Smoked pancetta and lentil soup

Heat the oil in a saucepan over a high heat. Add the pancetta and cook, stirring, for about 2–3 minutes, or until the fat has rendered and the bacon is golden and crisp. Remove from the pan with a slotted spoon and drain on kitchen paper.
Add the onion and carrots to the pancetta pan and cook for 5 minutes until the onion is softened. Add the celery and garlic and cook for a further 3–4 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Add the thyme, bay leaf, stock and tomatoes, stir and bring to a gentle simmer. Add the lentils and cook for 20–25 minutes, or until they are softened. Remove the bay leaf and use a stick blender or food processor to partially blend the soup, keeping a fairly chunky texture.
Bring the soup back to a simmer, add the cabbage and cook for 3–4 minutes until wilted. Reheat the pancetta in a small frying pan at the same time.
Stir half of the parsley into the soup and ladle into warmed bowls. Serve immediately topped with the pancetta and remaining parsley.

Ingredient :

1 tsp vegetable oil
80g/2¾oz pancetta, finely diced into 5mm/¼in pieces
1 large onion (about 100g/3½oz), finely chopped
2 carrots (about 200g/7oz), peeled and finely chopped
4 celery sticks (about 150g/5½oz), trimmed and finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 tbsp thyme leaves
1 bay leaf
1.5 litres/2¾ pints chicken stock
400g tin chopped tomatoes
250g/9oz red lentils
250g/9oz (about ½ head) Chinese leaf cabbage or savoy cabbage, shredded
large handful fresh flatleaf parsley, roughly chopped
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper