Need some way to use a ham bone? If not, just use a ham hock and make this very heady lentil soup loaded with Indian spices (cinnamon, cardamom pods, turmeric, curry powder, red chili flakes) and topped with yogurt, cilantro and green onions.
You may recall that I had a ham left over from Easter Sunday and I knew I would be making some kind of soup with it. Probably lentil, but I hadn’t really decided. Several friends had mentioned split pea soup was on their menu this week, but I prefer lentils to split peas. I have one other lentil soup here on my blog – the one my dad used to make. It’s more an American style soup, I’d say, using oregano and canned tomatoes, with ground beef, not ham or chicken. Once I got down to it there wasn’t much ham left on the bone – we’d had it for 2 dinners and 2 lunches. It was mostly bone, but then I knew it would be full of flavor.
So, I simply put it in my huge soup pot, added water, an onion, some ginger and garlic, a bay leaf, red chili flakes and some spices and let it simmer for an hour. I had some chicken bones left over too, so they went into the pot as well. Then I added some lentils. I happened to have the red/orange type which turn yellow when cooked. These simmered for about 20 minutes. Then I added mushrooms (just because I had them in the refrigerator) and a couple cups of chopped celery (because I love their texture in soups). I cooked it another 10 minutes or less – just long enough to cook through the veggies. Some yogurt was added and a can of light coconut milk. I tasted it for seasoning (added some salt) and at the last minute added garam masala to the soup before scooping it out into bowls and garnishing with a little dollop of yogurt and green onion and cilantro.
This soup is quite soupy (meaning thinner than some). Don’t expect it to be solid and chunky – it’s actually quite light. Nourishing, though and extra tasty. If you prefer a chunkier soup, just don’t add as much water as I did. You can always add it later.
What I liked: the overall flavor – lots of it – spicy hot. The meat in it (and there wasn’t much of it as I probably had just a cup or so of ham and chicken meat once I pulled it off the bones) was just right. It’s more about the lentils than the meat anyway. Loved the mural of flavors in this from the cinnamon and cardamom. And the cumin. And curry. Well, all of it.
What I didn’t like: nada, nothing.
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Spicy Lentil Soup
Recipe By: My own concoction
Serving Size: 10
NOTES: This is ideal for using some leftover ham – mostly the bone. This soup has very little meat in it (maybe about 1 1/2 cups at most). It’s also a thinner style soup. If you like it really thick, just use a lot less water. If you use low fat or fat free yogurt do not bring the pot to a boil at all or the yogurt will separate. Full fat Greek yogurt can tolerate a light simmer, but this is best just heated through enough to serve.
1 whole ham hock — (about a pound)
3 pieces chicken thigh, no skin (or use left over chicken meat added to the soup later)
1 large onion — peeled, chopped
1 whole cinnamon stick
1 whole bay leaf
4 whole cardamom — pods
3 quarts water — or use chicken broth if you are using left over chicken meat instead of the bones added to the broth part
4 tablespoons ginger garlic paste — (or use some fresh ginger ground fine and several cloves garlic)
2 tablespoons ground cumin
1 tablespoon turmeric
1 tablespoon curry powder — medium hot
1/2 teaspoon red chili flakes
1/2 tablespoon garlic chili paste
2 cups lentils — small, any color
1 pound mushrooms — chopped
2 cups celery — sliced
15 ounces coconut milk — light, if available
2 cups Greek yogurt, full-fat
1 1/2 tablespoons garam masala
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
TOPPINGS:
2/3 cup green onions — chopped (both white and green part)
1/3 cup cilantro — minced
Greek yogurt to taste
1. Add water to a very large stock pot, then add the ham hock (or leftover ham bone with some ham meat attached), chicken, onion, cinnamon stick, bay leaf, cardamom pods, ginger garlic paste, ground cumin, turmeric, curry powder, chili flakes, garlic chili paste. Bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for about 45 minutes. Remove ham and chicken into a bowl and set aside to cool.
2. Add lentils to the soup pot, bring to a boil again, reduce heat and simmer for 15-30 minutes, until lentils are still under-done. How long that is will depend on what kind and size lentils you use.
3. Meanwhile, prepare mushrooms and celery. Add to pot and simmer for about 10 minutes only (you want the veggies to have texture). While that’s cooking, remove the ham and chicken meat from the bones and tear or cut into small bites and add into the soup for the last 2-3 minutes to heat through.
4. Prepare the garnishes and set aside.
5. When the soup is done, add the coconut milk and yogurt. Heat through, then add the garam masala. Taste for seasonings (salt will be needed).
6. Scoop about 2 cups out into wide, flat soup bowls and garnish with green onions, cilantro and a dollop of Greek yogurt.
Per Serving: 377 Calories; 18g Fat (41.3% calories from fat); 21g Protein; 38g Carbohydrate; 17g Dietary Fiber; 38mg Cholesterol; 86mg Sodium.
Toffeeapple
said on April 23rd, 2012:
A perfect recipe for the cold wet Spring that we are having here in Blighty. I do love lentils and soups.
You’ll like this soup, then. We had the last of it as left overs yesterday and I swear it was better than the day I made it, as soups usually are! I was sorry it was all gone! We’ve also had some really cool weather here too – so damp and overcast it’s almost raining. . . . carolyn t