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Turkish lentil soup puree

Turkish Red Lentil Soup (Mercimek Çorbası)

A fragrant, spiced, delicious soup — a hello from sunny Turkey! Different cooks make this soup with little variations. Some add onion, carrot, or potato — or all three — and some add flour to thicken it. But those are our own local twists. The recipe I'm sharing here I found online; it was posted by a woman married to a Turkish man, who learned to make the soup from her mother-in-law in Turkey. I'm delighted to share this wonderful recipe with you. The soup is very tasty, fragrant, and comforting. It pairs beautifully with cheesy garlic croutons. If you leave out the butter and use vegetable oil instead, and skip the cheese croutons, the soup makes a great meatless dish for a fast. Give it a try!

mom of sweet tooth

Recipe author

Composition / ingredients

Servings:

Red lentils

300

Tomatoes (or 3 tbsp tomato paste)

Butter

100

Vegetable oil (olive oil works)

Dried oregano

Basil (dried)

Mint (dried)

Lemon (or lime)

Ground black pepper

Salt

Water

1.5

Bread (for toasting)

200

Hard cheese

150

Garlic

Vegetable oil (optional)

Translation table of volumetric measures

Nutrients and energy value of the composition of the recipe

By weight of the composition:

Proteins 22 % 5 g

Fats 35 % 8 g

Carbohydrates 43 % 10 g

129 kcal

GI: 60 / 0 / 40

Cooking method

Cooking time: 50 min

Step 1:

The ingredients for Turkish red lentil soup. The tomatoes and lemon are washed, and the lentils are rinsed thoroughly — through several changes of water.
Step 2:

Peel the tomatoes and chop them.
Step 3:

Put the butter and vegetable oil in a heavy-bottomed pot and melt the butter.
Step 4:

Add the chopped tomatoes (or tomato paste) and cook for 2–3 minutes, stirring with a spatula.
Step 5:

Add the lentils to the pot and toast them, stirring occasionally, until they turn a lighter color.
Step 6:

Pour in all the water and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer gently.
Step 7:

Once the lentils have cooked down almost to a purée, add salt and pepper. Taste, and add more salt and pepper if needed.
Step 8:

Add the mint, basil, and oregano to the soup and simmer over low heat for another 10–15 minutes.
Step 9:

While the soup finishes cooking, prep the ingredients for the croutons. It's better to finely chop the garlic than to press it. Grate the cheese.
Step 10:

Toast the bread in a dry, hot skillet or with a little vegetable (or olive) oil.
Step 11:

While the croutons are still hot, sprinkle one side of each with garlic.
Step 12:

Sprinkle with grated cheese, return them to the skillet, cover, and keep over low heat until the cheese melts.
Step 13:

Set a sieve over a second pot and press the soup through it. It's best not to use a blender on this soup, as it creates unwanted foam.
Step 14:

Serve the Turkish red lentil soup with a slice or two of lemon — squeeze the juice into the soup right before serving. You can serve it with the cheesy garlic croutons, but that's optional. Enjoy!