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 321-340

  • Binder photo Aivlys

    18 January 2011

    Aivlys rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    Soooooo good mmmm and so easy even for me!

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  • Binder photo pknutsen

    20 January 2011

    pknutsen rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    Loved it! Awesome! Easy, delicious, healthy!

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  • Binder photo annmucc

    23 January 2011

    annmucc rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    Deliciously spicy, with a great nutty flavour and texture coming from the lentils. Because of the lentils, it really makes you feel full after eating it. A definite repeat�wonderful!

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  • Binder photo alisongf

    23 January 2011

    alisongf rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    lovely soup and naturally gluten free to make it lower in calories I didn't add the oil and it was still very tasty.

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  • Binder photo chicajules

    26 January 2011

    chicajules commented on this recipe

    A really tasty and warming soup. I fried an onion and some garlic to add some more flavour, and instead of grating the carrots i diced them and cooked them with the other ingredients until they were soft and added the lentils at the end. Also i didn,t have chilli flakes so used a teaspoon of chilli powder. Delicious. I will be making this again for sure.

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  • Binder photo travellingtale

    26 January 2011

    travellingtale rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    Such an easy and yummy recipe! I don't eat much red meat so the lentils are a good substitute.

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  • Binder photo tadpole

    26 January 2011

    tadpole rated this recipe

    5 stars

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  • Binder photo Barbara Anderton

    30 January 2011

    Barbara Anderton rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    This is my first comment but I just had to!!! This is a wonderfully tasty soup with a big chunk of my homemade wholemeal bread! I also use a sprig of rosemary, half I chop,the other half I add later along with tarragon and a tablespoon of curry powder which I put in at the start with the cumin:) So cheap, nourishing and incredibly yummy!! Really LOVE it as does my husband!

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  • Binder photo Lindylou

    30 January 2011

    Lindylou commented on this recipe

    I made this for a bonfire party and everyone loved it. I did omit the oil though as most of my guests are counting calories, but as it was my first attempt no one would have known. My son now as me making it regularly.

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  • Binder photo Suzi-Bear

    01 February 2011

    Suzi-Bear rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    Yum Yum Yum! It so quick and simple and I love this hearty filling soup. Would highly recommend.

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  • Binder photo Faves

    05 February 2011

    Faves commented on this recipe

    Delicious tasty soup, easily made from storecupboard ingredients. However I agree with previous posters re' the consiistency, much too thick but a little more stock/milk sorted it.

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  • Binder photo sw77

    06 February 2011

    sw77 rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    This is a fabulously easy soup. I added a tablespoon of honey with the lentils etc. Delicious! Thank you GF

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  • Binder photo JessicaLeigh

    07 February 2011

    JessicaLeigh rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    Gorgeous, everyone who has tried it has asked for the recipe.

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  • Binder photo moniaolo

    10 February 2011

    moniaolo rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    Yummy! Couldn't believe how easy it was to make...

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  • Binder photo Cedders

    10 February 2011

    Cedders commented on this recipe

    This was such an easy, economical, tasty, satisfying soup to cook. I am really disappointed I cannot find a way of giving it more than six stars on the rating. To make up for it - **********

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  • Binder photo Nestlain

    15 February 2011

    Nestlain rated and commented on this recipe

    4 stars

    This recipe to easy and fast. It requires a fair bit of seasoning so don't be shy!

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  • Binder photo JMcLarnon

    15 February 2011

    JMcLarnon commented on this recipe

    This is thick, filling and scrummy. Also, I am on weight watchers and it only as 7 pro points per serving! Bliss!

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  • Binder photo Fordy

    20 February 2011

    Fordy rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    This is a lovely soup recipe and really easy to make. I leave out the milk but add a finely grated onion. A family favourite.

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  • Binder photo AM66

    24 February 2011

    AM66 rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    It has a really nice texture and heat to it, easy to make and reheat on a cold day.

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  • Binder photo Rachel

    28 February 2011

    Rachel rated and commented on this recipe

    4 stars

    This is a nice easy to make soup and I probably will make it again, but I do think it could do with a little extra something - not quite sure what though!

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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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