Spanish Lentils / Lentil Soup

A few month back my eyes ran through a packet of whole brown lentils in the local produce shop. Being a health and fitness freak, I wanted to make some recipes with whole lentils. I tried making Indian dals and curries out of it, they were OK but never wanted to try it again. Later I gave up on it. Recently, my friend Manisha who is from Spain, gave me this recipe for Spanish Lentils. She says this is a gourmet food served in restaurants in Spain. Its usually served on the side of the Bread. Spanish paav bhaji!? So here it goes.

Spanish Lentils is very healthy, delicious and also very easy to make. It is somewhat between a soup and side dish. You can eat it like a dip for bread or simply eat it like a soup. The dish is loaded with fiber and veggies that just a bowl makes a complete meal.

The soup is made with whole brown lentils which are available in the local supermarkets. But you can also make this soup with whole masoor and or any other lentils from the Indian Store, but remember you need whole dals with the outer layer. Thats what makes it so healthy.

1 cup lentils
1 medium onion
3 cloves garlic
1 medium potato
1/2 bell pepper
1 tomato
1 carrot
2 tsp oil
pepper
1 bouillon cube or stock cube of your choice
1 tsp lime juice

Soak lentils for 30 minutes. Drain and set aside. Chop all the vegetables into cubes.

In a pressure cooker, heat oil. Fry onion and garlic for a minute. Do not brown them. Add all the veggies and fry for another minute. Add lentils, pepper and stock cube. Add water just enough to cover the lentils. Cook for 2-3 whistles. Adjust salt. Usually the salt in the bouillon cube is enough. Squeeze some fresh lime juice.

Serve with bread.

I used Knorr chicken bouillon cube. You can also use veggie stock cube or any other of you choice. More on bouillon cube here