Moroccan Lamb and Turmeric Lentil Soup
This Moroccan Lamb and Turmeric Lentil soup is comfort in a bowl. And while it’s categorized as a soup, it’s a full meal on its own.
Ingredients
Soup:
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 red onion diced
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 pound ground American lamb
- 1 teaspoon each of salt and pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 3 tablespoons canned tomato paste
- 1 slice lime
- 2 tablespoons minced cilantro
- 1 cup brown or black lentils
- 3/4 cup barley
- 4 cups liquid a mixture of broth/stock (any flavor you prefer) and water.
- 2/3 cup white beans
- 1 cup chickpeas
- 1/4 cup cilantro
- **extra half cup of water if needed
Garnish:
- chopped chilies
- chopped tomatoes
- Greek yogurt
Instructions
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Preheat your instant pot, or regular pot on medium-high heat. Add the olive oil and sauté the onions for 2 minutes until they start to soften, then add the garlic and lamb. Start seasoning the lamb and add the salt, pepper, nutmeg, turmeric, paprika, and cumin.
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Sautee the lamb for 5 minutes until cooked. Add in a slice of lime, cilantro and tomato paste and mix them in with the lamb mixture. Then add in the lentils, barley and liquids.
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Cover your pot and allow the lentils and barley to cook through. If using an instant pot, set it to pressure cooking and set it to 25 minutes, and if you’re using a pressure cooker, also set it to 20-30 mins most. If you’re making the soup on the stove, then allow the mixture to boil, lower the heat to medium-low, cover the pot and allow the soup to cook for 40-50 minutes until the lentils cook through.
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Add the beans and chickpeas, plus an extra half cup of water if needed** and cover the pot for another 10 mins. At that point, add some cilantro and serve!
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Garnish the soup with chillies, tomatoes and Greek yogurt. Enjoy! :)
Recipe Video
Recipe Notes
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The beauty of this soup recipe is that anything would be great to add here. Something like fresh kale, spinach, carrots, or sweet potatoes. Just add them halfway after you add the lentils because the lentils need to cook the longest.
- I love finishing off my lamb lentil soup with some cooling Greek yogurt, chopped chilies, cilantro, and tomatoes. This is certainly optional, but it really does give your lentil soup a nice contrast in texture and freshness.
- As a liquid, I like to add a mix of broth and water to give the lentil soup extra flavor!