BY AINE CARLIN
Coconuts and Avocados: two of nature’s greatest gifts. Who on earth cares about cream, butter, and cheese when you have these luscious foods at your disposal?
Technically a fruit, the coconut has become a major feature in my diet and my cooking. I’m a total coconut oil convert, frequently use desiccated coconut in a wide variety of desserts and breakfasts and have firmly placed coconut milk as a steadfast staple in my kitchen. I’ve even replaced my beloved soy milk for coconut milk – which is a good thing really, as I’m always looking for ways to limit my soy intake.
To clarify, there are two kinds of coconut milk on the market; one is canned and is used mainly for cooking and the other is reserved for drinking or pouring into tea, coffee or onto cereal. It is also wonderful in smoothies and shakes.
Canned coconut milk is exceptionally creamy, which makes it ideal for making ice-creams, yogurt, sweetened whipped cream and also lends a richness to any dish in which it is used. In my eyes, coconut milk can do no wrong. It’s the food that keeps on giving and I’m happy to take, take, take.
Although ‘spiced’ this dish is not particularly spicy – even with the added chili and paprika. The spice is very mild and subtle but absolutely essential in aiding the soup to be bursting with the incredible flavor it possesses. Sheer aromatic excellence if you ask me.
Alternatively, do as I did and make a massive pot and warm for lunch as and when needed. It really is the most satisfying midday meal I’ve had in a very long time. For some strange reason though every time I eat it I cannot get this song out of my head:
“She put the lime in the coconut. She drank them both up”
The sentiment rings true and I wholeheartedly urge you to follow suit and put some lime in your coconut and drink them both up. Pronto.
Spiced Coconut Lentil Soup Recipe
Ingredients:
1/2 large red onion (I used a quarter of a colossal one)
1/2 red chili
thumbsize piece of peeled ginger
1 clove garlic
1 cup red lentils
1 400g can coconut milk
3 cups filtered water
1 scant tsp vegan vegetable bouillon
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp cumin
pink Himalayan salt
black pepper
juice of 1 lime
1 heaped tsp coconut oil
Method:
- Finely chop the red onion – I actually like to mince mine with a knife.
- Heat the coconut oil in a heavy based saucepan. Add the onion, season, cover and allow to soften for several minutes.
- Meanwhile, mince the chili, garlic and ginger together. Add to pan, cover and cook for a few more minutes until the flavors begin to infuse – your kitchen should be full of wonderful aromas by now.
- Rinse and sort the red lentils and add to pan along with the ground coriander, paprika and cumin. Mix thoroughly and then pour in the coconut milk and water. Sprinkle in the vegetable bouillon and lightly season with some pink Himalayan salt and freshly ground black pepper.
- Cover, bring to the boil and then lower to a gentle simmer for forty minutes, ensuring to stir frequently.
- Juice the lime and set aside.
- When the lentils have softened and almost disintegrated to form a thick, creamy soup, take off the heat, pour in the lime juice, taste for seasoning and serve with a few fresh coriander leaves for garnish.
Photo: Aine Carlin
{ 12 comments… read them below or add one }
Looks delicious! Thank for sharing!
(I have to look for drinkable coconut milk, too. Have never seen it here in Sweden but I haven’t been looking, so that might be why.
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Looks so great…I don’t know why, but I still gravitate to soups in summer. Even though it’s hot here I could totally slurp up such beautiful looking soup tonight!
I am somewhat obsessed with coconut too – in any shape and form – and this looks fantastic. I never thought to use coconut in lentil soup. Wonderful idea. Thanks for sharing.
What’s not to love? I just brought 2 bags of lentils from my trip to Denver, and this is a great idea for using some of it. Thank you!
I am going to try this receipe. It sounds great. Why limit soy? It’s so much better for you than many alternatives.
Lentils and coconut milk = a dream combination! I can’t wait to make this…maybe this weekend even!
wow! Thank you so much for sharing! Love it! I added more heat!!
What kind of chili paste can I use if I don’t have chilis readily available? I have some sriracha sauce but I don’t know if that’s a good enough substitute. What do you guys think?
Loved the recipe. A hit all around. We used a serrano chili as no red ones were available and added a blop of plain yogurt, which made it not vegan but we’re not vegan to begin with. I love all the spices which were in every bite.
I am surprised you are using salt with your lentils. I know that when I did that, the lentils were tough and never completely cooked. I usually cook my lentils separately then add to the recipe. you did not have that problem using the recipe as stated?
This soup is hearty and satisfying! I didn’t taste a lot of the coconut coming through like you do in a Tom Yum soup, and my preference is for a bit more spice. But when I was reheating my soup the next day, I decided to add some leftovers, so I put in some diced, canned tomato that I had and some diced fuzzy squash (bought at the Indian grocery store–rather tasteless on it’s own but similar to zucchini.) Using this soup as a tasty backdrop, these additions, plus some chopped cilantro added at the end, brought the soup up to a whole new level of absolutely sublime! I think the chunks of tomato made the most difference. I will definitely make this again and experiment by adding other leftovers on hand. Many thanks for this great recipe!
Thank you so much for this recipe! Tonight was the second time I made it and it was even more delicious than the first time… I think it was the kind of coconut milk I used. In any case, I can’t never get enough of this soup.
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