Winter soups: Dahl

Now that both of us are home most of the time (I’m working from home as a freelance writer & editor, and t! is taking some well-earned time off), we’ve had to re-jig our meal planning. When t! was still working in the city, I would make a big batch of casserole or stew each Sunday afternoon, and pack it into tupperware containers for him to take to work each day as his main meal of the day.

For the last little while I have been falling into the trap of worrying about what I was going to make for supper every evening around 4pm, and feeling like a failure every time I didn’t come up with something creative, healthy, and tasty. So we sat down and discussed it and made a meal plan that works for both of us, which includes making at least one casserole, one nice dinner, and one big pot of hearty soup each week.

So far it’s working pretty well, so I thought I’d share some of the recipes I’m using, starting with the hearty pulse-based soups (part of our meal-planning discussion included the observation that traditionally a farm kitchen would have a pot of split-pea soup simmering on the back of the wood stove all winter).

First up, Indian curried red lentil soup, or Dahl.

• 2 cups red lentils
• 500 ml chicken or vegetable stock
• 300-500 ml tomato sauce, or crushed tomatoes, or stewed tomatoes
• 1 half can (approximately 200 ml) coconut milk
• a chunk of fresh ginger (or 1 teaspoon of powdered ginger, but it’s much better with fresh)
• 2 or 3 cloves garlic (or more to taste)
• 1 to 2 tablespoons olive (or other cooking) oil
• 1 onion, diced
• black pepper to taste
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1  teaspoon cumin
• 1  teaspoon turmeric
• 2 teaspoons curry powder
• ½ teaspoon cayenne
• ½ teaspoon salt

I make most of my soups, including this one, in a slow cooker / crock-pot, but I’ve included instructions for making it on the stove top as well:

1. Mince the garlic and ginger, and dice the onion. Saute them in the olive oil over medium heat until the onions soften. Use a frying pan or small pot if you’re going to transfer to a slow cooker, use a large, heavy-bottomed soup pot if you’re going to cook the soup on the stove top.
2. Stir in the cumin, turmeric, curry powder, cayenne and black pepper. “Cook” the spices with the onions for 2-3 minutes, stirring often.
3. If using a slow cooker, dump the sautéed onions & spices into the slow cooker and deglaze the pot with some of the stock. If cooking on the stove top, add the stock to the pot and stir.
4. Add the rest of the ingredients, except the salt, stir well. In a slow cooker, cook on high for at least 2 hours or on low for at least 4. On the stove top, bring to a boil and then simmer for 30-45 minutes. With either method, add extra water if the soup gets to thick and starts to stick to the bottom of the pot.
5. Add salt if necessary, and more lemon juice and black pepper to taste.

This recipe makes 4 medium-sized servings (great as lunch with a side salad or some bread and cheese) and can be easily doubled.