Yoghurt and barley soup

Give bite and substance to your soup with a handful of pearl barley. Paired with creamy yoghurt and a wealth of spices, this is a nourishing bowlful. Serves 4-6

2 tbsp light-flavoured oil
1 onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, chopped
4cm piece ginger, peeled and grated
1 tbsp garam masala
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp chilli powder
Zest of 1 lime or 1 dried lime
200g pearl barley
150g red lentils
400g chopped tomatoes
1 litre vegetable stock
200g greek yoghurt
Salt and black pepper

To finish
4 tbsp olive oil
2 onions, very thinly sliced
1 bunch coriander, roughly chopped

1 Heat the oil in a large high-sided pan over a medium heat. Fry for 3 minutes, or until it starts to soften and take on some colour. Throw in the garlic, ginger, spices and lime. Cook for a further 2 minutes, stirring all the time.

2 Add the barley, red lentils and chopped tomatoes to the pan, stir well, cook for 1-2 minutes then pour in the stock. Bring to the boil then simmer for 45 minutes, or until the lentils have almost disappeared into the soup and the barley is very tender.

3 Meanwhile, prepare the topping. Heat the oil in a large frying pan until hot and fry the onions for 8-10 minutes or until dark golden and crisp. You might have to do this in batches adding a little more oil as you go. Make sure the onions don’t burn. Remove from the pan and set aside to drain on kitchen paper.

4 When the soup is cooked, add plenty of seasoning, stir in the yoghurt and allow to heat through – but don’t boil. Squash the dried lime (if using) in the pan to release the juices. Ladle into bowls and serve topped with crisp onions and coriander.

Recipe taken from