Middle Eastern · 40 min · Easy · 4 servings

Turkish Red Lentil Soup

Name: Turkish Red Lentil Soup
Total time: 40 min
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients: 2 tbsp olive oil; 1 onion, diced; 1 carrot, diced; 3 garlic cloves, minced; 1 tbsp tomato paste; 1⅓ cups red lentils, rinsed; 1 potato, peeled and cubed; 5 cups vegetable stock; 1 tsp ground cumin; 2 tbsp vegan butter; 1 tsp paprika; ½ tsp chili flakes; 1 handful fresh mint; 1 lemon, cut into wedges; salt, to taste; black pepper, to taste

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.

gluten-freenut-freehigh-protein

Plan it:

Method

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
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
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
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
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.

Cooking this later?Save to Pinterest

Method

Soften the base

Simmer

Blend smooth

Make the paprika butter

Serve

Notes