Red Lentil Soup
Standard · 45 min · Serves 4 · Middle Eastern
Dietary: vegetarian, vegan, pescatarian, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free
A Lebanese crushed lentil soup: red lentils, carrot and a little rice cooked with cumin until they collapse, pulsed coarse and creamy, and finished with plenty of lemon.
Ingredients
For 4 servings
- 1.5 tbsp olive oil
- 1 onion, medium, chopped
- 1 tsp salt, divided
- 0.25 tsp black pepper, divided
- 1 carrot, large, chopped
- 200 g red lentil, rinsed (1 cup)
- 65 g short-grain rice, white, rinsed (⅓ cup)
- 1.25 tsp cumin, ground
- 1250 ml water, about 5⅓ cups
- 1 lemon, juiced
- 5 g parsley, chopped, to garnish (optional)
Steps
- Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat. Add the onion with about two-thirds of the salt and half the pepper, and cook, stirring now and then, for 5 to 8 minutes, until softened.
- Add the carrot, lentils, rice and cumin with the rest of the salt and pepper. Cook, stirring often, for 2 to 3 minutes, until the cumin is fragrant.
- Pour in the water and bring to a boil. Turn the heat down to low, cover, and cook for 25 to 30 minutes, stirring once or twice, until the rice and lentils are soft and fully cooked.
- Pulse the soup a few times with a stick blender, until it's coarse but creamy. You can also leave it unblended. It keeps thickening as it sits.
- Stir in the lemon juice and the parsley, if using, and serve. Adding the lemon at the end keeps it bright without turning the soup sour.
- Let leftovers cool to room temperature, then keep them in an airtight container in the fridge for about 5 days. The soup also freezes well, most easily in single portions. Reheat it on the stove with a splash of water, since it thickens in the fridge.