Curried Red Lentil Soup With Toasted Coconut
- Total Time
- 40 minutes
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
Yield:4 servings
- 2tablespoons olive oil, plus more as needed
- 1medium red onion, finely chopped
- 1medium carrot, finely chopped
- Kosher salt and black pepper
- 2garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 1tablespoon grated ginger
- 1tablespoon curry powder
- 1teaspoon ground turmeric
- 1teaspoon ground coriander
- 1cup red lentils
- 5cups vegetable stock or water
- ¼cup unsweetened coconut flakes
- Cilantro, scallions and lime wedges, for serving (optional)
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
308 calories; 11 grams fat; 4 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 5 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 42 grams carbohydrates; 9 grams dietary fiber; 4 grams sugars; 14 grams protein; 979 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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- Step 1
Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion and the carrot, and cook until they begin to soften, about 3 to 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in the garlic and ginger, and cook 1 minute more, adding a small drizzle of olive oil and lowering the heat if necessary to make sure they don’t burn. Stir in the curry powder, turmeric and ground coriander and cook for about 30 seconds more until fragrant.
- Step 2
Add the lentils and vegetable stock, and bring to a gentle simmer. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the flavors have melded and the lentils are soft and cooked through, about 30 minutes. If you prefer your soup looser, add in ½ to 1 cup more water and cook 1 to 2 minutes longer until heated through.
- Step 3
While the soup simmers, heat a medium skillet over low heat. Toast the coconut flakes, stirring frequently, until they are lightly golden and fragrant, about 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside.
- Step 4
Taste the soup and adjust seasonings. Serve in bowls and pass the coconut flakes at the table. If desired, serve with bowls of cilantro, scallions and lime wedges at the table.
Private Notes
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Cooking Notes
Betsy
"curry powder"?!? Curry powders vary so wildly you might just as well have said-- "throw in whatever spices you'd like." Are you imagining it to be cumin-forward? quite spicy? on the gingery side? My preferred seasonings for red lentils include at least 2 tsp cumin, 1tsp turmeric, 1tsp coriander, 1+ tsp fresh grated ginger, 1/4 - 1/2 tsp cayenne....and then heat 1 or 2 red peppers, 1/2 tsp black mustard seeds and 1/2 tsp cumin seeds in oil til they pop and add to the well-cooked lentils.
amy
I used chicken stock and a can of coconut milk instead of water. Overall really yummy! Great served with naan.
Amy in Boston
I used the recipe as a nice base. I added a can of coconut milk, and increased the red lentils to 1.25 cup. I added 2 TBS of tomato paste, and I used Betsy's spice suggestions, 2 tsp cumin, 1tsp turmeric, 1tsp coriander, 1+ tsp fresh grated ginger, 1/4 - 1/2 tsp cayenne. And I added a few handfuls of chopped kale 5 minutes before serving.
Johnepdx
Betsy is concerned because no curry powder was specified. Perhaps that is because you can use any you like, or make your own. I used my Sri Lankan blend in fact, but any curry would work from the old world to the new. Even a ras el hanout blend if you wanted to make it African. Why be limited by the type of curry the author likes?
Christin
Second time making in a month... So good. Amped up the flavors a bit with a couple of tablespoons of tomato paste at the garlic/ginger stage (thanks for that idea, someone!), some red pepper flakes with the spices, and then used 1/2 homemade chicken broth, 1/2 vegetable broth + 1/2 can of coconut milk. Dumped in some baby spinach at the end. Filling, flavorful, great lunch leftovers.
Debby
Liked this more flavorful version of lentil soup. I didn't like the texture of the toasted coconut in the soup particularly, they were more chewy than crunchy; perhaps toasting it longer would have helped. The cilantro and yogurt provided the perfect topping.
may
This soup knocked it out of the park for me. Substituted curry powder with garam masala, and my husband and I were lapping it up!
Lori Agee
Based on comments, I used 4 c. chicken bone broth, 1 c. coconut milk. Lemon juice at the end instead of lime (had no limes). Upped the seasonings - added cayenne. It was still a bit muddy tasting and no single flavor rang out. Easy and fast but lacking something.
