Now that midterms season has graced McGill students, any prior New Year’s resolutions to cook fancy, elaborate meals have gone out the window. Enter this red lentil soup recipe, which is fast and simple; it only has three steps, and the last one is opt-outable if you’re tight for time. It’s affordable for students since the main ingredient is lentils, and the rest of the ingredients can probably be found around the house already. For those looking for a vegetarian option, the chicken broth can be swapped out for vegetable broth. Lastly, students can cook up a jumbo batch to eat at the library throughout the week; the soup freezes well, and can be warmed up for a quick snack between stints in the library. 

Ingredients

2 tbsp of olive oil

2 carrots, diced

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1 onion, diced

½ tsp of salt

1 tbsp of tomato paste

2 cups of red lentils

8 cups of chicken broth 

2 bay leaves 

Black pepper

Cayenne pepper

DIRECTIONS

1. Cook olive oil, carrots, garlic, onion, salt, for 5 minutes, covered, over medium heat.

2. Add the rest of the ingredients to the pot and bring to a boil. Turn down to heat to low and simmer covered until lentils fall apart. This should take approximately 20 minutes.

3. For a thicker consistency, purée half the soup.