Comments on: Curried red lentil soup

By: Lisa

Lisa — Mon, 31 Jul 2006 21:11:32 +0000

is there nutritional differences in red and green lentils? i am looking in to Ayurvedic Health and some of the food lists have red and green lentils separated. I am a Vata.

By: Nicki

Nicki — Sat, 25 Feb 2006 21:39:06 +0000

Yes, red and green lentils are different, and will yield totally different end results. You could never use green lentils in the red lentil-based Turkish soup, mercimek. Also, green lentils do hold up much better in rice dishes.

By: Jen

Jen — Thu, 25 Oct 2001 13:04:57 +0000

We made pasta with a red lentil topping last night. It was pretty good. Not only are red lentils less cohesive than other lentils - they had a different texture and a milder taste. I think they are the key to your soup. Good luck!

By: Ryan

Ryan — Wed, 24 Oct 2001 13:47:00 +0000

Ah, so red lentils may have been the key to the recipe, then. I only had green lentils on hand, so I substituted them.

I don’t so much mind spinach in my soup — there’s a great potato, leek, and spinach recipe that I really like — but this particular combination didn’t work out so well.

I’ll have to give it another shot now that I have some red lentils on hand.

By: CompassRose

CompassRose — Wed, 24 Oct 2001 13:34:38 +0000

Red lentils tend to “lose cohesion” far more readily. The soup is probably meant to be almost a puree. Green lentils normally stay “lentil-shaped” unless you really overcook them.

Red lentils are really good for things like dahl. If, on the other hand, you are making a lentil salad, they are not the best choice.

By: Jen

Jen — Wed, 24 Oct 2001 13:28:08 +0000

You could substitute Kale or something for the spinach. OR…if the other ingredients are strong enough to stand on their own, you could even leave it out. We have a soup that calls for spinach, and we usually leave it out.

We just bought red lentils at our local health food store. I’m eager to try them but I wasn’t sure whether they were interchangeable with “regular” lentils. They are much smaller than the brown lentils you buy at the regular grocery.