Turkish Lentil Soup
A guest entry from a friend of Hakuna, David Bennett!
David makes large batches of this soup at home. They will enjoy some the same day but also put the soup in individual-portion sized containers for a supply of healthy meals in the freezer.
A few minutes in the microwave and there’s a hearty winter meal ready to go.
Plus, lentils are great!
- Lentils are high in protein, folate and magnesium.
- Their high fiber content promotes heart health, digestive health, lowers cholesterol and helps to stabilize blood sugar.
- They even help with weight loss! Lentils are high in protein but have a low calorie count.
Ingredients (4 servings):
- 1 cup red lentils
- 1 large carrot
- 1 large potato
- 1 onion
- 1-2 stems celery
- 5 garlic cloves
- 1 quart vegetable stock
- Olive oil
Spice mix:
- Butter
- 1 teaspoon dried mint
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 teaspoon sumac
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
To serve:
- 1 lemon, cut into wedges
Preparation:
Prepare the vegetables:
- Wash the lentils in cold water and set aside.
- Chop the vegetables and garlic finely. This soup is often blended but for a chunkier soup you can chop ingredients instead of blending.
Cook the soup base:
- Caramelize the vegetables in the pot and use a generous amount of olive oil.
- Stir in lentils.
- Add the vegetable stock and simmer for 30-40 minutes.
Prepare and mix the spices:
- Mix the dry components of the spice mix.
- When soup is almost ready, cook spice mix in butter for 1-2 minutes then stir through the soup.
Serve (or freeze)!
- Serve with lemon wedges or mix plenty of lemon juice into the soup before serving.
- To freeze, serve into watertight containers and allow to cool before putting in the freezer.
This makes a thick, stew-like soup that will be quite solid when cooled. If you want it to be a bit thinner, add more water.
This soup can be a meal in itself but optionally eat with bread or stir in any leftover cooked rice you may have in the refrigerator.
Do you have a great wintertime recipe you would like to share? Email Hakuna at info@hakuna.co and we can post it on our blog!
Lentils - superfood!
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