More Than Chicken Soup
When you talk about soup there is much much more to talk about than chicken soup. Wherever Jewish people resided they were able to absorb the local flavors into their own recipes or to adapt local recipes to meet the laws of kashrut. Soups were no exception, thus giving us today a vast array of options to warm our stomachs and souls on chilly winter evenings.
by Shoshana Isaacson
UNORTHOBOXED Magazine Food Editor
For those of us that reside in the Northern Hemisphere, December means it is soup season. There is a chill in the air, perhaps some snow on the ground and our bodies crave the warmth and nourishment offered in a hearty bowl of soup. A bowl of soup, however, brings us more than just physical sustenance; it can bring joy to our souls. How, you may ask, does a bowl of soup bring joy to our souls? For many of us it evokes memories of childhood, times of comfort and safety.
Soup is one of the oldest forms of cooked food in the history of the culinary arts, going back thousands of years to the invention of clay pots in most cultures. In the history of the Jewish people perhaps the most famous soup is the ‘red stuff’ that Yaakov fed to Eisav, a stew or soup-like mixture of lentils, local seasonings and herbs that made the famished Eisav’s mouth water. For most of us, however, one of the most memorable soups in each of our lives is perhaps our Grandmother’s chicken soup.
Regardless of where in the world our families’ roots lie, there is a version of chicken soup that is the cure to everything from upset stomachs to broken hearts. Served at the beginning of EVERY family gathering this soup automatically transports us back to a time of happiness and comfort.
However, when you talk about soup there is much much more to talk about than chicken soup. Wherever Jewish people resided they were able to absorb the local flavors into their own recipes or to adapt local recipes to meet the laws of kashrut. Soups were no exception, thus giving us today a vast array of options to warm our stomachs and souls on chilly winter evenings.
So let’s go back to the beginning and make a simple lentil soup using the ingredients that were historically on hand and readily found in biblical Israel. This soup is perfect to serve at the Shabbos table for parshat Toldot or at any other time of year.
Yaakov’s Lentil Soup
Ingredients
2-3 tablespoons oil
Small bunch of bulb onions
Bunch of cilantro
8 cups water
2-3 tablespoons of salt (to taste)
2 or 3 cups of red lentils
Step by Step Instructions
Step 1
Add oil to a large heavy Dutch oven or soup pot.
Step 2
Chop up onion and fresh cilantro. Place into the oil and saute for a few minutes.
Step 3
Add water and salt to taste.
Step 4
Add the lentils.
Step 5
Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer for an hour or longer.
Step 6
When lentils are soft, taste and add salt if needed.
Step 7
Simmer on low until ready to serve.
Step 8
Serve with whole grain crusty bread.
*To bring this recipe into the modern day you could add the following: onions, garlic, carrots, celery and pepper. To make this soup with meat simply use stew beef, chicken or lamb.
