Slow Baked Moroccan Red Lentil Soup

Moroccan Red Lentil Soup
Photograph by A. Schloss

I can't stop thinking about food. Constantly tasting and cajoling ingredients in my mind, obsessively revisiting already finished recipes, imagining how they might be made better, or simpler, or easier, more exotic or more up-to-date. This riff on a recipe for Moroccan Red Lentil Soup that first appeared in Art of the Slow Cooker is none of those things. It is simply a way to make an intoxicating vegan slow cooker soup without a slow cooker.
  
Forget your same old, same-old lentil soup and take a deep breath.  You'll smell the cumin, the coriander, the whiff of cinnamon.  Open your eyes and take in the burnt-orange glow of turmeric burnished with tomatoes and sweet paprika. There are more than a half dozen spices in this fragrant soup. You can streamline the list with a single jar of Tunisian Fire Chef Salt, a product that I manufacture and use constantly. When you're done with the soup try it on roasted cauliflower, grilled salmon, sauteed chicken, or a garlic-crusted roast leg of lamb.

Lentil soups may come and go, but this exotic concoction will stick in your memory, not just for its heady aromas and hearty texture, but for its ease and versatility. Unlike dried beans, red lentils don’t need to be soaked before they’re cooked.

Moroccan Red Lentil Soup

Makes 6 servings.

Photograph by A. Schloss

2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

1 large Spanish onion, cut into medium dice

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 tbsp Tunisian Fire Chef Salt

or a blend of:

2 tsp ground coriander

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp ground turmeric

1/2 tsp paprika

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

1 1/2 tsp kosher salt

1/2 tsp ground black pepper

Pinch crushed red pepper flakes

7 cups vegetable broth

1 can (about 28 oz) diced tomatoes, with juices

2 cups dried red lentils, washed and rinsed

Juice of 1 lemon

3 tbsp chopped fresh Italian (flat-leaf) parsley

1 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro

Preheat the oven to 200°F/95°C

Red Lentils
Photograph by A. Schloss

Heat the olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat.  Add the onion and cook until tender, about 3 minutes.  Add the garlic, Chef Salt or blend of spices (coriander, cumin, turmeric, paprika, cinnamon, salt, pepper, crushed red pepper) and cook for another minute. 

Add the broth and tomatoes and heat to boiling.  Stir in the lentils, cover the pot, and cook in the oven for 4 to 8 hours, until the lentils are tender, or for the amount of time that is convenient to your schedule.

Just before serving, stir in the lemon juice, parsley, and cilantro

Bowl and Cauldron
Photograph by A. Schloss

If you want:

Before sauteing the onion, saute 1 pound skinless and boneless dark chicken meat or leg of lamb, cut into 1/2-inch pieces, in the oil until browned. Add the onion to the pan and proceed with the recipe.

Substitute 2 cups small dried white beans, soaked overnight, for the lentils.

Timing

Prep: 5 minutes

On the stove top: 8 minutes

In the oven: 4  to 8 hours