This humble soup has always come through for me. It’s nourishing, forgiving, and helps use up any veggie zombies haunting your fridge.
This is my go-to soup when I want something healthy and filling, especially when I have a lot of vegetables wilting away in my fridge.
What I love most about this recipe is its flexibility. As long as you have some type of lentil or bean and a variety of vegetables, it works wonderfully. Don’t hesitate to use whatever you have on hand and take this chance to clean out your fridge. For example, I added tomatoes, mini potatoes, and peppers—three ingredients I had never used before—and it turned out great. No matter what you include, it may look like sludge, but it will taste fantastic!
Sludge Soup:
Ingredients:
- 1 Onion (diced)
- 4-8 Garlic cloves (minced or diced)
- 1 Bunch of celery (chopped)
- 4-6 Carrots (peeled and chopped)
- 1 Bulb of fennel with stems and fronds (chopped)
- 1 Bag spinach or kale (frozen or fresh-chopped)
- Any other veggies you want to use up (I used tomatoes, mini potatoes, and peppers in mine)
- 2 Cartons of stock
- 1 Bag of dried lentils
- 1 Bag of dried beans (any variety – I used blackeye peas in this version)
- 2 Tbsp Olive Oil
- Garlic salt
- Crushed red pepper (optional)
- 4-8 cups filtered water (as needed)
Step-by-step video (shown above):
This recipe is mostly all about chopping, prepping, and giving yourself plenty of time to let it all cook down. Since this soup is so healthy, you can go a bit wild with the finishing touches. I like to pair mine with some sourdough toast and top the soup with some Greek yogurt, chili crisp, or a fried egg.
Pro tip: watch this video on properly rinsing and draining your lentils or beans.
Recipe:
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Add Olive Oil to a large pot on medium heat.
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Add onion and sauté until translucent. My onion was so powerful that I ended up using my trusty onion goggles.
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Add carrots, celery, fennel, and sauté for a few minutes.
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Add stock.
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Rinse lentils and beans, then add them to the pot.
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Add the rest of the veggies.
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Add more water if needed to cover the beans (try to keep at least a ½ inch of liquid above the solids).
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Add 1 tsp of garlic salt.
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Cook for the next 2-3 hours, checking every 30 minutes to stir and add water if needed.
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Once the beans are soft it is ready to eat.
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Taste and add more garlic salt and pepper to your taste.