Heather
LOVE. I took advice from a lot of commenters—used garam masala as my curry powder, added 2T of tomato paste during Step 1, half a can of coconut milk toward the end. I also adjusted all the seasonings pretty significantly at the end + added a little ground mustard seed. Perfect recipe to make the last few weeks of winter a little more bearable.
tala
Very good. Ate it leftover thinned with coconut milk over rice and roasted cauliflower.
Kate
dry lentils - rinsed
mrfriebe
Great recipe. Cook time on lentils is short. Used immersion blender to help. Needed acid (added rice wine vinegar). Will make again.
Cindy Glatz
Easy and tasty! I used a yellow onion, doubled the garlic and spices and threw in some big cubes if cod after the half puree.
Susan
Used 1 cup coconut milk, increased spice levels 50%
Steve Maslow
Superb recipe! I used 2 Tablespoons of coconut oil in place of the olive oil. This eliminates the need for coconut milk and broth, and their calories and carbohydrates. I did serve it with lime, and that does brighten the flavor, but is not necessary. This soup is a string quartet to the symphony that is Italian Wedding soup. So much flavor from so few ingredients; if you keep it simple you can taste each one. BTW, I used a pressure cooker and cooking time was 10 minutes.
Lakelady
I think I actually like this better than Melissa’s red lentil soup. I used generic grocery-store lentils, cooked them almost an hour. With the immersion blender, the soup is creamy and glossy. The add-ons I used were garam masala, red cabbage and parsley as recommended, feta cheese crumbles, and pomegranate seeds. Delicious vegetarian dinner! Watch the added salt if using Better Than Boullion.
Caryn
Really upped the spices, adding BOTH curry and garam masala, and included a dash of cinnamon along with all the other spices in the recipe. Also added one can of unsweetened coconut milk towards the end and it was delicious. The next day I added cubed ham for an even heartier soup. Fantastic.
eialongo
Use 4 c. Veggie stock only
Sandy
I left out the toasted coconut (to avoid the extra fat) and cilantro (my husband can't tolerate cilantro) and served it with plain nonfat Greek yogurt on top. Absolutely delicious!
ginger tomato rice chicken…good, easy dws comfort food.
Made those several times…we love it. Read notes, and a couple of people suggested Garam masala instead of curry powder…. This last time I made it I tried 2 tsp curry and 1 tsp of garam masala. Did not like as much as other times I’ve made this.
Pri
Bless you commenters for adding all these tweaks. I followed multiple recommendations of swapping in garam masala for curry powder, coconut milk broth for water, and adding red pepper flakes and cayenne. This soup is lovely, perfect for fall chill.
Helen
I added a Murasaki sweet potato, some rice, and a spoonful of brown sugar. The acid from the lime is necessary, IMO. The perfect lentil soup!
Sherril
Delicious restaurant quality meal. Thanks to notes for ideas! Spice - 3:1 ratio garam masala to curry- plus the other spices. Upped carrots and added a parsnip. Added ground chicken to the mix before stock. Used a 1:1 combo of chicken and veg stock and added coconut milk (used a full can with doubled recipe) plus small can tomato paste. At the end added chopped fresh spinach. Used toppings as described.First time toasted coconut. Let brown for crunch.+ toasted onion kulcha from freezer. YUM!
MScott
Commercial curry powders are highly variable; check the ingredient list and adjust the individual spices in the recipe as needed to create a balance you like.
Carmen
Hi! Thank you for the suggestions to add crushed red pepper and mustard- yum! I cooked with black lentils as that is what I had on hand & added more curry to taste. I skipped the toasted coconut but subsequently served over brown rice accompanied by Birdseye (please don't judge, I'm a working gal) frozen and "fried" cauliflower-- a complete meal. Then again later in the day, I filled some pastry sheets with for popovers... Thanks.
Taylor d.
Oh I also changed the spices: like roughly 1 heaping tsp each of curry, cumin, coriander, black mustard seeds, cumin seeds, garam masala, anddddd tumeric? I think that’s it! Good luck! Just do it to taste! Recipes are just a silly framework!
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