Hearty Organic Lentil, Barley, Rice, Potato, and Veg. Soup

[joelbct]

I have been experimenting with this for a few months, it is awesome, beats the heck out of any canned soup-

 

(Measurements are approximate. Quality ingredients are key, I buy the grain and legumes in bulk from whole foods but any natural food store should do.)

 

Make vegetable stock as follows:

 

Filtered or Spring Water, 3 or 4 gallons

Several tablespoons sea salt. Heat to boiling in a gigantic pot.

 

Wash and/or peel and chop the following for the stock:

 

Organic Celery, Several Sticks

Organic Yellow Onion, 1/2

Organic Carrots, 2-3

Organic Fresh Rosemary, ~1 cup, or several stalks

Other vegetable scraps such as lettuce, though avoid cruciferous vegetables like broccoli, brussel sprouts, and cabbage, because they cause a bitter, overpowering flavor.

 

Add vegetables to the pot and simmer on low for ~40 minutes, ideally in one of those deep stock strainers that will allow you to remove the scraps from the stock without pouring it all through another strainer. Once stock is finished, remove the vegetable scraps and use for compost.

 

Once stock is strained, wash and then add the following at noted times (timing is important):

 

Organic Green Lentils, 2 cups

Organic French Lentils, 1 cup

(then set timer for 70 minutes and add the following at the times noted)

Organic Barley, 1 cup (at 60 minutes left)

Organic Long Grain Brown Rice, 1.5 cups (45 minutes left)

Organic Russet or Red Potatoes, 2-8 depending on size, Chopped but unpeeled (35 minutes left)

Organic Carrots, 3 or 4, Chopped, (30 minutes left)

Organic Celery, 5 or 6 sticks, Chopped (25 minutes left)

 

Organic Garlic, 3/4 or 1 clove, saute with extra virgin olive oil in a cast iron pan until just starting to brown, then add to soup (15 minutes left)

 

Organic Yellow Onion, 1/2, chop and saute with extra virgin olive oil in cast iron pan, then add to soup (10 minutes left)

 

Organic Cherry tomatoes, 2 cups, chop into halves or quarters and add to soup (5 minutes left)

 

Final Ingredient, 2 teaspoons vitamin c powder (ascorbic acid), for tartness (available at a natural food store or organic co-op, or from vitamin store).

 

Then serve. Once soup is finished, to cool it down in order to avoid overcooking, place the pot in sink, and plug sink, then fill the sink with cool water around the pot. Let sit until soup has cooled down, then place in tupperware and refrigerate.

 

-Joel