Winter Recipes

Indian winter soup

Ingredients
100g pearl barley
2 tbsp vegetable oil
½ tsp brown mustard seeds
1 tsp cumin seeds
2 green chillies, deseeded and finely chopped
1 bay leaf
2 cloves
1 small cinnamon stick
½ tsp ground turmeric
1 large onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 parsnip, cut into chunks
200g butternut squash, cut into chunks
200g sweet potato, cut into chunks
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp ground coriander
225g red lentils
2 tomatoes, chopped
small bunch coriander, chopped
1 tsp grated ginger
1 tsp lemon juice

Method
Rinse the pearl barley and cook following pack instructions. When it is tender, drain and set aside. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a deep, heavy-bottomed pan. Fry the mustard seeds, cumin seeds, chillies, bay leaf, cloves, cinnamon and turmeric until fragrant and the seeds start to crackle. Tip in the onion and garlic, then cook for 5-8 mins until soft. Stir in the parsnip, butternut and sweet potato and mix thoroughly, making sure the vegetables are fully coated with the oil and spices. Sprinkle in the paprika, ground coriander and seasoning, and stir again.

Add the lentils, pearl barley, tomatoes and 1.7 litres water. Bring to the boil then turn down and simmer until the vegetables are tender. When the lentils are almost cooked, stir in the chopped coriander, ginger and lemon juice.