Lentil, Celery and Tomato Minestrone

By Martha Rose Shulman

Lentil, Celery and Tomato Minestrone
Andrew Scrivani for The New York Times
Total Time
About 1 hour 30 minutes
Rating
5(292)
Comments
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Minestrone might be a familiar soup, but here it takes on a new flavor: celery. The celery, which may be lingering in the fridge having played a minor part in another recipe, adds a dimension of flavor to the mix that ordinary minestrone just doesn’t have. Celery has long been used in Chinese medicine to help control high blood pressure. It is also an excellent source of Vitamins K and C, and a very good source of potassium, folate, dietary fiber, molybdenum, manganese, and Vitamin B6.

Featured in: Celery as the Main Event

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Ingredients

Yield:4 to 6 servings
  • 1cup lentils, rinsed
  • 1onion, halved
  • A bouquet garni made with 2 sprigs each thyme and parsley, a bay leaf, and a Parmesan rind
  • 1½quarts water
  • 1tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
  • 1medium carrot, diced
  • 3celery stalks, diced
  • 2garlic cloves, minced
  • Salt, preferably kosher salt, to taste
  • 128-ounce can chopped tomatoes, with liquid
  • Pinch of sugar
  • 2tablespoons tomato paste
  • ¼cup chopped fresh parsley
  • Very thinly sliced celery, from the inner heart, for garnish
  • Freshly grated Parmesan cheese for serving
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 servings)

186 calories; 3 grams fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 2 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 32 grams carbohydrates; 8 grams dietary fiber; 7 grams sugars; 10 grams protein; 1142 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Combine the lentils, ½ onion and the bouquet garni with 1 quart water in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, add salt to taste, cover and simmer 30 minutes.

  2. Step 2

    Chop the remaining onion. Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy soup pot or Dutch oven over medium heat and add the onion, carrot, and celery. Cook, stirring often, until the onion is tender, about 5 minutes, and add the garlic and a pinch of salt. Stir together until fragrant, about 1 minute, and add the canned tomatoes with their liquid and the sugar. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring often, for about 10 minutes, until the tomatoes have cooked down somewhat and smell fragrant.

  3. Step 3

    Add the lentils with their broth, the tomato paste, salt to taste, an additional 2 cups water, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, cover, and simmer 30 minutes. Taste and adjust seasonings. Season to taste with freshly ground pepper, stir in the parsley and serve, garnishing each bowl with thinly sliced celery heart if you want some crunch, and passing the Parmesan at the table.

Tip
  • Advance preparation: This will keep for three or four days in the refrigerator. It may require thinning out. It's even better the day after you make it. I have a teenage son and he just about polished off the leftovers - which should have served 3 - the day after I tested the recipe.

Ratings

5 out of 5
292 user ratings
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Comments

Kit

This felt overly complicated. Why not just make it like every other soup: onions first, then celery and carrot, etc, all in one pot? Will definitely save myself the washing next time. Anyway, it was tasty. Stuck a bit of toasted sourdough at the bottom of the bowls.

MM

This recipe produced an unusually bright, fresh-tasting lentil soup thanks to the separate preparation of the lentils and vegetables at the beginning, which was no bother at all. The vegetables retained their integrity and color instead of turning the same color as the lentils too, which made for a prettier than average result. I made it exactly as written (but with de puy lentils) and will return to this recipe in the future.

CFXK

Yes, it does. Though one type may not be preferred over another for this soup, the cooking times and resulting textures vary significantly among the different kinds of lentils. Red cook in as little at 15-20 minutes and get creamy-mushy (which is fine for soups), while brown and green can take up as twice as long to cook, get creamy, maintain their shape. So better just to monitor the timing in step one than assume thirty minutes

ivy

young celery leaves make an excellent garnish here

Jennifer

Not sure how anyone could criticize this recipe. I followed it exactly and it was delicious. Added bonus: who knew how nutritious celery is? Apparently, very. P.S. Per the recipe, salt to taste. Want more salt? Add more!

Catherine

Good. Too tomato forward. Toast tomato paste. Add Indian spices. Green lentils pre cook briefly. Good base

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