Cabbage And Lentil Curry Soup Recipe
If "one-pot wonder" is your kitchen mantra, then listen up — this cabbage and lentil curry soup recipe, inspired by Indian cuisine, is not your run-of-the-mill soup. We've taken hearty cabbage, which softens and soaks up the flavorful spices as it cooks, and added protein-packed lentils and a medley of other vegetables to create a satisfying and filling meal that's perfect for a weeknight dinner. We've gone all in with the spices to add layers of warmth, citrusy notes, and a slight kick of heat. With only 10 minutes of prep work, the soup will be simmering on your stove in no time.
Wellness coach and recipe developer Miriam Hahn brings us this recipe and says, "I love soups that can be made ahead, giving you lots of options throughout the week to either eat as a main or pair with something else. Because this recipe makes a large batch, you can even freeze half of it for another time. I like to freeze soups in 32-ounce wide-mouth mason jars. Just leave a couple of inches at the top open to compensate for expansion."
Gather the ingredients for cabbage and lentil curry soup
To make this recipe, start in the produce aisle and grab an onion, garlic, ginger root, carrots, red bell pepper, green cabbage, and lemon. When looking for cabbage, make sure to grab standard cabbage (a.k.a. cannonball cabbage). Napa cabbage and Savoy cabbage are both more delicate and aren't the best choices for this soup. You might want to add cilantro to your cart, as it makes a great topper.
For dry goods, you'll need some uncooked brown lentils, canned diced tomatoes, and vegetable broth. Then, check your condiment and spice cabinet for avocado oil, cumin seeds, mustard seeds, ground coriander, ground cumin, turmeric powder, garam masala, chili powder, salt, and pepper.
Step 1: Add oil to a pot
Add the oil to a large soup pot and bring the heat to medium.
Step 2: Add the seeds
Add the cumin seeds and mustard seeds and stir for 1 minute.
Step 3: Add the aromatics
Now, add the onion, garlic, and ginger and cook for about 5 minutes.
Step 4: Add the spices
Add the coriander, ground cumin, turmeric, garam masala, and chili powder. Stir for 1 minute to coat the aromatics.
Step 5: Add more vegetables
Now, add the carrot and red pepper and cook for about 5 minutes.
Step 6: Add the cabbage
Add the cabbage and stir for 1 minute.
Step 7: Add more ingredients
Add the lentils, tomatoes, broth, salt, and black pepper.
Step 8: Cook the soup
Bring to a boil, cover, then simmer for 20–25 minutes, or until the lentils are tender.
Step 9: Add lemon juice, and serve
Add the lemon juice, optionally top with chopped cilantro, and serve.
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 teaspoon grated ginger
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
- ½ teaspoon garam masala
- ¼ teaspoon chili powder
- 1 carrot, diced
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 5 cups chopped green cabbage
- 1 cup dried brown lentils
- 1 (14 ½-ounce) can diced tomatoes
- 6 cups vegetable broth
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ lemon, juiced
- Chopped cilantro
- Add the oil to a large soup pot and bring the heat to medium.
- Add the cumin seeds and mustard seeds and stir for 1 minute.
- Now, add the onion, garlic, and ginger and cook for about 5 minutes.
- Add the coriander, ground cumin, turmeric, garam masala, and chili powder. Stir for 1 minute to coat the aromatics.
- Now, add the carrot and red pepper and cook for about 5 minutes.
- Add the cabbage and stir for 1 minute.
- Add the lentils, tomatoes, broth, salt, and black pepper.
- Bring to a boil, cover, then simmer for 20–25 minutes, or until the lentils are tender.
- Add the lemon juice, optionally top with chopped cilantro, and serve.
What other ingredients can I add to lentil curry?
If you want to add more ingredients to the soup, there are lots of options. Starting with additional vegetables, you can add in diced potatoes, chopped zucchini, peas, or corn. For potatoes, add these when you add the cabbage so that they have time to cook. For zucchini, peas, or corn, add those at the simmering stage, which will provide plenty of time to gently cook them. Greens are always a nice veggie to add to soups. A dark leafy green, such as spinach, collard greens, or kale, would work well. Strip them from the stems, chop, and add to the soup about 10 minutes before serving so that they wilt and incorporate into the rest of the soup.
You can add a grain, such as white rice or quinoa, for extra substance and texture. Add about ½ cup of the dry grain to the soup right before bringing the soup to a boil. Brown rice will take much longer to cook, so it is best to cook that separately and add it at the end. A can of drained and rinsed chickpeas can bring more heartiness. You can add these at the simmer stage.
For a deeper curry flavor, add 1 tablespoon of red or yellow curry paste. For a dose of heat, add a teaspoon or more of sriracha.
What is garam masala, and can I make my own at home?
Garam masala is a popular Indian spice that is common in many dishes. It's a blend of spices that offers a warm and sweet flavor to whatever you add it to. The words garam masala mean "hot spice mix", although it doesn't mean spicy hot, but rather deep and warm. You can easily make your own blend at home, which is especially nice if you do a lot of Indian cooking.
The spices involved are cardamom seeds, black peppercorns, whole cloves, anise pods, cumin seeds, ground cinnamon, ground coriander, and nutmeg. The cardamom seeds, black peppercorns, whole cloves, star anise pods, and cumin seeds are toasted in a hot frying pan for a few minutes until they are fragrant. Then, the toasted seeds are ground in a spice grinder and combined with the remaining spices.
One of the benefits of making your own spice blends is you can tailor them to your individual preferences. Once you have the core spices on hand, creating and customizing this blend is an easy task.