Indian Red Lentil Soup with Spinach

I live near Devon Street in Chicago, a diverse neighborhood known for its Indian cuisine and stores.  I love Indian food, and especially dahl, lentil soup.  Making your own lentil soup is easy, inexpensive and good for you.  And if there's a Trader Joe's near you, most of these ingredients are pre-measured in their original packaging for an even faster meal.  This soup is just what you need on a cold winter's night.  Or if you're not near Devon Street.

Serves 6 - 8 (The recipe is easily halved).

2 tablespoons canola oil
1 large onion. diced
5 cloves of garlic, minced
2 teaspoons cumin
1 teaspoon turmeric powder
2 Tablespoons curry powder
1 28 oz can (or 2 cans of 14 oz each) of diced tomatoes undrained
1 pound dry red lentils
1 quart vegetable stock
1 quart water
1 bag (6 oz) pre-washed spinach
salt and pepper to taste
lime wedges (optional)

Heat the oil in a dutch oven or other large pot on medium heat and saute the onion until tender, about 5 minutes.  Add garlic, pinch of salt, the spices and stir for about a minute, until the garlic and spices are fragrant.  Then add the diced tomatoes and bring to a simmer.

Stir in the lentils, stock and water.  Bring to a boil then simmer, covered, for about 30 minutes.  Add salt to taste.  Simmer for a few more minutes until the lentils have thickened the soup.  Then add the fresh spinach and stir until wilted.  Serve with lime wedges.

For a complete meal, feel free to include naan, Indian flat bread.  Or substitute naan for pita, hummus and tabbouli salad with the lentil soup.  Enjoy!

Vegetarian Whole Wheat Lo Mein

Veggie lo mein (right) served with spinach tofu in ginger-lime sauce

This is a great middle-of-the-week meal because it's fast and healthy, and you can substitute vegetable ingredients according to what you have in your fridge.  This is also a great one-dish meal.  You don't need anything else except maybe a glass of Tsingtao.

You can buy lo mein or chow mein noodles at speciality or Asian grocery stores, but I find it just as good to use whole wheat spaghetti noodles.  For a little over a buck, you can buy one pound of organic 100% whole wheat spaghetti from Trader Joe's.

The recipe below is the vegetarian version, but I've made this dish with shrimp or pre-cooked chicken for my meat-eating friends.  Just substitute in the meat for the tofu. With pre-cooked meat, just sauté in with the vegetables until warmed through.  With uncooked shrimp, just add the shrimp right after the last vegetable and sauté for a few minutes until the shrimp just loses its transparency, about 3 to 5 minutes.  Although Asian vegetables like bok choy, bean sprouts and snow peas go well with the sauce, I use whatever vegetables I have in the refrigerator, including broccoli, cabbage, carrots, onions, asparagus and cauliflower.  Make your own combination!

Cook 1 pound of whole wheat spaghetti noodles according to package, reserve at least 1/4 cup of the pasta water.
3 Tablespoons vegetable oil or canola oil.
1 tub (about 14 oz) of extra firm organic tofu, cut into bite-sized cubes.
2 Tablespoons of soy sauce
1 small onion, sliced from pole to pole into 8 sections
About 1 pound or 3 loose cups of vegetables, cut into bite-sized pieces.
2 garlic cloves, minced.
1 generous teaspoon ginger root, minced.

Sauce:
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup reserved cooled pasta water or regular water
2 Tablespoons rice wine vinegar
2 Tablespoons sesame oil
1 teaspoon honey or sugar
1 teaspoon of hot pepper flakes (optional)

In a large cast iron skillet or other large pan, heat 1 tablespoon of oil on medium, sauté the tofu for about a minute, then add the soy sauce.  Sauté and occasionally flip the tofu until golden brown, about 10 minutes.  While cooking the tofu, prepare the sauce.  When tofu is done, put in a medium bowl.

Combine sauce ingredients and whisk until sugar or honey is completely dissolved.  Set aside.

In the same pan used for the tofu, heat 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil on medium-high.  When oil is hot, saute the onions until brown and tender.  Then add vegetables and sauté until the vegetables are cooked to your liking (I like mine a little crunchy).   Set aside cooked vegetables with the tofu.

Put the remaining 1 Tablespoon of oil in the pan on medium heat.  When the oil is heated, add the cooked spaghetti and garlic and ginger.  Cook for about a minute, then add the vegetables and tofu and the sauce.  Combine until heated through.  Feel free to top the noodles with sesame seeds and/or chopped green onions.  Serve immediately.