Spiced carrot & lentil soup

Spiced carrot & lentil soup

A delicious, spicy blend, packed full of iron and low fat to boot. It's ready in under half an hour or can be made in a slow cooker

Difficulty and servings

Easy

Serves 4

Preparation and cooking times

Preparation time

Prep 10 mins

Cook time

Cook 15 mins

Vegetarian Freezable

Vegetarian, Dairy-free

To make dairy-free, see 'Try' below

Method

  1. Heat a large saucepan and dry-fry the cumin seeds and chilli flakes for 1 min, or until they start to jump around the pan and release their aromas. Scoop out about half of the seeds with a spoon and set aside. Add the oil, carrot, lentils, stock and milk to the pan and bring to the boil. Simmer for 15 mins until the lentils have swollen and softened.
  2. Whizz the soup with a stick blender or in a food processor until smooth (or leave it chunky if you prefer). Season to taste and finish with a dollop of yogurt and a sprinkling of the reserved toasted spices. Serve with warmed naan breads.
Try

Make it Moroccan

Substitute the chilli flakes and cumin seeds for a few teaspoons of harissa paste. You could add cooked shredded chicken at the end of cooking, too.

IF YOU WANT TO USE A SLOW COOKER...

Place half the cumin seeds, half the chilli flakes, the oil, carrots, lentils and 700ml stock into your slow cooker pot. Cover and cook on High for 3 hours until the lentils are tender. Dry-fry the remaining cumin seeds and chilli flakes just until fragrant. When the lentils are done, stir in the milk and whizz up the soup depending on how chunky you'd like it.

Make it dairy-free

For a richer but dairy-free alternative, use a can of reduced-fat coconut milk instead of the milk.

238 kcalories, protein 11g, carbohydrate 34g, fat 7 g, saturated fat 1g, fibre 5g, salt 0.25 g

Recipe from Good Food magazine, October 2005.

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Latest comments and suggestions

Results 121-140

  • Binder photo yummie

    07 June 2009

    yummie commented on this recipe

    sorry Jane, but you have missed out the amount of stock, or am I mis-reading, I am a bit thick, lol :(

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  • Binder photo Gwennie

    09 June 2009

    Gwennie rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    Cheap to make, really yummy and makes enough for the freezer

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  • Binder photo wildspiritart

    24 June 2009

    wildspiritart commented on this recipe

    I made the Moroccan variation using Harissa paste. Delicious! Will make again.

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  • Binder photo tinad

    06 July 2009

    tinad commented on this recipe

    This soup is almost up there with our family's firm favourite of chorizo and lentil soup. Have made again and again and again and.....!

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  • Binder photo tinad

    06 July 2009

    tinad rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    Sorry forgot to rate!

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  • Binder photo Georgelikescake

    10 July 2009

    Georgelikescake rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    So easy to make, the only thing that takes time is grating all the carrots! Great all year round and has been enjoyed by vegetarians and meat-eaters alike

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  • Binder photo Gillh007

    11 July 2009

    Gillh007 rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    WOW this is good! I didn't grate the carrots (way too hard!) finely chopped instead, and let the hand blender do the rest. Chopped up a large handful of fresh coriander (had a load in the veggie patch) as it cooked, which added more depth. A wonderful soup. Will do many times again. No need for the oil, just let the carrots sweat a bit, before adding liquid. Used Total Zero Yoghurt, FAB SOUP. :0)

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  • Binder photo Buzz

    15 July 2009

    Buzz commented on this recipe

    I wanted something quick and easy to prepare for my 3 year old's tea and this was perfect. Took very little time - required few ingredients and was scoffed. She is quite picky so I ground the roasted cumin seeds before adding so there wouldn't be bits in the final soup, and left out the chilli. Leftovers were enjoyed by the rest of the family later.

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  • Binder photo Ver1ty

    17 July 2009

    Ver1ty rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    Quick, easy & delicious!

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  • Binder photo Alex

    02 August 2009

    Alex commented on this recipe

    Love it!!!

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  • Binder photo Alex

    02 August 2009

    Alex rated this recipe

    5 stars

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  • Binder photo una

    05 August 2009

    una rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    Great soup! it was so good! Will make again :)

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  • Binder photo westy

    08 August 2009

    westy commented on this recipe

    looks nice, i make a similar version but easier http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/12185/spicy-carrot-and-potato-soup

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  • Binder photo Victoria

    08 August 2009

    Victoria commented on this recipe

    I tried this recipe and loved it too, but I found it under the 'dairy free' section. Surely with milk and cream it's not dairy free!

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  • Binder photo CloClo

    09 August 2009

    CloClo commented on this recipe

    I think I will make this tomorrow - will definitely be using onion though, as have loads to use up. Not sure what kind of lentils we have, or the amount of carrots. You can probably tell I don't follow recipes much, and just use them as a base! Will let you know how I get on.

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  • Binder photo pixie

    10 August 2009

    pixie rated and commented on this recipe

    3 stars

    just made the soup, tasty but will add more chilli next time to give a bit of a kick. quick and easy to make.

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  • Binder photo Sirlewy

    10 August 2009

    Sirlewy rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    quite nice, i will add more chilli and onion next time, easy and cheap, all in all a good soup :)

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  • Binder photo CloClo

    12 August 2009

    CloClo rated and commented on this recipe

    3 stars

    The version I made was ok - and I added onion and garlic. I really think the printed version would be very bland. I will add even more onion, more garlic, and other flavourings next time. There definitely will be a next time though, I think it has the makings of a very nice low fat lunch!

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  • Binder photo leon

    14 August 2009

    leon rated this recipe

    5 stars

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  • Binder photo nonnielo

    17 August 2009

    nonnielo commented on this recipe

    Wow! This soup recipe is fabulous. I used soy milk and a little of my home-made favorite spice blend of garlic/onion/ginger bits and sea salt and rock sugar bits.....next time I will try it your way and leave out the seasoning....Since I'm lactose intolerant, the soy milk is a must for me.....but the soup is excellent with soy milk!

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Difficulty and servings

Easy

Serves 4

Preparation and cooking times

Preparation time

Prep 10 mins

Cook time

Cook 15 mins

Vegetarian Freezable

Vegetarian, Dairy-free

To make dairy-free, see 'Try' below

Healthy vegetarian supper

Ingredients

  • 2 tsp cumin seeds
  • pinch chilli flakes
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 600g carrots , washed and coarsely grated (no need to peel)
  • 140g split red lentils
  • 1l hot vegetable stock (from a cube is fine)
  • 125ml milk
  • plain yogurt and naan bread, to serve
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238 kcalories, protein 11g, carbohydrate 34g, fat 7 g, saturated fat 1g, fibre 5g, salt 0.25 g

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