Carrot, Lamb & Red Lentil Soup
In this soup, I take one lonely uncooked lamb chop remaining from a meal and turn it into a thrifty meal bulked out by red lentils, grains, and of course carrots. The small amount of meat brings flavour but where it would normally be served to one person it now stretches to feed four. It is unlikely you will find one lamb chop at the store (unless you go to a butcher and select your own) but the extra chop/s on the tray can be frozen singularly to make this soup again. Because it is a goodie - I have made it many times this winter. Update 2023: see extra flavour additions below.
Ingredients
- 1 large lamb shoulder chop, about 250g (or use a lamb shank)
- 6 cups 1.5 litres water
- 1 bay leaf
- ½ cup 100g red lentils
- ⅓ cup 70g quinoa or brown rice
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 onion (about 150g), chopped
- 2 large carrots (about 250g), grated
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- Salt and pepper
- Large handful fresh parsley, chopped
Instructions
- Put the lamb chop, water and bay leaf into a large saucepan, cover and bring to a gentle simmer. Cook for about 40-50 minutes until the lamb is very tender. You can also use a pressure cooker or multi-cooker to make the lamb broth, choosing the “meat” option - mine took 20 minutes.
- Use tongs to transfer the cooked lamb to a bowl. Cover and set aside.
- Wash the red lentils and quinoa or rice in a sieve then add to the broth and continue to cook over low heat for 20 minutes.
- Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a frypan, add the onions and cook for 5 minutes until softened. Add the carrots and cook for a further 5 minutes until beginning to caramelise. Add the paprika, cumin and tomato paste and stir over the heat for 1 minute. Add the sautéed carrot mixture to the saucepan of simmering lentils and continue to cook for another 10 minutes, or until the lentils are tender.
- Use 2 forks to shred the meat from the lamb bone and add the meat to the soup along with half of the chopped parsley.
- Now check the flavour and season generously with salt and pepper to taste. The soup flavour improves over a few hours as the flavours mingle. If you can, make it ahead of time then reheat to serve - you will be well rewarded.
- Ladle hot soup into bowls and scatter with extra fresh parsley to serve.
Notes
Update May 2023 - I recently made this soup again and added the following optional flavour additions:
When adding the sautéed onion/carrot mixture to the soup pot, add 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon, 2 tsp fresh or dried dill, and 2 tsp dried mint. Skip the fresh parsley for sprinkling at the end and serve with wedges of lemon. Delicious!