Something other than butter.
Something other than sugar.
Something other than bacon and breakfast.
I feel healthy and strong and clear skinned and shiny haired. ย And I totally want tater tots .
I know you don’t necessarily come here for healthy stuff like ginger and lentils.
I just can’t possibly eat all the muffins and scones and biscuits I make… and this is the mess I eat in real life.
This lentil soup is simple and straightforward.
I used French lentils. ย They come with an accent. ย They’re a speckled green and cook up plump and with a touch of crunch. ย They don’t turn to mush like brown lentils sometimes do. ย Ginger and garlic give this soup all its flavor. ย The more ginger, the more of a kick your soup will be. ย The amount of garlic added depends entirely on whether or not you have anyone to whisper to or make out with.
I added cumin, cayenne pepper and lemon to the soup because… it’s soup. ย Anything goes.
Ginger and Lentil Soup
adapted from Essential New York Time Cookbook
serves 8
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 large onion, chopped small
3 to 6 cloves garlic, minced
3 to 4 tablespoons ginger, grated or finely diced
3 ย cups water
3 to 4 carrots, sliced
1 pound French lentils
6 cups vegetable or chicken broth
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (or to taste)
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
salt and pepper to taste
grated Gruyere cheese for serving
cooked couscous for serving
Take some time to sift through the lentils. ย Do it. ย Sometimes you find little rocks and pebbles. ย Those are bad for the teeth. ย I found a rock in my lentils… check through! ย After picking through the lentils, place in a colander and rinse with cool water. ย Set aside.
Chop onions, garlic and grate ginger and chop carrots.
Place a large pot over medium heat. ย Add oil. ย When oil is hot, add onions. ย Cook until transparent and slightly browned. ย Add garlic, ginger and carrots and and cook, while stirring, for 1 minute. ย Add cumin and cayenne pepper and cook for 30 seconds.
Add the water to the hot pot and scrape the browned bits off the bottom of the pot as the liquid sizzles. ย Add lentils and broth and simmer for about 45 minutes, until lentils have softened. ย Taste and season with salt and pepper. ย Finish with lemon.
Serve with grated cheese and/or couscous.
Soup will last, in an airtight container in the fridge, for about a week. ย Soup is also great to keep in the freezer. ย It’s a win.
122 Responses
Made this tonight….delicious. Especially with the lemon juice at the end. Perfect.
Just made this for dinner tonight (and for the whole week!). It was absolutely delicious! I really appreciate the serving suggestion of couscous and gruyere – it was a really nice touch.
i love beans! i know the people around me must not (the gases.. the horror!) but i’m excited to make a large pot of this. muhahaha!
i really love this soup, joy! i’ve made it twice now and am excited to do it again!
i’ve enjoyed your blog for a couple years now and am finally getting around to commenting! i love your heartfelt, funny, honest posts – it’s what keeps me coming back (not to mention the beautiful pictures and delicious variety of food!)
This was great – especially after heavy eating all week. FYI: I subbed for gruyere with parmesan. I also did not have any garlic (i know!!), so went big on the ginger and used fresh chives at the very end on top with the cheese. Delish.
nice job! sounds delicious!
1lb of lentils = how many cups???
looks great!
Loved this! Took away the additions you made and kept it simple with just salt and pepper. Added really thick chunks of bacon, though. Totally recommend doing this.
Thank you for this! I love it! I can’t wait to make it at home. It seems super easy to make.
This is cooking on my stove right now, and smells amazing. So excited!
I love the savory, meal-type dishes! I’m always looking for new healthy meal ideas that can be used for a few days. Thanks Joy!
Totally unrelated to the lentils:
The man in my life just bought me this for my birthday. Thought you might enjoy it, too:
https://popchartlab.com/index.php/poster_detail/the_splendiferous_array_of_culinary_tools/
I swoon over men who understand my love for whisks.
Yesterday I made a salad that called for with French Lentils and Roasted Beets and Carrots. Only I subbed the lentils with yellow split peas; they turned a gorgeous red after mixing it up with the beets. The salad was a yummy accompaniment to the standard grilled sausage and hot dogs fare at our Super Bowl party! The recipe is super easy; mix in a bowl with olive oil, beets, carrots, and onion, roast at 400 degrees just until fork tender. Remove to cool. Dice beets, carrots, and onion and mix with lemon juice (to taste), s&p, and crushed or minced garlic. Let sit. Meanwhile, boil lentils just until done (don’t overcook), cool then toss with marinating root veggies. Top with chopped parsley and serve on a bed of baby spinach, chilled or at room temp. Enjoy!
