The Creamiest Turkish Lentil Soup
If you are looking for something quick but nutritious for dinner, this Turkish lentil soup is for you. I included two versions of this soup, with and without potato. Both of them are delicious and do not have a significant difference in the end result.
Servings: 4 servings
Ingredients
Lentil Soup
- 3-4 tbsp olive oil
- 1 small onion diced
- 1/2 tsp oregano
- 1 garlic clove diced
- 170 g 1 cup diced potatoes into 1/2 inch 1 cm cubes or 1 medium potato see notes if not using potatoes
- 110 g 1/2 cup red lentils rinsed, or 180g or a little bit over 2/3 cup lentils of not using potatoes
- 1000 g 4 1/2 cups vegetable broth
- salt and pepper to taste
Optoinal Gremolata Sauce
- 1 lemon juice of one lemon
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 garlic clove thinly diced or minced
- a handful of parsley diced
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a pot add some olive oil and turn the heat on medium. Once the oil has been preheated, add onion a pinch of salt, and oregano and fry for 1-2 minutes or until the onion is translucent. In the meantime, slice the garlic and add that to the onion as well Finally, add the potatoes cut into half-inch 1cm cubes, stir until everything is well combined and fry for another 2-3 minutes.
- Add the previously rinsed and drained lentils, followed by the vegetable broth, salt, and pepper. Wait for them to start boiling, then turn the heat on low and simmer for 10-15minutes or until the lentils are soft.
- Once the lentils are soft, turn the heat off and wait for the soup to cool down a little bit. Blend with an immersion blender or in a regular blender and blend until smooth and creamy. Transfer the cream back to the pot.
- Turn the heat on medium and boil for another 2-3 minutes.
Gremolata Sauce
- Dice or mince the garlic and add it to a medium bowl.
- Dice the parsley as well and add that to the bowl followed by the olive oil lemon juice, and optionally some lemon zest, salt and pepper. (Check notes if you want to make this sauce in a food processor. )
- Mix everything well together and pour over each serving.
Notes
- The potato does not change the flavor of the soup; it's just there to act as a thickener. I usually make this soup with potato, but if you don't like using it add 180g or a little bit more than 2/3 cup lentils instead of 120g.
- Although it's not necessary for this soup you can also make this gremolata sauce in a food processor, you would just have to toss everything in a food processor and pulse until you get a pesto-like consistency. If you decide to use a food processor I would suggest making larger quantities and storing the leftovers in the airtight container in the fridge.