Hearty lentil stew

It has been getting a lot warmer around here. Last week, we had several sun-shiny, blue-skied days that brought along that awakening, fresh smell of spring. The sun also transformed snow "hills" in Minneapolis backyards and front curbs into a more encouraging size. Yet, it is cold enough that a bowl of spicy soup or stew still warms the heart, and belly, in a welcomed way.

A couple of days ago, I had some amazing spicy Bolivian lentil stew at a local co-op. The stew combines the healthful and hearty feel of lentils with a spicy tang of Mexican (tortilla) soup. As a person who loves lentils (I make daal weekly) and spices, I couldn't wait to make this stew in my kitchen.

Without jotting down the ingredient list for the stew at the co-op, I had to rely on my "taste" memory for my re-creation. After all, it wasn't too hard because it was delightful to recall all the bold yet soothing flavors of that stew.

Here is the list of ingredients I used:

- Onion
- Garlic
- Cumin
- 1 yellow potato
- 1 carrot
- Lentils: red and French
- Chicken broth and resulting cooked bone-in chicken pieces
- Canned plum tomato
- Canned chipotle chili paste
- Zucchini
- Salt and pepper to taste


I started out with sauteing some onion, chopped carrots and potatoes in olive oil in a soup pot over medium heat. After two or three minutes, I added a little smashed garlic and ground cumin while stirring the pot constantly so that the cumin would not burn. Then came the lentils - I used two cups of red lentils and half a cup of French lentil for color and texture contrast. I stirred all the ingredients for a few minutes until they have "mingled" well and the oil had been evenly distributed (visible by its shiny coating over the ingredients.) Next I added home-made chicken broth, turned down the heat to medium-low and let it cook covered. (The co-op version of the stew was vegetarian, but I decided to use up a few pieces of a whole chicken purchased at our co-op. I made a light, fragrant broth for the stew; and I threw in some shredded chicken meat toward the end of the cooking process.) If you have cooked with lentils, especially red lentils, you would know that they can easily double during cooking. So you want to check the pot to make sure that there is still enough liquid. If not, add more broth or water and stir to incorporate all the ingredients.

After about 15-17 minutes, everything seemed to be tender enough by my taste. I seasoned the stew with kosher salt, a couple spoons of canned chipotle chili paste (zing!) and about a cup and a half of canned whole plum tomatoes. After giving the pot a good stir, I covered it again and let it cook for 10 minutes longer. Again, I tasted and adjusted the saltiness and spicy-ness levels. When the kitchen was filled with good aromas and the stew was ready, I added some chopped zucchini and cooked chicken. Everything was ready after 3-4 minutes or so.

Making this stew reminded me of my father and how he would re-create intriguing, good food that he tried at fancy restaurants. He is such an intuitive cook and it always works out for him. All he needs is a mental list of ingredients and an idea of the preparation method.

So here is my attempt at copying a dish, with no precise measurement for the ingredients. There's a lot of room for improvisation. I'm sure your taste will guide you to make it successfully yourself.

(By shopping at my co-op and buying some of the ingredients in bulk or on sale, I was able to keep the cost down to a little over $10. My pot yielded 3 meals for two persons, so it was really economical.)