Fire roasted tomatoes and onions are cooked with vibrant curry powder and ginger, blended, and then simmered with red lentils and coconut milk in this aromatic soup inspired by Indian cuisine. Garnish with bright cilantro and limes and serve with naan bread. It's so good -- and so easy to prepare with pantry staples -- and will take the chill off any mid-winter day.
I stumbled on this concept when I found myself with an abundance of fresh green tomatoes that had been taken out of my garden before the first frost. They ripened on the windowsill for weeks and I found myself with pounds of tomatoes to use.
The larger tomatoes were cut in half, as were the Roma tomatoes, and the cherry tomatoes were left whole. Placed them on a baking sheet and brushed them with olive oil and roasted them in the oven for about 40 minutes until they were starting to break down and caramelized. I was figuring out what to do with the roasted tomatoes when a conversation about food (this happens quite often) led me to crave Indian food. Ha! And the recipe was born!
Ingredients
Here I've adapted the recipe to use the more readily available canned diced fire-roasted tomatoes. Make sure to read down to the section on substitutions and variations for a whole bevy of ways to enhance this soup using more pantry staples
- extra virgin olive oil
- large yellow onion
- garlic cloves
- tomato paste
- Madras curry powder
- freshly grated ginger
- turmeric
- red pepper flakes
- fire roasted diced tomatoes
- chicken stock or broth
- full fat coconut milk
- uncooked red lentils
- honey
- kosher salt
- fresh ground black pepper
- cilantro (for garnish)
- lime wedges (for garnish0
See recipe card for quantities.
Jump to RecipeInstructions
In a soup pot or Dutch oven, heat olive oil over medium heat. Stir in the diced onion and cook until softened and just starting to caramelize, about 10 minutes.
Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute, stirring. Add the tomato paste, curry powder, ginger, turmeric and red pepper flakes.
Cook until tomato paste darkens and spices are fragrant, about 2 minutes.
Transfer contents of the stock pot to a blender or food processor. (Or use an immersion blender.)
Add fire roasted diced tomatoes,
Blend until smooth.
Return blender contents to the stock pot.
Add the chicken stock.
Follow by adding the coconut milk.
Stir in the red lentils. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to simmer.
Simmer until lentils are softened but retain some firmness, about 20 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Substitutions
- Make it Vegetarian/Vegan - Instead of chicken stock/broth, substitute vegetable stock -- making it also perfect for a plant-based diet
- Naturally Gluten Free - Lentils are naturally gluten free and a great source of protein
- Coconut Milk - substitute a cup of half-and-half, heavy cream or plain Greek yogurt
- Lentils - You can substitute brown lentils, but know that they will take longer to cook. They retain their shape a bit better than red lentils, which lend themselves well to thickening. (I like red lentils in this tomato and lentil soup for keeping the soup bright in color.)
- Pasta - No lentils? Use 8 ounces of small-shaped cooked pasta, such as ditalini or orzo, instead of lentils. After adding the broth, bring the soup to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 15 minutes until thickened. Stir in the cooked pasta.
Variations
- Chicken - Add two cups of shredded rotisserie chicken.
- Shrimp - This curry based soup is perfect for the addition of shrimp. Add 12 ounces of uncooked large cleaned shrimp to the soup 2 to 3 minutes before removing the soup from the stovetop. The shrimp will continue to cook after removing it from the stovetop. (Check to make sure they are cooked through.)
- Roasted Red Peppers - I had a few roasted red peppers left in the jar in the fridge and added them along with the diced tomatoes. They added a nice sweet and smoky complexity.
- Add an Apple - Add a peeled diced apple along with the onions for a hint of sweetness.
- Applesauce - While honey adds sweetness to offset the acidity of the tomatoes and the aromatic curry, add a ¾ cup of applesauce to the soup at the same time you add the lentils.
- Spinach - Channel Popeye and stir in a 5 ounce bag of the leafy green at the very end.
- Leftover Vegetables - Oftentimes I find myself with leftover carrots or celery that should be used. Add a diced carrot and/or diced stalk of celery along with the carrots and cook until softened. Add an additional cup of stock/broth.
Equipment
- stock/soup pot or Dutch oven
- blender, food processor or an immersion blender
Storage
Store the curried tomato and lentil soup in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
This freezes very well. Store in an airtight container or zipper bag in the freezer for up to three months. Thaw in the refrigerator before reheating.
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Curried Tomato, Lentil and Coconut Soup
Equipment
- stock/soup pot or Dutch oven
- blender or immersion blender
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 large yellow onion diced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- ¼ cup tomato paste
- 2 tablespoons Madras curry powder
- 1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 2 14.5 ounce cans fire roasted diced tomatoes or 28 ounce can
- 4 cups chicken stock
- 13.5 ounce can full fat coconut milk
- 1 cup uncooked red lentils
- 1 tablespoon honey
- kosher salt, to taste
- fresh ground black pepper, to taste
- chopped fresh cilantro and lime wedges for garnish
Instructions
- In a soup pot or Dutch oven, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add the diced onion and cook until softened and just starting to caramelize, about 10 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute, stirring. Add the tomato paste, curry powder, ginger, turmeric and red pepper flakes and cook until tomato paste darkens and spices are fragrant, about 2 minutes.
- Transfer contents of the stock pot to a blender. Add fire roasted diced tomatoes and blend until smooth*. Return blender contents to the stock pot and add the chicken stock, coconut milk and red lentils. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to simmer. Simmer until lentils are softened but retain some firmness, about 20 minutes. Stir in honey. Add kosher salt and fresh ground pepper to taste.
- Serve in bowls and garnish with chopped cilantro. Serve with lime wedges and naan bread.
kerstin oconnor says
This soup is a winner.
It looks beautiful and tastes scrumptious!