...like the fascists they are

LENTIL & COCONUT SOUP

Easy, cheap and cheerful: everything you want in a partner - oh no, the other one - soup.

Can’t remember where this recipe came from – I’m thinking Sunday newspaper magazine, I’m thinking old Indian recipe book, I’m thinking quarterly pseudo-caring-sharing foodie publication from a fascist supermarket that appears to be on your side in that their store encourages home cooking with aisles and aisles of foodstuffs but in reality the amount of space given over to all basic ingredients – and when I say basic I mean those ingredients you have to do something with - works out at about, oh, I don’t know,15%, the remainder taken up with “convenient” fast food, packet mixes, meals in boxes (or meal kits for God’s sake!), cheap meat products, biscuits and sweets.

Take a look around next time you go supermarket shopping and see how much space is given over to crisps and snacks, packet food and soft drinks and how much to basics. We have one of those hypermarkets in Reading. It has over 30 aisles and one of those is given over to “home cooking”: it is where you go for your flour, yeast, dried fruit, eggs, sugar, baking powder, etc, but also, within this one aisle, they include packet mixes for pancakes, brownies, bread mixes, etc. They cannot fill just one aisle with what is laughingly called these days “cook’s ingredients”. What hope is there when, wherever you turn, all roads lead to an easier path which means less time, effort and mess for you in the kitchen, and more profit for them.

Let’s get real – supermarkets don’t want us cooking our own stuff. Not much mark up on a kilo bag of chick peas when they can supply their own brand falafel or hummus at ten times the profit. Who’s going to bother with soaking, cooking then processing those cheap humble peas when it’s all done for you, and look – no washing up! And who’ll need a kitchen in another 15 years: if we’re not careful that room will have gone the same way as the old parlour and dining rooms of yesteryear - redundant space that could be turned over to an indoor media entertainment complex complete with built in fridge and microwave so you need never get up off your arse to prepare a meal ever again.

Let’s stuff the supermarkets and make our own soup. It’s cheaper, healthier and won’t take long, and the satisfaction of making something where you are completely in control of the raw ingredients and final outcome will be greater than winning the lottery. Well, no it won’t, but it goes a long way.

All ingredients should be available at your local Asian grocer’s.

Serves about 4

6oz red split lentils
1½ pints water
3 tbsp coconut milk powder
2 tbsp water
1 medium onion, finely chopped
½ tsp chilli powder
¾ tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground turmeric
Salt and pepper
1 garlic clove, crushed – optional
Fresh coriander to serve


Wash the lentils until water runs clear and place in saucepan with the water. Bring to the boil and skim off any scummy bits that rise to the top. Take the pan off the heat to do this as, if you leave it simmering, you’ll be there for ever.

Mix the coconut powder with the 2 tbsp of cold water and mix until dissolved. Pour into the lentils and stir. Add the rest of the ingredients except for the coriander, bring back to simmering, cover and cook until lentils and onions are soft – about 20-25 mins. Season with salt and pepper, and serve with chopped fresh coriander.

There now. That didn't take long did it, and isn’t that better than a cuppa soup? Isn’t it?