Detox Quinoa Vegetable Soup

Quinoa Vegetable Soup is a healthy, delicious one-pot detox soup. This vegan, gluten-free, onion- garlic free, oil-free soup is rich in fibre, is comforting and perfect treat for all the fitness freaks and health conscious people. This detox quinoa soup can be cooked in a pressure cooker in large batches and served at any time of the day without any guilt.

Festivals means over indulgence of festive food and in India, there is no end to festivities. Before we could wind up with Diwali, Christmas and New year are at our doorsteps followed by Lohri, Sankranti and Pongal. To shed off those extra pounds we gain during such celebrations , a detoxification diet along with exercise  is essential. This quinoa vegetable soup exactly serves the purpose. It can be made in large batches before hand and served as light meals .

Apart from quinoa, the recipe calls for use of yellow lentil ( mung dal) which makes it all the more filling and nutritious. I have used carrots, tomatoes and baby spinach . You may use any vegetables of your choice. Apart from that the soup has ginger, which is considered as one of the best detoxifying herbs. Lemon on the other hand has body cleansing properties. Turmeric with anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, anti-cancerous and anti-toxicity properties, can aid in removing harmful toxins from the body while protecting organs from further damage.

Preparation time : 10 minutes
Cooking time: 20 minutes
Serves: 4

Ingredients :

• 1/4 cup yellow lentil ( Mung dal)
• 1/4 cup Quinoa
• 1/ 2 cup chopped carrots
• 1/2 cup deseeded tomatoes
• 1  cup baby spinach
• 3 cups vegetable stock preferably home -made
• 1 inch root turmeric, grated
• 1/2 inch root ginger, grated
• 1 bay leaf
• 2-3 cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon carom seeds / ajwain
• 1/4 teaspoon roasted cumin powder
• Juice of 1 lemon
• Salt to taste.
• Black pepper powder 

Method:

1. Rinse and drain the lentil and quinoa separately. Add them to a 3 or 5 liter pressure cooker with vegetable stock, and all the ingredients in the list except lemon and baby spinach.

 2 . Pressure cook for 3 whistles on medium flame and then simmer for 10 minutes. Put off the flame. Open the lid of the pressure cooker once all the steam has been released naturally.

3. Adjust the desired consistency of the soup by adding more vegetable stock if required. Now add the washed baby spinach leaves and cook the soup for another 2-3 minutes or until the leaves wilt. Put off the flame. Add freshly squeezed lemon juice to it.

4. Serve the soup in individual bowls while warm and enjoy a gulit free treat with your loved ones !

Recipe Notes :

• The recipe can be easily doubled. Use a large pressure cooker, preferably 5-7 liters if you wish to double the recipe.
• You may use chicken stock instead of the vegetable stock. If you do not have either of them handy , use plain water, though taste will not be the same if using water.
• You may use any vegetable of your choice in this soup.
• The soup stays good for 4-5 days on refrigeration in an air tight container.

This recipe is submitted to the #170th #FoodieMondayBlogHop with #DetoxRecipes as the theme.

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For more detox recipes, click the following recipe links from the blog

•        Moorish Crunch Salad   
•        Purple Cabbage Quinoa Salad   
•        Detox Drink
•        Apple Mint Green Tea
•        Miracle Drink
•        Lobia beans Salad
•        Quinoa Summer Salad
•        Hibiscus Lemongrass Iced Green tea
•        Moong Sprouts Salad