Lentil Soup
From Gustav's and The Rheinlander in Portland, this hearty German lentil soup recipe is great to make on the weekend and eat throughout the week. If you have a smaller soup pot, you should probably halve this recipe.
Ingredients
Protein
- 1 pound lentils, washed
- 1 pound lean bacon, cut into little strips
- 12 cups beef stock
Vegetables
Dicing the vegetables will take the majority of your preparation time.
- 2 cups leeks, diced (You'll probably need to buy 2 leek "units". Use whitest part of leek. Wash very carefully.)
- 2 large onions, diced
- 2 large carrots, diced
- 2 celery stalks, diced
- 4 large potatoes, peeled and diced (Use a good starchy potato; no need for Yukon Golds here.)
Spices
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 teaspoons cumin powder
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
Garnishes
- 4 tablespoons chopped parsley
- 2 tablespoons vinegar
Instructions
Finely dicing the vegetables is key to elevating this recipe from "stock with ingredients" to a nice thick soup. The majority of your bacon and vegetable pieces should be in very small pieces; as in this picture of several carrot, onion and leek pieces in a teaspoon.
I recommend dicing the potatoes last; when left out in the air they'll start to oxidize. The husband devised a method to prevent this; store the freshly diced potatoes in some of the beef stock.
Render bacon in soup pot. When bacon has lost half of its fat, add onions, leeds, celery and carrots. Saute vegetables. Then add lentils. Add stock, potatoes and spices. Simmer for about 90 minutes, or until lentils are soft. Add salt and pepper if needed.
Add the vinegar and chopped parsley just before serving. Salt and pepper as needed.