This cozy lentil stew warms you from the inside out. The sweet potato, ginger, and spices make it feel like a gentle holiday hug in a bowl. It’s bright, healing, and so easy to make on busy winter nights.
Pro Tip: Add the lemon juice right at the end — it brings the whole pot to life. Make some extra to freeze!
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium sweet onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
½ teaspoon ground turmeric
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
A tiny pinch of cayenne pepper, or to taste
5 cups vegetable broth
1½ cups red lentils
1 large sweet potato, peeled and diced
½ teaspoon sea salt
Fresh black pepper, to taste
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
4 cups chopped lacinato, Curly kale or baby spinach
¼ cup fresh chopped cilantro or parsley
Instructions:
Warm the olive oil in a large pot and sauté the onion until soft. Stir in the garlic and ginger until fragrant, then add the tomato paste and spices and cook for a moment to deepen their flavor.
Pour in the vegetable broth and add the lentils and diced sweet potato. Let everything simmer gently until the lentils are soft and the sweet potato is tender.
If you’d like you can use an immersion blender (or place 1/4 soup in a blender and carefully pulse for a brief moment) to smooth it out a touch, but keep most of it with texture. Red lentils tend to puree themselves while cooking.
Turn off the heat.
Stir in the lemon juice and greens until they wilt. Season with salt and black pepper , add some chopped parsley or cilantro and serve warm.