I’m not going to lie, this recipe changes every time based on what I have available. Don’t be afraid to improvise! The key trick here is to cook your onions really low and slow– this helps build flavor.
Serves 6
Ingredients
- Olive oil for sauteing
- 1 onion- chopped
- 2 small leeks, heads removed and sliced thinly in rings
- 3 cloves of garlic, rough chopped
- 1 inch ginger, minced
- 1-2 tbs spices of choice. I like berbere.
- 4 sunchokes, cut in half
- 1 cup red lentils
- 7 large carrots
- 2.5+ quarts vegetable stock (homemade preferred)
- 6 tbs of butter
- Salt, and lots of it.
Equipment: large stock pot (at least 8 quarts), blender.
Instructions
- Heat up a large stock pot and add enough oil to coat the bottom
- On medium heat, add the onions. Saute for a minute and then turn the heat down to low. Continue to saute for 10-15 minutes, until the onions are brown and caramelized. Stir regularly to avoid burning. Season with salt.
- Add the leeks, garlic, and ginger and continue to saute, on medium low, for about 7 minutes. Season with salt.
- Add your spices and lentils and more oil if the pan feels dry. Saute together for 3-4 minutes. Add water if the spices start to burn.
- Add the sunchokes and stock and bring to a boil.
- Simmer until the lentils and vegetables are borderline mushy. Let cool.
- Transfer to a blender and add the butter, puree until very smooth. Taste and season with salt and pepper. I usually add quite a bit of salt at this stage. Just keep tasting until you have it right.
- Heat and serve!
I like to make this and eat the leftovers for lunches throughout the week.