Lentil and Chickpea Soup

I think you’ll love this lentil and chickpea soup.

Why?

• It’s quick and easy to prepare
• It uses bold spices to give it maximum flavour
• It uses ingredients you probably have already have in your pantry
• It’s customisable so you can make it your soup

Let’s get to it shall we?

Confession time!

I love lentils.

However, it took me a really, really long time to like them.

As a kid, they were quite prominent in our kitchen and often prepared by my parents during the winter months and Lent.

I love their versatility.

And I quite enjoy all the different varieties - green, brown and red lentils.

The red ones are the quickest to cook, and I usually end up cooking with those.

They also marry well with Indian spices so I know I can prep this lentil and chickpea soup in no time.

Let's look at the ingredients:

🥘 Ingredients

• ½ a red onion diced
• A splash of sunflower oil
• 1 clove of garlic chopped
• a small knob of grated ginger
• 1 tsp of ground cumin
• 1 tsp of ground coriander
• 1 tsp of ground chilli or red pepper flakes
• 1 tsp of ground turmeric
• ½ tsp of ground cloves
• 1 cup of red lentils
• 2-3 cups of chicken stock or vegetable stock
• 1 can (400 g) of chickpeas aka garbanzo beans
• 1 cup of cooked quinoa
• salt and pepper to taste
• Greek yogurt and chopped coriander to garnish
• a squeeze of lime or lemon juice

The addition of quinoa adds extra protein to the whole meal.

I also love using Indian spices - they add significant colour and flavour and can be combined in numerous ways.

You can dry fry or roast certain spices and then grind them down yourself.

You can also flavour oils and add spice to dishes, and the best part is you decide how spicy or hot you like it.

Want to know how to make this lentil and chickpea soup?

Follow these instructions:

🔪 Instructions

1. Heat the oil in a thick-bottomed saucepan and fry off the onions on medium heat. Add the ground spices and stir until they become aromatic.
2. Add the garlic and ginger and stir again for a few minutes. Then add the red lentils and toss in the spice mixture for one more minute.
3. Add the chicken or vegetable stock and cook on high heat till it comes to a rapid boil. Lower the temperature and let the ingredients simmer for about 10-15 mins—season to taste.
4. Remove from the heat and blend using a stab blender or do it manually using a regular blender. Add the drained and rinsed chickpeas and let it simmer for another 5 mins.
5. Stir through the cooked quinoa and squeeze a little lime juice in the soup. Garnish with a dollop of thick Greek yogurt and chopped coriander.

As you can see, this soup can be prepared quickly with everyday ingredients, all in one pot.

👪 Serving size

This soup can feed four people quite generously.

🥗 Side dishes

You may be wondering:

"What do I serve this lentil and chickpea soup with?"

I recommend you serve this with a dollop of thick yoghurt and freshly squeezed lime juice.

Pair it with my chickpea flatbreads or my buckwheat pita bread to make it a complete meal.

📖 Variations

Like a lot of my recipes, this one is quite flexible.

And it gets better:

You can make it vegan by substituting the chicken stock for veggie stock and garnishing with coconut yoghurt instead.

If you’re a lentil lover, try these following recipes for inspiration.

• Greek lentil soup knowns as “fakes”
• My quick and easy lentil cakes
• My lentils and damper recipe - an odd combo that works well!

💭 Top tip

Want to know the best part:

You can freeze any leftover lentil and chickpea soup. If you find it’s too thick on reheating, thin it out with some water.