Brown Rice-Lentil Soup

Submitted by cuisinebymae

"So good on a cold day!"

 

• Ready In: 1hr 45mins
• Ingredients: 14
• Serves: 4-6

ingredients

• 2 tablespoons oil
• 3⁄4 lb lean pork, diced
• 2 stalks celery, chopped
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, chopped
• 2 carrots, chopped
• 6 cups water
• 3⁄4 cup dry lentils
• 1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes
• 3⁄4 cup brown rice, uncooked
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1⁄8 teaspoon black pepper
• 1⁄2 teaspoon cumin
• 1⁄8 - 1⁄4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

directions

1. Measure salt into a small bowl.
2. Heat oil in a large pot.
3. Add diced pork and a sprinkle of salt.
4. Cook, stirring, over medium-high heat until browned.
5. Stir in the celery, onion, garlic, carrots, and a sprinkle of salt.
6. Stir and cook until they start to soften, about 10 minutes.
7. Stir in water and lentils.
8. Bring to a boil.
9. Reduce heat and cook, covered, for 20 minutes.
10. Stir in the tomatoes, brown rice, remaining salt, pepper, cumin, and pepper flakes.
11. Bring just to a boil.
12. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 45- 60 minutes, until done.

Reviews

[amaineman]

I substituted 2 lamb chops for the pork, didnt have celery so doubled the carrots, had crushed tomatoes instead of diced, and I cut the salt down and used 3 cups low sodium beef stock and 3 cups water. Turned out very good, was a big hit.

 

[MsBindy]

This was good. I omitted the pork. I did not have fresh celery, so had to use some dried celery flakes. Also, since I have an aversion to chunks of tomatoes in my soup, I skipped the tomatoes, but at the end added in some tomato sauce. Overall, I found it too salty. I will cut down considerably on the salt next time. And also add more liquid. Perhaps it was my lack of tomatoes, but this was more like a stew than a soup. Adding some extra water worked out fine, as it also cut the salt a bit. Thanks for posting....from a lentil LOVER!

 

[ladyirony]

Yum! I happened to have ground turkey around instead of pork, so I used that, and it worked fine. Tastes like a very good minestrone, only without the starchy pasta. A keeper.

 

[ClareVH]

This was excellent. I did make a couple of changes (of course). I fried a few strips of bacon and used the bacon fat to saute the veggies and pork. I did not have a 28 oz can of tomatoes, so I used 2 14.5 oz cans of diced tomatoes-one with green chiles-and omitted the pepper flakes. This was actually better the next day, although the rice continued to absorb moisture and it was no longer actually "soup". Not a problem! I just ladled some into a bowl and added V8 juice until it became soup again. I ate it all week for lunch at work. After microwaving, I stirred in a big dollop of sour cream. So good!