Very little is more satisfying than sitting down to a steaming hot bowl of great soup and salad. Most people tend to buy them premade at the store in a can. These are fine but not nearly as healthy or flavorful as making it from scratch. If you make it yourself, you can control the ingredients and know what you are getting. Learning to make easy lentil soup is one way to get a great meal without a ton of effort in cooking extra ingredients.
Store-bought soups usually are loaded with salt and can approach the edge of unhealthy. However, if you know the ingredients, you're more likely to pick one that is much healthier. Making your own, where you prepare the ingredients from scratch, is the best way to ensure a totally healthy meal. Lentils and other beans are a great source for protein for those with digestive problems and vegans or vegetarians who need a non-meat source of protein.
How long should you soak the lentils? This is probably the most asked question about making these soups. The answer is that you do not have to soak them at all if you don't want. They are already soft enough that the time they cook will soften them plenty. However, if you want to make them even more easy to digest, you could soak them in water for an hour or two before making the meal. Again, this isn't required, so you can simply put all the ingredients together if you didn't plan ahead of time.
Many different ways of making these types of soups exist. You can make them like a vegetable version with more broth and no thickening agents. You can also puree them with stewed tomatoes or other agents that will help thicken them into a nice stew. These are great for dipping grilled cheese sandwiches. Other versions can be enjoyed with other types of bread.
Additional ingredients are needed to build the best version. Several recipes call for chopped celery, carrots, onions, and other cut vegetables. You will also want to include spices like basil, oregano, and a bay leaf to get some great flavors going. Stewed or diced tomatoes add great flavor and texture to the mix. Spinach is also a great addition. You will want to use freshly washed spinach, not the frozen kind that is cooked in vinegar.
To blend or not to blend? There are two thoughts here, and both are valid. Some enjoy the thicker version that is blended with the stewed tomatoes. This provides a nice thick stew that goes down smooth. The non-blended version is much like vegetable soup for those that like to add crackers to their bowl. The vegetables are all visible and the stock is a clear broth. Both styles are delicious. Be cautious when blending any hot mixture to avoid burns.
Side dishes enhance any meal. Soups go great with a nice, crispy fresh salad. Some will enjoy being able to dip Naan bread or cornbread into the dish. Crackers help thicken it and add a slight salt flavoring.
Any weather is great for making soups. They are healthy, filling, and make a great meal by themselves. Adding in a fresh salad or homemade honey cornbread will really make it special. This is something that kids and adults enjoy and making it from scratch helps to make it as healthy as possible.
Store-bought soups usually are loaded with salt and can approach the edge of unhealthy. However, if you know the ingredients, you're more likely to pick one that is much healthier. Making your own, where you prepare the ingredients from scratch, is the best way to ensure a totally healthy meal. Lentils and other beans are a great source for protein for those with digestive problems and vegans or vegetarians who need a non-meat source of protein.
How long should you soak the lentils? This is probably the most asked question about making these soups. The answer is that you do not have to soak them at all if you don't want. They are already soft enough that the time they cook will soften them plenty. However, if you want to make them even more easy to digest, you could soak them in water for an hour or two before making the meal. Again, this isn't required, so you can simply put all the ingredients together if you didn't plan ahead of time.
Many different ways of making these types of soups exist. You can make them like a vegetable version with more broth and no thickening agents. You can also puree them with stewed tomatoes or other agents that will help thicken them into a nice stew. These are great for dipping grilled cheese sandwiches. Other versions can be enjoyed with other types of bread.
Additional ingredients are needed to build the best version. Several recipes call for chopped celery, carrots, onions, and other cut vegetables. You will also want to include spices like basil, oregano, and a bay leaf to get some great flavors going. Stewed or diced tomatoes add great flavor and texture to the mix. Spinach is also a great addition. You will want to use freshly washed spinach, not the frozen kind that is cooked in vinegar.
To blend or not to blend? There are two thoughts here, and both are valid. Some enjoy the thicker version that is blended with the stewed tomatoes. This provides a nice thick stew that goes down smooth. The non-blended version is much like vegetable soup for those that like to add crackers to their bowl. The vegetables are all visible and the stock is a clear broth. Both styles are delicious. Be cautious when blending any hot mixture to avoid burns.
Side dishes enhance any meal. Soups go great with a nice, crispy fresh salad. Some will enjoy being able to dip Naan bread or cornbread into the dish. Crackers help thicken it and add a slight salt flavoring.
Any weather is great for making soups. They are healthy, filling, and make a great meal by themselves. Adding in a fresh salad or homemade honey cornbread will really make it special. This is something that kids and adults enjoy and making it from scratch helps to make it as healthy as possible.
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To prepare an easy lentil soup, simply get the recipe from our website. Take a look at the yummiest selection of soups we have listed here at http://www.yummygoodness.com/lentil-soup.