This recipe inspired me to use the lentils that have been forever in my cupboard. I put everything in a slow cooker and I’m going to cook it on low for around 6-8 hours. I also added some butternut squash that I had just to give the soup a pop of color.
This made me smile. I enjoy sweet things so much more when stuff like this makes up the bulk of my meals.
Ginger, gruyere, and couscous…lentils need lovely complements like that! I plan to give this a shot.
I actually LIKE sorting through the lentils (or beans) for the pebbles. It’s relaxing. Is that weird? This soup looks wonderful, especially with the couscous. Yum.
Thank you for this post! I love your sweet treats, but I also love the bits of healthy recipes you treat us to. Your green smoothie has become my lunch time staple!
I tried this out. Wow! It. Is. Gorgeous!
I’m on holiday with a vegan friend in a couple of weeks. I’m going to serve this as a stew (with herb dumplings, potatoes and broccoli) for a main course.
Thanks Joy!
I have that book but hadn’t seen that recipe yet – mmmm looks wonderful. Thanks for bringing it to my attention :)
This was FABULOUS! I added some curry powder and diced red peppers, then served with a dollop of greek yogurt and a sprinking of cilantro. SO good, so versatile!
You are hilarious and I read your blog for the guaranteed chuckle I know I will get. Soup recipe is an added bonus ;)
It seems that you made this soup just for us Oklahomans who haven’t left the house in 3 days due to Snowpocalypse 2011. Yes, that’s what we’re calling it. Thank you very much for a reason to get out and go to the grocery store.
Hi Joy, I really don’t like lentils at all, don’t eat them very often, but this soup made me change my mind….I will probably be eaten this soup very often. I totally love couscous and ginger. Thanks for this great recipe.
I LOVE lentils! This recipe looks amazing and perfect for a frigid day like today! Thanks!
I already had a pot of lentil soup on yesterday (ice storm in nyc was the ultimate soup weather) when I read this, but hello, how did I never think of serving lentil soup with cous cous? I immediately made some to go with it– thanks for the tip. I’ll have to try your lentil soup for the next storm (and with the winter we’ve had, I expect the next storm to happen in about 24 hours).
I made this last night, and it was stupendous! Thanks, Joy :-D
I don’t really miss the sweets, it’s nice to have some balance and I LOVE your soups! So diet-friendly! Thanks Joy! It’s the Chinese New Year today, and ginger is very seasonal :)
Yummmm! I have some dried lentils in the cupboard. None of the others, I regret but once this blizzard melts I can go to the store and get some more goodies to make something like this. :)
This soup looks healthfully delicious! Love all of the different flavors in it!
I have 90% of the ingredients for this in my house right now. The other 10% I can either purchase very soon or substitute pretty easily. This looks like a great pantry staple soup – basic stuff in a special way. Keep the savory coming!
Lentil soup is one of my favorite soups, and I am not much of a soup person. And ginger is my all time favorite, so this soup is perfect in so many ways ;)
This looks spectacular! I just cooked with fresh ginger for the first time earlier this week (another soup) and I can’t wait to use it again. And lentils…well, they’re one of my favorite foods ever, soI’m pretty sure I’m going to love this soup.
Just found you. Re-read your posts like a favorite novel. Have been thinking about lentils lately and you posted. There must be a connection.
I love lentil soup so I really want to try out this interesting combination.
I have a huge sweet tooth. But I think I’ve reached my max because lately I’ve been craving savoury dishes. Maybe I’ll start with this.
Looks great. I’m always scared to make lentils…scared they won’t be cooked all the way and I will have wasted time and money. I have tried many of your recipes so I know I can give this a whirl and it will come out perfect. :) I have leftover ginger from the Asian Noodle Bowl I made tonight too!
Today I was thinking about how I wanted to make lentil soup. Mind reader! Love the ginger.
I eat lentils often. I always make them with my favorite Italian recipe. Mine is boring in comparison to this burst of flavors. I can’t wait to try this! Ginger and lentils and Gruyere-incredible:)Thank you for sharing this super recipe.
An absolutely divine soup. Stuck in with snow and ice today, and I made it for lunch. Delicious. I used about a tsp of ground ginger instead of fresh, and it was so bright and snappy.
OMG I recently ate a soup just like this in SF and wanted to figure out how to make it! Can’t wait to try!
