Spiced Lentil Spare Rib Soup is a deep, rich, hearty soup filled with tender beef and warming spices.
My kitchen rhythm is now firmly in soup mode. I love soups. There are some soups I make for special occasions and then there are my weekly soups; Yemeni Style Chicken Soup, Tuscan Kale & White Bean Soup with Chicken Meatballs, and Roasted Pumpkin Soup. I make these, without fail, every week because they are easy, filled with pantry staples, delicious, and satisfying.
Out of all my weekly soups, my Spiced Lentil Spare Rib Soup is the family favorite. It’s affectionately known to my kids as weekend soup and their special soup. Believe me, once you make it, you’ll make it every week too. It’s not your average lentil soup; it’s thick and luscious, hearty and deep. A guest once called this soup “healing” because its warmth seeps into every crevice of your soul. Everything you’re craving, feeling, needing…this soup finds it and wraps in comfort.
The magic of Spiced Lentil Spare Rib Soup!
One of my magical tricks for turning any hearty soup into a rich soup is how I cook the onions. They are slowly simmered until dark golden brown and melt in your mouth; creating the base layer of the entire soup, yielding a deep caramelized flavor. The other key ingredient in this soup that makes it truly unforgettable is the meat. I add boneless spareribs to this soup for cost cutting measures, but…if you so truly desire…the best way is to add bone-in flanken (which is a type of bone-in short ribs) is even better because the marrow seeps into the broth, yielding magnificent flavor.
I began adding meat to this soup in honor of my Bubby, who made the absolute best Russian Cabbage Soup…..where the meat in the soup fell apart to the touch. It was perfect. Simmering the spare ribs in the soup infuses the broth, transforming this humble lentil soup into something rich and almost decedent.
The spices in Spiced Lentil Spare Rib Soup contribute its the warm and heartiness. Hiwaij for soup is a beautiful spice blend you can find at most grocery stores. The brand I recommend are NYC Shuk.
Many ways to prepare Spiced Lentil Spare Rib Soup!
I personally let this soup simmer for hours on the stove because I’m home and it’s most convenient for me. However!!!!!!!! You can put this soup in a slow cooker! Simply follow the cooking directions for this recipe and allow the soup to come to a simmer. Once simmering (cooking direction 9), transfer to a slow cooker. You can set it to low for 6-8 hours or high for 4 hours. About 15 minutes before you want to eat, begin again at cooking direction 10 and complete the recipe.
In the winter, I make a double batch and we slowly eat it all week long; a quick bowl for lunch, a large bowl for dinner, or a warm hug tucked into my kid’s thermos for school lunch. This soup also freezes well. So make a double batch and pop the other half into portioned freezer containers for a quick delicious dinner. Either way, this soup will become your quickest go-to meal, and your weekly soup fix.
Spiced Lentil Spare Rib Soup
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons avocado or vegetable oil
- 1.20 lbs boneless spare ribs or flanken excess fat removed
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 large yellow onion medium dice, about 2 cups
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt divided
- 1 large carrot small dice, about 1 cup
- 2 heaping tablespoons garlic minced
- 2 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon soup hawaij spice blend
- 2 teaspoons ground coriander
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 24 oz. jar crushed tomatoes no salt added
- 7 cups vegetable or chicken stock low sodium
- 2 cups red lentil thoroughly rinsed
- Juice of ½ large lemon
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- Parsley and cilantro finely chopped, for serving
- thick & syrupy balsamic vinegar for serving, see note
Instructions
- In a 10 inch cast iron or heavy bottomed skillet, heat 3 tablespoons of avocado oil over medium/high heat until shimmering.
- Sear the spare ribs on each side between 3-5 minutes, until browned. Remove the spare ribs from the heat onto a plate, cover well with aluminum foil and set aside.
- In an 8 quart pot, heat 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil over medium heat until shimmering,
- Add onions and ¼ teaspoon of kosher salt. Saute for about 8 to 12 minutes, until onions are deeply brown and reduced.
- Add the carrot and saute for 3-5 minutes, until softened.
- Add the garlic and saute until fragrant.
- Add the hawaij, ground coriander, ground cinnamon, ground cumin and remaining kosher salt. Stir and saute for 30 seconds until fragrant.
- Add the crushed tomatoes, stock and lentils. Stir well.
- Add the spare ribs and the juices that gathered on the plate. Cover the pot and let the soup simmer for at least 2 hours, until the meat is tender. Stir often.
- About ten minutes before serving, remove the spare ribs from the pot and shred with a fork. Set aside.
- Using an immersion blender, blend the soup halfway so it’s partially smooth with some texture from the lentil left in it.
- Return the meat to the pot.
- Add the lemon juice, red wine vinegar, parsley and cilantro.
- Drizzle each bowl with extra herbs and a drizzle of syrupy balsamic vinegar.
- Serve with crusty bread and enjoy.
Notes
This recipe and a version of this article was first published by me in Whisk By Ami Magazine. Get Whisk and find more of my recipes in my column, Homestead Kitchen,
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