Creamy Chicken, Bacon and Lentil Soup

(Recipe adapted from Nadia Lim)

Ingredients

250g lean shoulder/rindless eye bacon, sliced 1cm
1 onion, finely diced
2 carrots, peeled and finely diced or grated
3 stalks of celery, finely diced
1 leek, white and pale green part only, thinly sliced
450g boneless skinless chicken thighs
1-2 Tbsp chopped thyme leaves
1/2 cup split red lentils
2 cups chicken stock (salt-reduced preferable)
2 cups water
3/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup lite sour cream
Chipotle sour cream (optional, to serve):
1/4 cup lite sour cream
1 Tbsp chipotle sauce (Barkers do one that is just under 10g sugar per 100g)
1 Tbsp chopped parsley

Method

1. Heat a drizzle of oil in a large pot on medium to high heat. Add the bacon and cook for about 2 minutes.

2. Reduce the heat to medium and add the onion, carrots, celery and leek. Stir, cover and cook for 4–5 minutes, stirring occasionally until the vegetables are just tender.

3. Pat the chicken dry with paper towels and season with salt. Add to the pot with the thyme, lentils, stock, water and salt and bring to a simmer while stirring.

4. Reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer gently for 15-20 minutes until the chicken is cooked and the lentils are tender.

5. In a small bowl mix all the chipotle sour cream ingredients together.

6. Using a slotted spoon, remove the chicken from the soup, roughly dice or shred and return to the pot. Stir in the sour cream and season to taste with salt and pepper

7. Ladle soup into bowls, add a dollop of the chipotle sour cream and sprinkle with extra chopped parsley and paprika.

Enjoy!