300g yellow split peas or dahl, soaked overnight 1 small onion, peeled and roughly chopped 1 small leek, roughly chopped and washed 1 stick of celery, roughly chopped 30g root ginger, scraped and finely chopped 1 small mild chilli, seeded and roughly chopped 2 cloves of garlic, peeled and crushed 1tsp ground cumin 1tsp cumin seeds A pinch of saffron strands 1tbsp vegetable oil 2 litres vegetable stock (a maggi cube will do) Salt and freshly ground black pepper 1tbsp chopped fresh coriander 2tbsp Greek yoghurt 1tsp toasted cumin seeds
In a thick-bottomed pan, gently cook the onion, leek, celery and the spices in the vegetable oil until soft without colouring them. Add the vegetable stock and split peas, bring to the boil, season and simmer gently for 1 hour or until the peas are soft.
Blend in a liquidiser until smooth, then strain through a fine-meshed sieve. If you like a chunky soup, don't liquidise it.
Check the seasoning and adjust the consistency of the soup with more stock or water if it's too thick; soups made with pulses are a little unpredictable and can end up thicker than you expect. Add the chopped coriander and bring back to the boil. Serve with a dollop of Greek yogurt, some more fresh coriander and/or a sprinkling of toasted cumin seeds.