Adapted from Ali Slagle’s Spicy Miso Lentil Soup at NYT Cooking, this soup not only tastes great, it’s nutrient packed! I used my homemade soup stock rather than filtered water, a traditionally made organic chickpea miso and my No soy sauce so it is soy free. I also increased the brown lentils and eliminated the rice to make it grain free. It is very low in fat without sacrificing taste!
Spicy Miso Lentil Soup
Ingredients
1 large brown onion
4 cloves garlic
7 cups of homemade vegetable soup stock (no salt or fats added)
1 1/2 cups organic brown lentils
1 tbs pure organic kelp powder
1 tsp pure porcini powder
3 tbs No soy sauce (see post dated 20 January 2026)
1/2 tsp Himalayan pink salt
freshly ground pepper
110 grams of shitake, brown, portabello or crimini mushrooms
1-2 tsp organic toasted sesame oil
Spinach Puree
1/4 cup homemade soup stock (no salt or fats added)
3+ tbs fresh lime juice
2 1/2 tbs organic chickpea miso paste
2 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced
1 inch long piece of ginger, peeled and finely sliced
2 red chillies, stems removed and sliced
1 bunch English spinach or baby spinach
Method
Peel and chop a brown onion and four cloves of garlic. Wash the lentil and drain. In a Dutch oven, sauté the onions with a pinch of salt. Cover and let cook for 5-10 minutes on a low heat. Add in the garlic and continue to cook for a minute or two. Add in the soup stock, lentils, porcini and kelp powders, No soy salt, salt and pepper. Cover and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and let it simmer covered for 20 minutes.
While the soup simmers, prepare the spinach puree. Peel and chop the garlic and ginger. Remove the stems from the chillies and slice. Chop the spinach, wash well, spin and dry. Sqeeze the lime juice. In a blender add the soup stock, lime juice, chillies, garlic and ginger and miso paste. Blend until smooth. Taste. It will be diluted once added to the soup base so make sure it is a little saltier, spicier and sour than you would normally like. Set aside.
Heat a ceramic non stick pan. Slice the mushrooms. Cook over a medium to low heat for about 7-9 minutes allowing the mushrooms to soften and release their liquid. Turn off the heat and dribble a tsp of toasted sesame oil on the mushrooms and mix through. Set aside.
When the soup stock is finished cooking, taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. Ladle soup stock in to bowls, Spoon two heaping tablespoons of spinach puree through the soup and top with sautéed mushrooms. Enjoy immediately.
Store left over soup stock, spinach puree and mushrooms separately to maintain freshness when you prepare it again.