wishing you abundant good health.
🌱💕