Moroccan Hirira Ren Lentil Soup (Vegan!)

So I haven’t really spent much time in Africa or the Middle East, except for a short stint in Egypt. This  was not a meal I ever had when I was travelling through Egypt though. This is just something that I used to have at this Mediterranean place by my work that had cheap soup for those lunch breaks when I forgot to bring a meal from home.

I re-discovered it recently when I was catching up with some old friends from high school at a Mediterranean place downtown. It’s a super delicious tomato and lentil soup that is just the right mix of heartiness and lightness, perfect for the change of seasons.

Research has told me that Hirira is quite a common soup as a starter in Morocco, but it also commonly used during the month of Ramadan to break fast. As with many national staples, recipes for Hirira often differ within communities. The recipe that I prefer is a little heartier than some of the lighter versions out there. I like to include chickpeas as well as red lentils. This means it is a super protein packed soup with a little spicy kick to heat up those rainy spring nights!

Ingredients:

• 1 large white onion
• 2 medium sized carrots
• 2 celery stalks
• A heafty handful of Kale, chopped
• EVOO
• 1/3 of a cup of parsley leaves and stems
• 1/2 cup of cilantro leaves and stems
• 2 tbsp. of minced garlic
• 2 tbsp of minced ginger
• 1 1/2 tsp of Turmeric
• 1 tsp. Cumin
• 1 tsp. cinnamon
• 1 tbsp. of Hungarian paprika (at least, I usually put in 2 tbsp. because I love spice)
• 1 tbsp. of dried chili flakes (optional)
• 1 cup of dried red lentils
• 1 can of chick peas
• 1 can of crushed tomatoes (I used a can of tomato sauce and that was good too)
• 1 box of vegetable stock (although for the recipe on the pictures I used chicken stalk, it was what I had in the fridge at the time, but use vegetable if you want it vegan).
• Some chopped cilantro to garnish
• Salt and Pepper to taste

Coat a soup pot with a decent amount of Olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot, celery, kale, ginger, garlic and a little salt and pepper and saute until the onions start to brown. Now its time to add the spices; add the turmeric, cumin, paprika, cinnamon and chili flakes and saute for another couple of minutes. Heating the spices up is the best way to release their flavors.

Add the red lentils and cook for a few minutes to let them soften. After, add the chick peas (with the canning juice), tomato sauce and vegetable broth. Bring the soup to a boil, then reduce to simmer and let cook semi-lidded for about 30 minutes.

Add more broth or water if you want the soup to be more runny (I like it thick ;p)

I heated up some naan bread as an accompaniment. Serve and sprinkle some cilantro on top!

Traditionally I think they nix the naan and serve this with lemon, dates, philo dough and Aleppo chilies.

Enjoy!

Let me know what you think!

Post-Thanksgiving Turkey Soup!

When most people think of thanksgiving leftovers they imagine piles and piles of turkey meat. My favorite part of the post-thanksgiving left over division is the turkey carcass. Why? Because you can make some badass turkey soup.

You might be sick of turkey after thanksgiving, but this soup is so warming and at least here in the pacific northwest its a good way to combat the cold rainy weather. I like to put lots of ginger and garlic in my soups, which contain lots of good nutrients and flu fighting properties.

Ingredients:

For the broth:

• Turkey carcass
• 1 Onion
• 4 good sized carrots
• 4 celery stalks
• One inch cube of ginger, sliced
• One whole garlic clove
• Seasoning Spices (tyme, oregano, basil, fennel, ect)
• Chili flakes
• Bay leaf

For the soup:

• Turkey Meat
• 1 Onion
• 4 good sized carrots
• 4 celery stalks
• 2 cups of Kale
• One inch cube of ginger, sliced
• One whole garlic clove
• Spices
• 1 bag/box of your choice of pasta

Basically you fill up a large soup pot and boil the water. When the water is boiled throw in all of the ingredients (except the turkey meat), wait for the water to boil again and then turn it down to simmer. Add salt and pepper to taste. Let it simmer for at least 6 hours, 8+ is recommended. This is just the process of making the base broth.

Its important to use vegetables as well as bones when you are making your broth, the mirepoix (onions, carrots, celery) are often the base for many dishes because they provide a lot of flavor and a relatively low cost. With any soup base you are making be sure to add the mirepoix!

Having the skin boiling will really add to the flavor of the broth, its full of delicious fat that gives that warm homemade flavor. Don’t worry, there are also ways to trim the fat of the soup down without compromising the flavor.

After about 8 hours drain all of the bones/veggies from the broth into another soup pot.

You can either add in more onions, veggies, spices and the turkey and eat the soup or you can reduce the fat of the soup by putting the broth in the soup pot in the fridge over night. As the broth cools in the fridge the fat travels to the surface and solidifies. In the morning this leaves a layer of solid fat at the top which you can just simply skim off. Personally, and some people may disagree, I don’t think that this takes any of the flavor away.

At this point I like to separate about half of the broth and freeze it.

I take the rest of the broth, add in the mirepoix, turkey meat, spices pasta and kale (or any other things you might like in your broth). I love kale. Add salt and pepper to taste. Bring the soup to a boil, wait for the veggies and pasta to be al dente (probably around 12 minutes and serve.

If you are like me and hate mushy pasta, take your remainder soup off the burner to prevent your pasta from over cooking after you serve, or place them in storage containers.

Now feast! Its pretty amazing how delicious the broth can get, and its only flavored by salt. The longer you let the broth cook, the more flavor you can get. I try not to make soup with any soup power bases. I feel good knowing exactly where my flavor is coming from!

Does anyone have any good turkey soup variations? Or any turkey day left over favorites?