Turkish Red Lentil Soup

Ingredients

• 1 cup Red Lentils
• 5 tbsp Olive Oil
• 1 tbsp Paprika
• 0.5 tbsp Red Pepper Flakes
• 1 large Onion, finely diced
• 1 large Carrot, diced
• 4 tsp Tomato Paste
• 2 tsp Cumin
• 0.5 tsp Dried Mint
• 0.5 tsp Thyme or Oregano
• 4 cup Vegetable Broth
• 4 cup Water

Method

Pick through the lentils for stones and debris, then rinse three times under cold water until the water runs clear. Drain well. This soup depends on the lentils breaking down completely into a creamy purée — any grit ruins that texture.

Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat. Add the diced onion with a pinch of salt and cook for three minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onion softens and loses its raw bite. Add the carrot and continue cooking for another two minutes. The aromatic-vegetables should be translucent but not browned — you're building a clean flavour base here, not caramelising.

Stir in the tomato paste and cook for one minute, letting it catch slightly on the pot bottom. This concentrates the paste and deepens its savour. Add the cumin, dried mint, thyme, and half of the paprika and red pepper flakes. Stir constantly for ten seconds — the cumin and paprika release their oils in the heat, but they burn fast, so you're blooming them just enough to wake them up, not char them. Immediately tip in the lentils, water, and vegetable broth. Bring to a rolling boil, then reduce the heat to medium, half-cover the pot with a lid, and simmer for fifteen to twenty minutes. The lentils should collapse into a soft pulp and the carrot should be entirely soft — you're not looking for structure here.

While the soup simmers, make the finishing oil. Heat the remaining 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a small pan over medium heat. When it shimmers, add the reserved paprika and red pepper flakes, swirling them through the oil. Watch carefully — the moment the paprika starts to bubble and the oil takes on colour, pull the pan off the heat. If you wait too long, the paprika turns acrid and bitter.

Blend the soup to a smooth purée using an immersion blender or a standard blender in batches. Taste and adjust salt and spice. Pour into bowls and drizzle the warm paprika oil across the surface of each serving — it both flavours and visually marks each portion.