18 Bean soup

The 18 bean soup mix comes in a pack, available in most of the grocery stores. the contents of the pack or the list of the beans are as mentioned below.

1.Green split peas

2.Yellow split peas

3.Green peas
4.Black beans
5.Black eye beans
6.Chick peas

7.Great northern Beans

8.Kidney beans

9.Lima beans
10.Mung beans
11.White navy beans
12.Pinto beans
13.Red chili beans
14.Soybeans
15.Green lentils
16.Red lentils
17.Azuki beans
18.Marrowfat peas.

Whoa! this is a big list of beans and lentils. It is rich in fibre, rich in protein. No doubt it's a healthy soup. The beauty of homemade soups is that, you can control the salt. If you don't get the soup mix, create your own by mixing all the beans found in the market. Beans take a long time to cook. I used pressure cooker for this recipe. You can also use the slow cooker. Start it in the night before going to bed and the soup will be ready to eat by the next day morning. Vegetarians can skip the chicken and chicken stock and add soy chunks and vegetable stock. This makes a delicious soup. Here is the recipe...

18 Bean soup
Ingredients:
18 bean soup mix
chicken stock - 2 cups
chicken - 200 gr
salt
pepper
Chilli pwd - 1/4 tsp (optional, if you don't want to make it spicy)
Onions - 1 chopped
Garlic - 2 cloves, chopped
Tomatoes- canned or fresh - 2 cups
Italian seasoning -(mix of various herbs basil, tyme, rosemary etc). - 1 tsp
Butter - 1 tsp

Method:
 1. Soak the beans overnite.

2. Take a pressure cooker, and add butter and fry the chopped onions, add the italian seasoning mix and fry. Add the chicken keep frying until it changes colour. Add the tomatoes allow it to cook for 5 mins. Add the soaked beans, chicken stock and salt.

3. Cover the lid and pressure cook it.


4. It will be done in 20- 25 mins. Mix it, add 2 cups of water and simmer on low heat.

5. serve hot.

Tip: My personal touch: I added a sprig of curry leaves for added flavour.