It’s only 20 days into the New Year and I have already broken my resolution of sleeping early and getting up early. In the first week of New Year, I even went to the gym at 5.45 AM.. Ahem, exactly once! I blame Netflix. Trouper and I start watching a show and 3 episodes later, our eyes are tired but our brains are glued. The mornings are rough.
I announced at the breakfast table this morning…NO MORE NETFLIX. I am going cold turkey! So, here is this healthy collard green soup for getting back on track again.
I had a bunch of collard greens from work and I decided to use them in an Indian style lentil soup. The soup is perfect for cold, wintery nights when you need to eat a big bowl of soup while binging on Netflix. 🙂
Curried Lentil and Collard Green Soup
Recipe Type: Soup
Cuisine: Indian
Author:
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: Serves 4
This soup has umami flavor from mushrooms and tomato paste, earthiness from lentils, cumin and curry, herby flavors from coriander and cilantro, smokiness from paprika and little tang from the greek yogurt. Collard greens make the dish very healthy and hearty!
Ingredients
- 1 small or 1 cup white or yellow onion, 1/4 inch dice
- 1 cup white button or crimini mushrooms, rough chopped
- 1 cup carrots, 1/4 inch dice
- 1 teaspoon of serrano or jalapeño pepper, minced
- 3 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1/2 teaspoon ginger, minced
- 1 cup or 2 small tomatoes, 1/4inch dice
- 2 cups collard greens, chopped, tough ribs removed
- 1 cup brown lentils, picked over and rinsed
- 3/4 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 1/2 teaspoon coriander seeds
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon curry powder
- 1/8 teaspoon turmeric powder (optional)
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 4 cups of water
- 1.5 teaspoon of salt, more to taste
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- Pinch of smoked paprika (optional)
- To Serve
- Greek Yogurt
- Cilantro or Parsely
Instructions
- Prep all the vegetables according to the ingredient list. Wash the lentils well in a fine-mesh strainer and keep aside.
- Heat oil at a medium-high heat in a dutch oven or a medium sized pot. Once the oil is hot, add the cumin and coriander seeds and toast for 30 seconds or until fragrant. Add ground cumin, curry powder, turmeric, black pepper, smoked paprika and toast for 30 seconds. Be careful not to burn the spices (reduce heat if needed)!
- Add onion, mushrooms and carrots to the pot. Add a pinch of salt. Continue to stir frequently until the onions become translucent about 5 minutes.
- Add the tomato paste. Cook for another 2-3 minutes until the tomato paste starts to get brown. At this point, the veggies will start sticking to the bottom of the pan. Add 1/4 cup of water and scrape off all the brown bits from the bottom.
- Add garlic, serrano pepper, ginger, tomatoes, lentils and collard greens. Add 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Cook for 4 minutes until tomatoes start to break down.
- Add 4 cups of water and bring to boil. Once it comes to boil, cover and continue to cook to medium-low heat for 15 minutes or until the lentils are cooked through.
- Taste seasoning and adjust accordingly. Serve with chopped cilantro or parsley and greek yogurt on top.
The Toasted Spice 