This is the Story of The Day I Became a Tailgating Football Mom. Or something like that.

So, I live in New York City. If you’ve never been, it looks much as it does on TV. Lots of people, tall buildings, subways, commerce, noise. I love it and smile acceptingly when people often comment, “Oh, I love to visit, but I wouldn’t want to live there.” That’s cool. More overpriced gyros for the rest of us.

And both my kids played middle and high school football. One of the first things any non-New Yorker will say upon hearing that is, “WHERE? Where do they play? That’s so weird.”

These are reasonable questions. The answer is that they played some games at competing schools’ fields when those schools were in the surrounding boroughs or suburbs. And, their practices and “home games” took place on Randall’s Island, a strange little island across the East River that has a large number of sports fields dispersed amongst a few structures such as a Golf Center, a Sewage Treatment Plant, and a Mental Hospital.

Slow Cooker Chicken and Lentil Soup with Fennel: This thick and satisfying lentil soup has tailgating or sidelines or post-game meal written all over it.

Only when I put things like this down on paper do I realize how odd it sounds. And how I am actively confirming non-New Yorkers’ perceptions that we live a very singular existence here in our fair city.

Anyway, the first time I made this soup, I ended up bringing it to Jack’s football game right in the slow cooker. Gary (who is now a 30-year veteran New Yorker) thought this was just plain odd (even though he grew up in Worcester, Massachusetts, where I gather things like this happen all the time).

On the car ride there, Gary kept asking where I would put the soup and how I would serve it, as though I was planning to bring crème brûlée and a blowtorch to the field. The boys had already left for the game; had they been home, they would absolutely have lent their voices to the “this-is-so-weird” protest.

We arrived at Randall’s Island and luckily got the really, really good field, the one upwind of the Sewage Plant, and with actual bleachers. Someone had actually brought a table for people to drop off snacks on (thus solving the problem of where I would put it), and I dropped off the soup with a ladle and some plastic bowls and spoons (thus solving the problem of how I would serve it).

It was the final game, the Super Bowl, of their league against their arch-rival school, and tensions were high. I will spare you the blow by blow, and jump right to the part where my kids’ school won, completing their second undefeated season in the history of the high school. (It’s like I just discovered the italics key for the first time, and I am born again as a writer.)

Oh, and the soup? Gone. And adorable 16-year-old girls came up to me all day and said, “Did you make the soup — it was so good!” which I may or may not need to tell you makes a middle-aged woman feel terrific.

God, that was a long story. Anyway, this soup is pretty good: thick, fragrant with cumin and coriander, and kind of dal-like in personality. I would definitely add the fresh parsley at the end, though the football game is purely optional.

Ingredients

• Onion – Any kind of onion will work here.
• Garlic – See how to mince garlic, but don’t worry about mincing it finely for this soup.
• Fennel – Remove the hard core before chopping. If you want, you can reserve the fronds (the leafy, green parts that look like dill) and stir them in with the parsley at the end.
• Carrots – Add sweetness and contribute to the gorgeous orange color of this soup.
• Dried red lentils – The slow cooker is a great way to make red lentil soup. They will soften and break down and start to thicken the soup.
• Spices – I add ground cumin and coriander to this soup as a sort of callback to red lentil dal.
• Chicken breasts – Use boneless, skinless chicken breasts to avoid having to prep the chicken at all before throwing it in.
• Chicken broth – The amount of broth is key here to avoid having a soup that is too thick or too thin.
• Canned crushed tomatoes – Add body to the soup. And so much flavor.
• Salt & pepper – To taste.
• Fresh parsley – Gets stirred in right at the end to preserve its fresh flavor and color.

How to Make Red Lentil, Fennel, and Chicken Slow Cooker Soup

1. Combine: Add the onion, garlic, fennel, carrots, lentils, cumin, coriander, chicken, broth, and tomatoes to your slow cooker. Season to taste.
2. Cook: Set the slow cooker to high and cook for 4 hours. Set it and forget it, pretty much!
3. Serve: Once done cooking, taste the soup and adjust the seasonings if you want to. Stir in fresh parsley and serve.

FAQs

Storage and Leftovers

• This soup will keep in the fridge for up to 5 days, well covered. Reheat in a pot over medium-low heat. It will thicken in the fridge, so you will likely have to add more broth or water to thin it out.
• You can also freeze this soup. Defrost in the fridge overnight. It will also need thinning out when reheating.

What to Serve With Chicken and Red Lentil Soup

Farro and Vegetable Salad

Beer Bread

Cheesy Garlic Bread

More Great Slow Cooker Recipes

• 2 Ingredient Slow Cooker BBQ Pulled Pork
• How to Make Shredded Chicken In the Slow Cooker
• Slow Cooker Teriyaki Beef Tip Steaks
• Slow Cooker BBQ Beer Beef Stew