Persian-inspired Herb and Bean Soup (Ash-e-Reshteh)

New

Soup Autumn

Serves 6-8

Prep 15 min

Cook 1 hr

Ash-e-reshteh is a beloved Iranian noodle soup - ash meaning a thick, hearty soup and reshteh referring to the thin noodles that give it substance. This version takes a different approach, serving the soup and noodles separately while keeping all the traditional herbs and beans. You can serve it with whatever long pasta you have in your cupboard and top with a fragrant mint oil.

The soup needs real time to develop its earthy flavours - you'll know it's ready when the herbs turn a nice khaki colour. The garlicky mint oil adds brightness to cut through richness. Think of it as Persian mulligatawny: substantial enough to be a complete meal and deeply warming when you need proper comfort.

Ingredients

2	large onions (300g), thinly sliced
75ml	olive oil
4	garlic cloves, finely chopped
¾ tsp	fenugreek seeds
1 tbsp	dried mint
½ tsp	ground turmeric
300g	large leaf spinach
75g	parsley, roughly chopped
75g	coriander, roughly chopped
240g	drained brown lentils from a tin
240g	drained kidney beans from a tin
240g	drained chickpeas from a tin
750ml	chicken or vegetable stock
2	lemons, cut in half
150g	sour cream
GARLICKY MINT OIL
100ml	olive oil
7	garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 tbsp	dried mint
⅛ tsp	ground turmeric
	fine sea salt and black pepper

Method

Place the onions and olive oil in a large cast-iron pan on medium-high heat, adding ¼ teaspoon of salt. Cook, stirring frequently, for 10 minutes until caramelised. Stir in the garlic, fenugreek, mint and turmeric. Cook for 1-2 minutes more, then stir in the spinach, parsley and coriander in small handfuls, waiting until just wilted before stirring in the next handful.
Add in the lentils, kidney beans and chickpeas, along with the stock, 500ml of water, a good grind of black pepper and 1¾ tsp of salt. Cover with a lid, bring to the boil, reduce the heat to medium-low and cook, stirring two or three times, for 1 hour, until the beans are super tender and the greens are khaki in colour.
Meanwhile, to make the mint oil, place the oil, garlic, mint, turmeric and ⅛ teaspoon of salt in a small pan on medium heat and cook for 6 minutes until just starting to bubble and the garlic is soft. Take off the heat and set aside until needed.
When the soup is ready, use a stick blender to blitz about ¼ of the mixture. Do this by placing the blender on the side of the pan, so you don't blitz everything, and pulse a few times. Mix everything well.
Serve with plenty of lemon to squeeze on top, plus the sour cream and mint oil alongside.