We use lots of dried peas, beans and lentils.
A good source is
https://www.sanjeevkapoor.com/3 recipes that I entrust to my wife are as below.
Spiced Tomato and Lentil Soup (fron sanjeevkapoor)
1 onion – half finely diced, the other half a bit bigger
oil for frying
2 cloves of garlic (or equivalent puree)
3 tsp cumin seeds
1 red pepper – finely diced (this is the only non-store cupboard item and is completely optional)
2 cans of chopped tomatoes
4 tsp of tomato puree
2 litres of hot vegetable stock
150 g - 200g of red lentils (depending on quite how thick you want it), rinsed
2 tsp ground coriander
2 tsp mixed herbs
half tsp dried chilli flakes (or 1tsp of chilli powder)
salt + pepper to taste
2 bay leaves
Method
Heat the oil in a large stock pot (ideally with a lid) then add all the onions. The hope is the little ones will goop down into the soup while the large ones provide the occasional chunk.
Add the garlic and cumin seeds. Stir together well then leave to cook for a few minutes – lid on. The onions should soften not brown.
Add the red pepper (if you’re using it) and repeat the stirring and couple of minutes of softening.
Add the tomatoes, the hot vegetable stock, the tomato puree (I usually "melt it into the stock, to make sure it’s well distributed throughout) and all the spices – except for the bay leaves. Bring to the boil and simmer for about 5 mins.
Another optional stage, for a smoother soup at the end – using a stick blender, blitz some of the bigger tomato chunks. I still like small chunks of veg in it though, so don’t take it too smooth – just a little blitzing.
Add the bay leaves and the lentils. Stir then leave to simmer for about 15 mins – stir it occasionally as the lentils will keep sinking to the bottom.
The soup is ready when the lentils are well cooked – soft but not mush.
Spicy Carrot and Lentil Soup
This recipe is a cheap and easy tasty soup with protein and fibre from the lentils.
A hand or stick blender works best. but you could use a potato masher.
For 6 servings, you will need:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium onion (about 100g) peeled & chopped
½ teaspoon ground cumin (Preferably roasted and fresh ground).
½ teaspoon ground turmeric
1 teaspoon ground coriander (We always grind fresh from seeds in a coffee grinder).
¼ teaspoon chilli powder
300g carrots peeled & chopped
2 cloves garlic peeled & finely chopped
100g red lentils
1 vegetable stock cube
Salt (preferably low salt substitute)
Ground black pepper
¼ lemon
Pinch or two of sugar
6 tablespoons of natural live yoghurt
1. Heat the oil in a large saucepan. Add the onions and spices and sauté
for a couple of minutes. Add the garlic and carrots and continue to
sauté for a few more minutes until the onions are softened. Add the
lentils and continue cooking for another minute.
2. Dissolve the stock cube in 1 litre boiling water and add to the pan.
3. Simmer with a lid on until the carrots are soft.
4. Use a hand blender to make a smooth soup. If you don’t have a
blender you could use a potato masher. Add a little boiling water if the
soup is too thick for you.
5. Add a few grinds of black pepper and the juice from the lemon.
Balance the flavour with salt and a pinch or two of sugar if needed.
6. Ladle the soup into six bowls and swirl a tablespoon of yoghurt in
each.
And this one from bbc good food
https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/user/9109/r ... entil-dahlExcept that we only use half a can coconut milk.
I made bolognaise last week using 1/3 beef, 1/3 red lentils and 1/3 onions, carrots and celery with a beef stock cube and lots of seasonings e.g oregano, chilli and garlic in the Sicilian style.
john