Turkish Red Lentil Soup Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is the most famous soup in Turkey? ›

Mercimek Çorbası (Lentil Soup)

It is usually eaten with bread and a squeeze of lemon juice on the top for added flavour. Locals also put a spoonful of red pepper and/or chicken stock for extra flavour as well. This scrumptious soup is a breakfast speciality and the most popular soup all over the country.

Add the water, lentils, chick peas, white kidney beans, diced tomatoes, carrots, celery, garam masala, cardamom, cayenne pepper and cumin. Bring to a boil for a few minutes then simmer for 1 to 1 1/2 hours or longer, until the lentils are soft. Puree half the soup in a food processor or blender.

The other good news: Lentils don't need to soak as beans do (though you do need to sort and rinse them before cooking). Different types of lentils cook in different amounts of time. Red lentils are the fastest cooking and they dissolve as they cook and make for a smooth soup.

“Dal” has a double meaning: It is both the word for lentils and beans and the term for a thick purée or soup made from lentils. Lentil dal is essentially just a lentil soup. However, to say dal is simple also cuts its significance of flavor, of history, and importance at the South Asian table.

According to the Taste Atlas Awards, the international food database, the Filipino favorite, Sinigang, is hailed as the best soup in the world.

In Krung Thep Maha Nakhon (Bangkok), there is an award-winning restaurant called Wattana Panich, where you can order and then eat a beef and goat soup that is 49 years old.

Incorporating red lentils to your diet can help you easily meet your fiber and protein needs. Red lentils also contain a significant amount of folate, which is a superhero involved in cell division. If someone eating plant-based does not get enough folate, it can affect the way DNA is made in our body.

Why does my lentil soup taste bland? Lentils have a relatively mild taste and take well to seasonings. To avoid a bland lentil soup, use a flavorful broth—whether that's homemade or store-bought chicken or vegetable broth. The other key is building flavor.

That means the foam will typically appear when making meat-based broths and, to a lesser degree, soups made from high-protein vegetables such as chickpeas and lentils. When those coagulated proteins cluster together, they can create air pockets, which is what causes the “sudsy bubbles,” says Trout.

This time, it turned out mushy and there wasn't a whole lentil to be found. Damn it! I figured out later that it spent about 2.5 hours too long in the slow cooker (a little miscalculation on my part). If you're like me and have overcooked Lentil Soup then you're in luck because I'm going to show you how to revive it.

What happens if you don't soak red lentils? ›

Here's why soaking lentils is important

Fact 1: Soaking lentils improves digestion and nutrition absorption as it can neutralise lectins and phytates present that may cause gas and bloating. Fact 2: Soaking lentils also reduces its cooking time.

Lentils to do not require soaking like other pulses. Rinse your lentils with fresh water before boiling to remove any dust or debris.

The best-known lentil soup comes not from a manual of classic cuisine but from the biblical story of Jacob and Esau. In fact, lentil use goes back even further in history. Originating in the Middle East, lentils are believed to be the first legume ever cultivated.

Peas have 6 grams of fiber, less than the almost 9 grams provided by lentils. If you are a vegetarian or vegan, lentils provide 7 milligrams of iron, while split peas only have 2.7 milligrams. Both foods are beneficial sources of potassium, with split peas providing 750 milligrams and lentils 772 milligrams per 1 cup.

Legumes: Beans and lentils are both members of the common bean family, or the Fabaceae genus of plant, which is in the legume family. You can harvest both from bean pods that grow on these types of plants. Health benefits: Lentils and beans are both healthy, non-meat sources of protein.

Lentil soup

Lentils hold a special place in the hearts of Turks. They are used as the main ingredient in the national soup, which has become the country's signature dish. The soup can be optionally garnished with carrots, potatoes, and onions.

There are more than 300 kinds of soup in the Turkish cuisine.

In addition, a specialty soup doesn't require any meat on it; it can be made with fruits, vegetables, and nuts. Some examples are peanut soup, coconut soup, turtle soup, and curry soup.