Turkish Red Lentil Soup

Middle Eastern · 40 min · Easy · 4 servings

Turkish Red Lentil Soup

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A smooth, golden lentil soup finished with paprika butter and a hard squeeze of lemon. Cheap, fast, and one of the most comforting bowls there is.

~410 cal per serving. Calories are approximate, per serving — a guide only.

Plan it:

Method

  1. 1

    Soften the base

    ⏱ 10 min

    Heat the olive oil in a pot over medium heat and cook the onion and carrot until soft. Add the garlic and cumin for a minute, then the tomato paste, and let it darken.

  2. 2

    Simmer

    ⏱ 25 min

    Add the red lentils, potato and stock. Bring to a boil, skim off any foam, then simmer until the lentils have completely fallen apart and the potato is soft.

  3. 3

    Blend smooth

    Blend the soup until velvety: this one should be completely smooth, with no texture left. Season well with salt and black pepper and loosen with hot water if it is too thick.

  4. 4

    Make the paprika butter

    ⏱ 1 min 30 sec

    Melt the vegan butter in a small pan, take it off the heat and stir in the paprika and chili flakes. It should turn bright red almost instantly; any longer on the heat and it burns.

  5. 5

    Serve

    Ladle the soup into bowls, spoon the red paprika butter over the surface, and serve with mint and lemon wedges to squeeze in.

Notes

The lemon is not a garnish: a Turkish lentil soup without it tastes flat and heavy. Take the pan off the heat before the paprika goes in; it scorches in seconds.

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