Bean Stew With French Green Lentils
A vegetarian stew that is hearty and filling! Serve with a crusty boule and butter.
You can substitute brown lentils but French green lentils hold up and retain their presence in the soup. Cooked dried or canned beans that have been drained work just as well.
This makes a lot of soup! Since I like to have soup at lunch-time, I freeze most of the soup in 1 1/2 cup, wide-mouth mason jars. It’s easy to pull one out of the freezer to thaw in the morning. It’s then ready to heat up at lunch time.
Ingredients
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium-size yellow onion, chopped (about 2 cups)
5 medium carrots, cut into 1/2-inch pieces (about 2 cups)
5 celery stalks, cut into 1/2-inch pieces (about 2 cups)
1 (15-ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 teaspoons salt, plus more to taste
1 teaspoons black pepper, plus more to taste
1 1/2 cups dried French green lentils
2 fresh or dried bay leaves
2 fresh rosemary sprigs or a scant tablespoon of dried rosemary
5 cups water, plus more as needed
6 cups cooked mixed beans (such as cannellini, kidney, or cranberry)
For Serving
packed chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
fresh lemon juice
Directions
Heat 1/2 cup oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat
Add onion, carrots, and celery. Cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 20 minutes
Stir in tomatoes, garlic, 2 teaspoons salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper. Cook, stirring often, until garlic is fragrant and tomato juices begin to caramelize, about 5 minutes.
Stir in lentils, bay leaves, rosemary sprigs, and 5 cups water. Bring to a boil over medium-high. Reduce heat to medium- low, and simmer, stirring occasionally, until lentils are just tender, 20 to 25 minutes. Simmer it covered or un-covered. I like to simmer it covered to retain liquid. If you prefer it to really be ‘stew’, simmer it un-covered.
Add beans, stir in additional water to thin stew, if needed. Cook over low, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until beans are heated through and lentils are tender, 10 to 15 minutes.
Add salt and pepper to taste. I add another teaspoon of salt and pepper at this stage (I like it peppery) Stir to combine. If needed, stir in additional water to thin stew. Cook over low, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until beans are heated through and lentils are tender, about 10 to 15 minutes.
Stir in lemon juice, and season to taste with salt and pepper.
Sprinkle parsley leaves over each bowl and serve with a crusty bread and butter.