Love when you post great dinner dishes- keep the mix of savory and sweet coming! I’m making this tonight :)
This looks great, but I’m thinking you should do a homemade tater tots recipe to get the balance back ;)
Ooh how perfect is this? I love lentils and they’re so, so healthy. And don’t even get me started on ginger. I could eat it by the pound!
I feel deprived without a great deal of butter in my life, but this looks quite lovely and I have been craving soup for days now….
This looks and sounds so wholesome and healthful, mmmmm. I love lentils and the ginger sounds perfectly warming for a February night. Thanks :)
I need to do more making of recipes like this and less brownies/biscuits/cakes/pastry…. I promise myself I will make something warming and restorative this weekend. (Note to self: warm cake does not fall into this category.)
which is better, chicken or vegetable broth?
just depends on your taste!
this sounds perfect! i’ve been obsessed with ginger lately…
Yummy. Lentil soup is one of my top 10 foods I’d take on a deserted island. And I KNEW you couldn’t just eat all the cake and cookies you bake throughout the week – but honestly, where do they disappear to? You can’t have friends over for breakfast, lunch and dinner that help eating all those sweets. I really like baking, and I have 4 flatmates, but even they have pronounced an embargo on anything I bake or cook, because they’re fed up, quite literally. So, cards on the table, where do they go to?
Alice x
Awesome recipe. I love your savory dishes, keep posting this stuff along with the sweets!
Well, healthy dishes can be really tasty too! Even if I love sugar stuff, I like a good meal once in a while. And the colors are just perfect!
I love the sweet and savory things you post! I’ll have to think about this because I’ve only had lentil soup once and I hated it, but then again it wasn’t made from scratch…Hmmmm a dilemma!
HI. I love you Joy but I really miss the sweets.
scroll down. there’s plenty of sweets going on around here.
I Love both Lentils and Ginger-it’s as if you made this soup with me in mind-thanks
Mmm, I do love French lentils, but never thought to pair with ginger before. Delicious!
Also, I like to cook them in non-salted water, then add salt at the end. This makes them soften, but still sort of keep their shape due to the outside skin thingee. On the other hand if one likes a bit of crunch, then the salt will achieve that!
Kudos for showing everyone you do actually eat quite healthy despite the butter.
I just made this and it’s delicious! I didn’t have french lentils but the brown lentils still have a nice texture. Love this recipe! thanks!
hummina hummina hummina. that looks so perfect. now, i just need it to rain in LA again so it’s soup weather…
I am so making this tomorrow. Perfect timing as always, lady! This is just what I’ve been craving.
Trying this tonight! I’ve never had french lentils, but you know what they say, “Once you go french, you never…….” (Hmm…not sure, but I’m guessing it involves not eating the soggy, anemic brown lentils anymore).
God, I love lentil soup. This combination is brilliant, going to have to give it a whirl. Thanks for another fabu recipe.
Joy! I saw that you are a featured blogger of the month on Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution website. Kudos to you m’dear.
thank you!
Beautiful post Joy! And yay to having the same cutting board! Love my epicurean cutting boards! Wonderful adaptation from the New York Times cookbook! Looks absolutely delicious!
I just made a soup like this from a NY times recipe on my blog, it had red lentils, cumin, lemon and cilantro. Now you have me intrigued with the addition of ginger!! Where do you get the french lentils? I have never been able to find them!
i found french lentils at whole foods market.
I love lentils, and I’m sure I’d love this with a nice piece of crusty bread to go with it. Yummmm!! :)
Awesome recipe, I’ve made something similar many times but yours has more flavours which is great. Carrot would give nice sweetness. You could substitute butter for olive oil for extra flavour:)
the colors in that soup are fabulous!!
I cannot wait to make this! so this is so right up my alley. Thanks Joy!
Yay! i finally found a recipe i can use to find the bikini bod of myself! “watch out babies, cause here i come” (drums in the background- i’m so weird) :P
say, i thought i smelled a doughnut somewhere… :)
If ANYBODY loves you they will love ginger breath! The true sign of REAL love.
Off to find some lentils Joy and thanks:)
I’m really loving the change of pace with the non-baked goods recipes! Everything you post, sweet or savory, looks amazing.
Amazing, Joy! But what to do with the fresh lemon juice? Is it to prepare the couscous?
I’ll make it tonight. Thanks!
blerg. fixing now.
yumm, yummy, yummy! i LOVE lentils! and now i know what to do with that huge ginger root in my fridge…
I love french lentils — the last batch of lentils I used (in daal) had TONS of hidden rocks and I had to throw it out…hate that! Your soup looks and sounds delicious.
YUM!!!
