Middle Eastern Red Lentil Soup

Middle Eastern Red Lentil Soup

I won a bag of red lentils at a Turkish cooking class I attended last week, so I whipped this up to enjoy them.  In the Turkish cooking class they instructed us to puree the soup prior to serving, but I think that by cooking the lentils until they become mush it ends up with a good, thick, stew-like consistency of the lentil soup served at our local Middle Eastern restaurant.  Garnish with yogurt, and cilantro or parsley, if desired.  Jeremy, Noah, and I all loved this soup.  If I wasn't serving it to Noah I would have added even more cayenne, because I like things spicy, but I try to keep everything mild to medium that we will all be enjoying.  You may need to add more salt, depending on the saltiness of your broth.  I also think I added an extra 1 or 2 cups of water while the lentils were cooking, adjust depending on how soupy or stew-like you would like the final product.

-2 Tbsp olive oil

-1 onion, diced

-4 cloves garlic, minced

-6 c chicken or vegetable broth

-1 lb red lentils, rinsed

-1 Tbsp cumin

-1/2 tsp curry powder

-1 tsp salt

-3/4 c lemon juice

In large pot, saute onion in oil until tender.  Add garlic, cook an additional 1 minute.  Add broth, lentils, and seasonings.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat and cover.  Simmer 20 minutes, stirring often.  If the lentils absorb all of the liquid, stir in an extra cup or two of water.  Turn off heat, stir in lemon juice.  Taste and adjust seasonings if desired.