A Vegan Noodle Soup for the New Year

Every other Thursday, Gena Hamshaw of the blog Choosing Raw shares satisfying, flavorful recipes that also happen to be vegan.

Today: The warm, comforting, totally vegan noodle soup you're craving this January.

Most of the noodle soups I create at home have Asian influences or flavors: pho, miso soup with soba noodles, lo mein noodle soup, and so on. A few years ago, I was introduced to Persian New Year’s noodle soup: a hearty mixture of beans, vegetables, noodles, lemon, and fresh herbs. It’s reminiscent of the lemony chicken noodle soup my mom made when I was little, but it’s naturally vegetarian, and if you purchase noodles made without eggs, then it’s easily vegan as well. 

More: Another soup easily made vegan? Minestrone (and you don't even need a recipe).

What gives this soup its heartiness is the addition of lots and lots of legumes. Some recipes call for lima beans; nearly all of them call for both lentils and chickpeas. I like to prepare the soup with a mix of chickpeas, kidney beans, navy beans, and lentils, mostly because I nearly always have all of them in my pantry. But this is a lovely opportunity to use heirloom beans or beans that are less common in your cooking, from lima to cranberry to dried favas. (Just be sure to soak your beans overnight.) Once the beans have simmered, they’ll add texture to the soup -- a perfect contrast to the lightness of fresh parsley, cilantro, and dill. 

Persian New Year's Noodle Soup

Serves 6 to 8

1/2 cup chickpeas, soaked overnight in 2 to 3 cups of water, then rinsed and drained
1/2 cup navy beans, soaked overnight in 2 to 3 cups of water, then rinsed and drained
1/2 cup kidney beans, soaked overnight in 2 to 3 cups of water, then rinsed and drained
3 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
2 yellow onions, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon turmeric, ground
1 teaspoon cumin, ground
1 poblano chili, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup green or brown lentils, rinsed
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
8 to 10 cups vegetable broth (low sodium if possible)
5 cups fresh spinach, rinsed and chopped
1/2 pound linguine, broken in half
1 cup parsley, chopped
1/2 cup cilantro, chopped (plus more to taste)
1/3 cup chopped fresh dill (plus more to taste)
2 tablespoons lemon juice

See the full recipe (and save and print it) here.

Photo by Mark Weinberg

Gena's new book Choosing Raw: Making Raw Foods Part of the Way You Eat is a thorough, relatable guide to incorporating raw and vegan foods into any diet. It's full of no-fuss recipes for every meal, which range from fully raw to mostly cooked, with plenty of snacks and desserts to keep everyone happy.