Ham hock and lentil soup with harissa. Photo / Babiche Martens
Ham hock and lentil soup with harissa. Photo / Babiche Martens
Serves 4
Harissa 100g green chillies, de-seeded and chopped 2 tsp garlic, crushed 2 cups fresh coriander, chopped 2 Tbs fresh mint leaves, chopped 1 tsp coriander seeds, toasted and crushed 1 tsp cumin seeds, toasted and crushed olive oil 3 tsp salt
Soup 1 Tbs olive oil 1 onion, diced 1 large carrot, diced 1 stick of celery, diced 1 1/2 litreschicken or vegetable stock 200g lentils 1 smoked ham hock 2 bay leaves Salt and freshly ground black pepper Pide to serve
1 To make the harissa; put all the ingredients into a food processer and blend while adding enough olive oil to make a paste. The harissa can be put into a jar and covered with a film of oil and will last for at least three months like that.
2 To make the soup; heat the olive oil in a heavy based saucepan then add the vegetables and cook while stirring for approximately 3 minutes or until softened.
3 Add the stock, lentils, ham hock and bay leaves. Simmer for approximately 50 minutes, making sure the lentils are soft.
4 Remove the bay leaves and hock, take the meat off the bone and return to the soup. Season then ladle into warmed bowls and add a swirl of harissa before serving with pide.
