Mercimek Çorbası — Turkish Red Lentil Soup

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 carrot, diced
• 1 medium potato, peeled and diced
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 tbsp Turkish red pepper paste (biber salçası) or tomato purée
• 250g red lentils, rinsed
• 1.5 litres vegetable stock
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• Salt and black pepper to taste
• Juice of 1 lemon, plus wedges to serve
• For the topping: 30g butter
• For the topping: 1 tsp paprika
• For the topping: 1 tsp dried mint

Method

1. Heat the oil in a large pan over a medium heat. Cook the onion and carrot for 6 minutes until softened, then add the garlic and pepper paste and stir for 1 minute.

2. Add the potato, lentils, stock and cumin. Bring to the boil, then simmer for 20 minutes until the lentils and vegetables are completely soft.

3. Blend until smooth with a stick blender, adding a little hot water if the soup is too thick. Season with salt and pepper.

4. Melt the butter in a small pan, stir in the paprika and dried mint and sizzle for 20 seconds.

5. Ladle the soup into bowls, drizzle with the spiced butter and serve with lemon wedges and bread.