Have to admit, I had lentil soup for the very first time EVER last month. It was worth the wait. This one sounds yummy and will force me to try something else new…couscous
awesome….and i feel the same way…after a certain amount of healthy great food i just need a sugar or fat fix! Beer battered french fries would be my vice of choice… ;)
love,
cathy b.
I’ve been a lentil-eating machine lately. But I haven’t tried ’em with ginger and cayenne! Yum! Can’t wait!
I used to buy French lentils because the regular brown ones would turn to mush, but then I just started cooking the brown ones over very low heat and they no longer mush up. Your choice–French ones are almost triple the price for me!
Have a great day :)
i’m glad you made up with brown lentils!
I love lentil soup, made some last week. Like always love your presentation with the coucous and big chunks of carrot. Perfect snow day recipe, if it were actually snowing here. Which it’s not, sorry love living on the west coast.
Lentil soup is the best. I have never tried it with ginger.
Fantastic sounding recipe! I love lentil soup and am very glad you posted it.
This soup looks awesome, so fresh and healthy! Could you use green lentils instead?
Hi Joy,
Love your blog!
I am enjoying making lots of soups, but I’m wondering what you use for stock — do you always make your own? Many of the packaged ones have MSG, and I feel terribly guilty making a healthy soup and throwing MSG into the mix.
I really wanted a brownie for breakfast this morning.. My boyfriend told me I better not eat one because I already had an apple and protein shake packed for work. He was supposed to make me pancakes. So now, when I make this, I’m not going to give him any.
Just kidding. I might give him a bite.
Forgot to mention.. he ate Poptarts for breakfast.
you are funny.
This is very good soup, delizious, esay to make and very healty! It’s perfect for the winter time! And using ginger is a very interesting choice…I’d like to try it!
i am down with flu,and this is what i want now,..whts the substitute for french lentil
regular brown lentils. red lentils. maybe even split peas? feel better soon!
A wonderful, flavorful, hearty soup… just what i need this time of year. I love the inclusion of ginger in it too. Brings such brightness to the dish, I’m sure.
You are doing all our waistlines a favour today! ;)
Oh, I love lentils. I definitely love cake more, but lentils are also very good!
Oh, I love lentils. I definitely love cake more, but lentils are also very good!
I have to admit, my little heart soared when I saw “3-6 cloves garlic.” I always laugh when a recipe calls for 1 clove, before tripling it. My husband got a little tray of pre-peeled garlic from the Asian store recently and since it’s so easy to use, now he’s over-garlicking everything and it’s delightful!
Dang, we have no fresh ginger, but I need it for an Indian-spiced quinoa dish anyway. Hmmm, do I venture out into the 40 mph winds, or hold off for a few days? (I keep crossing my fingers that my boss is going to call and tell me not to come in. Not likely, though.)
I love lentils; they are one of my favorite things. This will so be made this weekend.
Perfect for this cold winter weekend.
The soup looks really good,l will have to wait for winter.
I notice that the french lentils are very popular in US but you should try the italian variety Castelluccio da Norcia, are known as the best. Maybe it’s because I am italian (from Rome – but my grandfather was french, so I can say it ;)) but the french one are not better than the italian one. Believe me, try it!
baci
i’ll totally try italian lentils! thanks!
What a healthy looking soup! I love it!
Yum soup! Ginger has such a lovely, warm undertone. Love it in soups like this!
Joy! I have missed your posts while travelling. I love lentils! It’s supposed to be summer here (in NZ), but it’s awful so soup wouldn’t be amiss – and this looks gorgeous. I’m going to be re-embracing butter and sugar asap too though…
I love french lentils! They oh so beat all the other members of the lentil family.
I really love your blog, I can’t wait to switch on the computer and read your new post…
I think I’m gonna make this soup tonight <3
Hi Joy, I love love love your blog! In fact, you are partly responsible for the 10 lbs I’ve gained over the last 6 months! But hey, it’s worth it.
Keep up the good work & soup looks great!
Frozen soup? Interesting…
@Amy – I’d be wary of freezing “cream of stuff” type soups, but anything that’s non-dairy, should be absolutely fine in the freezer.
I have a couple of lentil soups, both with red lentils. This looks really interesting – I’ll definitely try it out!
Wow Joy this sounds amazing! And I love that photo! Gorgeous!
P.S. Super excited to hear you are going to be speaking at Camp Blogaway! How awesome! I really hope I can make it this year!
The soup does look a winner already! Love the veggie, herb and lentils in the soup. Refreshing and soothing.