introducing...vadouvan & lentil soup

vadouvan.

if you watch top chef you know what i am talking about (i don’t so i am not sure i get it either…the internets told me so).

its the new “it” spice. so it figures when i bump into my favorite spice person at the market she handed me a container of this.

vadouvan is basically curry, but not the kind of curry your thinking about. it’s different. it’s sweeter. it’s milder. it’s “french” inspired.

i was so curious when i got my hands on this. my first thought was didn’t i just see this in bon appetit? what else can i do with this? i did some research.

vadouvan is basically thought of as “french curry”. it ‘s a mixture of onions, shallots, curry leaves and cardamom. some vadouvan spice mixtures also include spices such as fenugreek seeds, turmeric, and ground cloves. sounds interesting right? smells divine!

when i got my hands on the spice i took it home and it sat on my counter for days. i opened the container, i looked at it, i touched it, i smelled it. i knew it was special. i knew i had to do something with it.

there was a pork tenderloin, there were carrots from the farmers market, onions and garlic and some freshly picked tomatoes from the garden. a quick saute, some browning of the tenderloin, 2 hours of braising, and finally dinner served with mashed potatoes. the only thing i forgot, to write it down.

i didn’t stop though. i was soon addicted to the smell, the taste, the color. i couldn’t get enough of it.

the weather has become chilly, i took out the sweaters, and you know what that means. soup.

i broke out the lentils. i broke out my stock. i went to work.

carrots, celery, some white wine i had left over…fresh herbs and then of course, my new favorite spice…vadouvan.

“french curry” lentil soup

1 onion chopped
2 cloves of garlic chopped
2 carrots cut into bite size pieces
2 stalks of celery cut into bite size pieces
1/2 tbl vadouvan
1/2 cup white wine
4 cups of stock (chicken or veg)
1 cup of water
1 cup lentils
1 tbl chopped cilantro
1 tbl chopped parsley

in a dutch oven add some canola oil. saute onion, garlic, carrot and celery until softened on a medium flame (about 10 minutes).
to the pot add vadouvan, mix, cook one minute more, add wine and cook down until almost gone.
add stock and water to pot with the chopped cilantro, parsley and lentils. mix and simmer for an hour or until lentils are cooked.

this was excellent alone, but served with a scoop of creme fraiche just made it that more amazing (sour cream works too and so does fresh bread).

if you don’t live local my spice person ships…the best part is your not talking to some shmo answering the phone, you get her, you get my spice guru. so if your interested in trying some of this amazing spice, give her a call, drop her an email, make sure to tell her i said hello