Spicy Rustic Red Lentil Soup with Thick Thick Yoghurt: A recipe

In my palette of dried beans and lentils, it is the red lentil that is used least of all. I am not sure why. Its colour is lively, it is so easy to cook, does not require previous soaking and it falls to a wonderful creamy mush as it cooks. Perfect for when there is never enough time.

In my palette of dried beans and lentils, it is the red lentil that is used least of all. It is one of the four pulses commonly available as I was growing up – red lentils, split peas,  yellow split peas, barley – and was often thrown by the handful into overcooked soups and stews, left bland and forgotten at the bottom of the dish in an era when spices and herbs were not to be found in any Proper Country Australian Housewife’s kitchen. These women knew how to cook vegetables and meat for their men, but not “these dried things”.

Let that change. May my palette now include this wonderful orange – red lentil.

Spicy Rustic Red Lentil Soup with Thick Thick Yoghurt

Source : inspired by Turquoise
Cuisine: Turkish
Prep time: 15 mins
Cooking time: 50 – 60 mins
Serves: 4 – 6 people, depending how you use it

ingredients
250g red lentils
2 Tblspn olive oil
2 carrots, diced finely
1 onion, diced finely
2 cloves garlic, chopped finely
1 tspn paprika
1 tspn cumin
1.5 tspn sweet paprika
1 Tblspn tomato paste (or use home-made tomato paste)
1.5l vegetable stock
finely grated rind of half a lemon
sea salt and freshly ground pepper
1 tomato, seeded and diced

thick thick yoghurt (or use Greek yoghurt, creme fraiche, cream or feta)
herbs of choice, chopped finely

method
Sauté the carrot, onion and garlic in the oil over a low heat for 3 or 4 minutes. Add the paprika, sweet paprika and cumin, and continue to cook over low heat for 6 – 8 minutes or until the vegetables begin to soften.

Stir in the tomato paste and cook for another minute or two. Add the lentils and stock and bring to the boil.

Cook for 20 – 30 minutes, until the lentils are mushy and the vegetables cooked. Stir from time to time. Add the diced tomato and cook for another 10 minutes.

Beat the yoghurt with the herbs, or cut the feta into cubes and roll in the herbs.

Serve the soup with feta cubes or a large dollop of thick thick yoghurt.

People are Saying:

Caos na cuzina says:

Nesse dia – em que eu sabia que queria sopa para o jantar, mas nem tinha ainda pensado muito nisso – andava a passear pelo TasteSpotting, um paraíso voyeurista para foodies, quando dei de caras com esta sopa. Tirando a bolota de iogurte ou natas, era perfeita (sim, nós não gostamos muito dessa coisa dos lacticínios na sopa). E resolvi experimentá-la.

A sopa é deliciosa, extremamente aromática e cheia de sabor. Não só não ouvi nenhum bleargh, como ouvi muitos hmmms! A sopa agradou, as torradas também e o jantar foi um sucesso! Esta é, sem dúvida, uma adição ao meu reportório de sopas, a repetir muitas e muitas vezes!

[Translated from Portugese by Google] On that day – that I knew I wanted soup for dinner, but had not yet thought much about it – walked the walk by TasteSpotting, voyeurista a paradise for foodies, when the guys gave to this soup. Apart from the tusk of yogurt or cream, was perfect (yes, we do not like that very thing in the milk soup). And decided try it out.

The soup is delicious, extremely aromatic and full of flavor. Not only does not hear any bleargh, as I heard many hmmms! The soup pleased, and also the toast dinner was a success! This is undoubtedly an addition to my repertoire of soups, repeating over and over again!

Mixed with Sugar says

A new (to me) blog that’s about food. It’s beautiful and the recipes are delicious. This is a photo of today’s recipe offering, the photo is hers.

The blog is called A Life (Time) of Cooking. Even if you don’t cook, it’s beautiful to look at. So. Go. See.

Scientician says

Food Gawker is the place to go for foodie inspiration.
While there I came across spicy rustic red lentil soup.
“I HAVE RED LENTILS!
I COULD COOK THAT!”

I said to myself.

After all I quite like dahl, I made that once. (True bro!)

And while my picture is not very inspiring, it is proof that I cooked something off the interweb. Trust me it was delicious.

Read some more:

• Try my Ginger Garlic Lentil Soup with Red Lentils.
• My French Kitchen features a delicious looking Red Pepper and Red Lentil Soup - double the colour!
• Simply Spicy has a Mixed Dal with Spinach that uses Masoor Dal (Red Lentils) as well as Mung dal .
• Lisa’s Kitchen has a wonderful Yellow Split Pea Soup from Yamuna Devi.

The Soup Series:

• Taking Stock - Making Great Vege Stocks
• Ginger Garlic Lentil Soup
• Golden Gentle Dal
• Take a Tomato - Quick Tomato Soup
• Tomato Rasam for a SPICE Hit!
• Velouté d’asperges (Cream of Asparagus Soup)

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