I find a lot of comfort into making soup from scratch, dicing the vegetables, watching them slowly simmering and tasting the first steamy sip. It’s one of the easy ways to connect with the ingredients we choose, a way of mindfully eat our food.
Warming soups packed with nutrients are my go-to winter food, and this anti-inflammatory lentil soup recipe became a favorite. Rich, traditional holiday food are a pleasure to enjoy at the family gatherings but back home I transitioned to our nutrient-rich functional food.
All those root vegetables, red lentils, greens and literally A LOT of turmeric made this cleansing soup a meal of its own. It provides great comfort for the digestive system, an all-alkaline treat and a little help for our cells to reduce inflammation caused by too much time spent indoors and eating mom’s sugary goods.
Inflammation isn’t something to be scared of, it’s part of our everyday life. A natural process of concentrating immune cells into the tissues when our body deals with harmful factors: stress, refined carbs, processed foods and sugar, viruses and sedentary lifestyle.
Think of inflammation as an instinctive way to preserve the health of cells. However, when the factors are not addressed, inflammation builds up and turns into a chronic form, leading to major health issues.
You can avoid chronic inflammation by regularly exercising and adopting a diet rich in whole ingredients. Turmeric, with its magic active compound, curcumin, is one of the most studied anti-inflammatory ingredient.
We speak so much about turmeric and we sometimes try it in a drink or a curry, but we should really adopt turmeric as a constant staple of our cooking routine. I personally try to find ways to eat it more often, adding it to most of my dishes, from granola to salad dressings and veggie meatballs.
This comforting lentil soup has everything you need for fighting inflammation: whole ingredients – lentils, veggies and greens and plenty of turmeric. I love it as it’s ready in 30 minutes, it’s satiating due to the high amount of fiber and protein and it doesn’t require cooking skills or fancy ingredients.
Give it a try and let me know how it turned out!
And if you’re ooking for more anti-inflammatory dishes? Here are some of my favorites: Super Easy Red Lentil Soup with Butternut Squash, Vegan Meatballs in Pumpkin Tomato Sauce, or my Healing Red Lentil Curry. Also, for an additional intake of turmeric, you can try my simple Turmeric Balls recipe.
If you try any of these recipes don’t forget to tag me on Instagram @theawesomegreen so I can see them and share with the community!
Anti-Inflammatory Lentil Soup
Ingredients
- 1/3 cups red lentils uncooked
- 2 medium carrots diced
- 1 small celeriac or 1 celery stalk diced
- 1 big yellow onion finely diced
- 1 medium parsnip diced
- 3 &1/2 cups purified water
- 4 kale leaves roughly chopped
- 1 tbsp turmeric powder
- 1/2 tsp cumin powder
- 1/2 tsp pink Himalayan salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1 bunch fresh parsley roughly chopped
- 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 1 tbsp toasted almonds chopped
Instructions
- Add the carrots, onion and parsnip into a medium soup pot with 1 tbsp water and cook for five minutes over medium heat, stirring frequently.
- Add the lentils and spices, stir.
- Add water and bring to boil over medium heat. Turn the heat to low, lid the pot and simmer for 20 minutes.
- Turn off the heat, add the kale, parsley, salt and lemon juice and mix to incorporate.
- Serve warm, topped with toasted almonds.
Notes
Nutrition
Great recipe and thank you for sharing.
Really happy you like it!
Made double the quantity, added a little grated ginger and a chopped chilli to add some warmth to balance out the earthiness of the turmeric, blended a cupful to thicken up the broth – super tasty. Felt like a hug in a bowl, thank you!
Can I just say… I read a couple of negative comments on some recipes and it’s a shame that people are so quick to judge and be negative. You have a philosophy and a style that’s your own and most people following you understand and appreciate that. Honestly it’s not hard to work out any missing info. Clearly some people can’t think for themselves… you keep doing you. With gratitude x
Hi Catherine, thank you so much for your lovely feedback! I am really excited to read that you tried the Lentil Soup, it’s one of my favourite winter meals, especially during the luteal phase, when you need as much natural anti-inflammatory remedies as possible. Thanks for your beautiful positive attitude, it’s such a blessing
love this recipe. I have made it multiple times, great with socca on the side. I’m going to try substituting turnips for the parsnip since they are hard to come by.