A Turkish-style red lentil soup
One of my all time favourite dishes, this lentil soup is super easy and quick to make. It is full of flavour and is ideal for any weather really. You can make it as spicy or as mild as you personally like, and you can never go wrong with adding a bit of yogurt before serving.
You can follow me along on IGTV as I make this soup for my family. Just make sure you don’t repeat my mistake and take out the lemon and the bay leaves before you blend!
Ingredients
Serves 6
1/2 red or yellow onion, peeled and diced
4 carrots, peeled and diced
2 tsp of ground coriander
2 tsp of smoked paprika
2 tbsp of tomato paste
100ml of boiling water
a tbsp of honey
1 large potato, peeled and diced
250g of red lentils
500ml of veg or chicken stock
2 bay leaves
1 lemon
Chilli flakes
good olive oil
Greek yoghurt
Salt
Warm up some olive oil in a soup pot and fry the onion and carrots with a large pinch of salt and the spices for 5-8 mins.
In a jug mix the tomato paste hot water and honey, and add to the pot. Let it simmer for 2-3 mins.
Add the potatoes, lentils, stock and bay leaves and cook for 30 mins till the potatoes are soft and lentils are falling apart. At this point squeeze half a lemon and drop it into the pot. Let cook for further 10 mins.
Before you blend the soup, take out the lemon and the bay leaves, and run a hand blender through it, making it as smooth or chunky as your prefer.
To serve to soup, drizzle with olive oil, add a generous pinch of chilli flakes, a slice of lemon and a dollop of Greek yoghurt!