Red lentil soup

Name: Red lentil soup
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 50 min
Yield: 6 servings
Cuisine: Turkish
Ingredients: 250 g red lentils; 30 g butter; 1 tbsp olive oil; 1 large onion, chopped; 1 carrot, chopped; 1 medium potato, peeled and chopped; 2 clove garlic, chopped; 1 tbsp tomato paste; 1.5 tsp ground cumin; 1 tsp sweet paprika; 1.5 l vegetable stock, or water; 1 tsp salt, or to taste; 0.5 tsp black pepper; 20 g butter, for the topping; 1 tsp Aleppo pepper or paprika, for the topping; 1 tsp dried mint; 1 lemon, cut into wedges

50 min
Prep 10 min
Cook 40 min
Serves 6
easy

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A smooth, golden Turkish-style soup of red lentils, onion, carrot and cumin, finished with a sizzling butter of paprika and dried mint.

Method

1
Rinse the lentils in a sieve under cold water until the water runs mostly clear.
2
Melt the butter with the oil in a large pot over medium heat and cook the onion until soft and translucent.
3
Add the carrot, potato and garlic and cook, stirring, for a few minutes.
4
Stir in the tomato paste, cumin and paprika and cook until the paste darkens slightly.
5
Add the lentils and stock, bring to the boil and skim off any foam.
6
Partly cover and simmer, stirring now and then, until the lentils have collapsed and the potato is very soft.
7
Blend until completely smooth. Thin with a little hot water if needed, then season with the salt and pepper.
8
Melt the butter for the topping in a small pan, add the Aleppo pepper and mint and swirl until the butter turns red and smells fragrant.
9
Ladle the soup into bowls, drizzle over the spiced butter and serve with lemon wedges to squeeze in.

Notes

The squeeze of lemon at the table is essential. It lifts the earthy lentils.
For a vegan soup, use olive oil in place of butter throughout.
The soup thickens as it stands. Loosen leftovers with water when reheating.

Equipment

Sieve, Large soup pot, Stick blender, Small frying pan

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