A minimal soup with maximum flavour!
Nutrition:
There are three types of lentils: brown, green and red. The brown lentils have a mild flavour and become mushy when overcooked. This is ideal to make stews or soups. The green lentils have a peppery taste and a crunchy texture, ideal for a salad or a side dish. Red lentils are similar to the brown ones. They are soft, mild and optimal for soups. This recipe contains the red lentils. These lentils are a source of nutrients including protein, fibre, folic acid, potassium and selenium. All these nutrients contribute to maintaining a healthy heart, reducing levels of LDL cholesterol and blood pressure. They can be considered as a functional food for the DASH diet. This diet is based on the consumption of high amount of fruit, vegetables and legumes and a low amount of meat, with the main purpose of lowering blood pressure. Lentils are also high in protein and they can be an optimal alternative to meat. If you want to improve your health status and save the planet, you should reduce your meat intake and start consuming alternative proteins like beans, lentils, chickpeas or tofu. However, compared to beans, lentils do not need soaking and are lower in phytates, which decrease the body’s availability to absorb nutrients. Therefore, lentils do not reduce the bioavailability of vitamins and minerals. Finally, due to their folic acid content, they are recommended for pregnant women, as this vitamin prevents neural tube defects and gestational diabetes. Due to the selenium content, they decrease the risk of developing cancer and improve your immune system.
What You Need:
200g red lentils
1 tin of baked beans
2 tablespoons of curry powder
1 teaspoon of chilli
1 vegetable stock cube
3 glass
750ml of water
Method:
Add your lentils, stock cube and water into a cooking pot and set to a high heat. Wait for your water to star boiling and then lower to a moderate heat.
After this, add your baked beans and spices. The key to this dish is to make sure you consistency stir your soup until your lentils start to turn into a think, liquid substance.
Depending on how runny you want your soup depends on how long you leave It cooking in the water. For a think soup, turn off your cooker when your lentils just start to pop like popcorn (yes, red lentils pop!) For a runny soup, keep your lentils cooking.
Once finished cooking, place your soup in a bowl and serve with a slice of bread.
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