Red Lentil Soup
Mercimek corbasi: the velvety orange soup that appears on every Turkish table before anything else. Cheap, vegetarian and quietly one of the great comfort foods.
- Total time
- 19 min
- Serves
- 4
- Effort
- Easy
What you need
Written for 4 — nudge the counter and the numbers follow.
0 of 10 in the basket.
How you make it
Heat the olive oil in a large pan over medium-high and fry the onion, carrot and potato for 4 minutes until the onion softens.
Stir in the tomato puree and cumin for 1 minute, then pour in the stock and the lentils.
Bring to a boil, then simmer briskly for 12 minutes until the lentils have collapsed and the potato crushes easily against the side of the pan.
Blend until completely smooth with a stick blender, then season generously with salt; lentils need more than you expect.
Melt the butter in a small pan with the pul biber for 30 seconds until it turns bright red, and swirl it over each bowl.
Serve with lemon wedges, and mean it, because the squeeze at the table is part of the recipe.
Read all that and thought “absolutely not”?
Completely fair. Red Lentil Soup is sitting in the Turkish kitchen right now, it costs nothing, and it will never arrive.
Order it insteadMore from the Turkish kitchen
Charcoal, yoghurt and bread worth the trip alone.