Lentil Soup

[Celeste]

I've been thinking about trying to make lentil soup. I've never tried it so I dont even really know what its like. Is it like a minestrone (chunky and almost stew-like), or is it supposed to be thinner with more broth? Or is it more like the consistency of pumpkin soup, thicker because the lentils have become kinda mushy and mixed with the broth?

I've been envisaging either a thick soup (like the pumpkin soup), or one similar to minestrone, but where the lentils have been precooked, so are still whole, kind of like what they are straight out of a tin.

What are your favourite things to add to lentil soup? Any particular spices or herbs? Certain veg?

Thanks
Celeste

[possum]

Celeste,
I have had a very good lentil soup recipe for a long time. Because I come from Turkey and lentil soup is part of Turkish cuisine, my recipe has Turkish origin (naturally). However, my version is different to the original recipe.

First of all, it is a thick soup, nothing like a chunky stew style. The type of lentil that is used is split red lentils and they are mushy but smooth.

The other ingredients that I prefer to add to lentil soup are;
Turmeric -not so much for taste but for the benefits of turmeric as it is the bestest, greatest blood purifyer:)
Cumin
Crushed garlic
Flour to thicken soup
Oil -be generous with oil because lentils have dry quality.
Dried spearmint -you could get that from any shop where they sell Turkish ingredients. I must admit, peppermint is not the same.
Plain tomato paste -just to add colour
Freshly squeezed lemon juice -this somehow makes it lighter but on the other hand it improves the bioavailability of iron in lentils from 15% to 25%
A hand blender is very useful to get smooth results
The last thing that I strongly recommend is good quality water because water is the largest ingredient in soups, it makes a huge difference if it is good quality.

Hope that helps
Gulden

[Celeste]

Wow...that sounds fantastic...thanks so much for your reply I'm still yet to try making a lentil soup, but with that advice, I think I will get onto it!!