Mercimek Çorbası (Turkish Red Lentil Soup)

This is the soup I make when I want something warm and completely undemanding: a handful of pantry staples, one pot, and twenty-five minutes between me and dinner.

Turkish red lentil soup shows up on nearly every meze table alongside dishes like menemen and çoban salatası (recipes on the site), but it’s substantial enough to stand entirely on its own with just a wedge of lemon and some warm bread.

Lucas, who inspects every soup that crosses our table with deep suspicion, approved this one on the first try, which in our house counts as a five-star review.

Mercimek Çorbası Recipe

Prep time: 10 minutes · Cook time: 25 minutes · Total: 35 minutes · Servings: 4 · Calories: ~210 per serving

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil or butter
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 carrot, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 1 cup red lentils, rinsed
• 6 cups chicken or vegetable broth
• Salt and black pepper, to taste
• For the topping:
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika or Aleppo pepper
• Lemon wedges, for serving

Instructions

1. Heat the olive oil or butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion and carrot and cook until softened, about 6 minutes.
2. Stir in the garlic, tomato paste, cumin, and paprika; cook 1 minute until fragrant.
3. Add the rinsed lentils and broth. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer uncovered 20 to 25 minutes, until the lentils and carrot are very soft.
4. Puree the soup with an immersion blender until smooth (or blend in batches in a stand blender), adding a splash of water or broth if it’s too thick.
5. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
6. In a small pan, melt the butter with the paprika until it sizzles and turns fragrant, about 1 minute.
7. Ladle the soup into bowls, drizzle with the paprika butter, and serve with lemon wedges for squeezing.

Recipe Notes

• Red lentils cook down fast and break apart easily, which is exactly what gives this soup its silky texture without needing any cream.
• A squeeze of lemon right before eating wakes the whole bowl up. Don’t skip it.
• This soup keeps beautifully in the fridge up to 4 days and thickens as it sits; thin it with a little extra broth or water when reheating.
• It’s a fixture on Turkish restaurant menus as a starter, but a bigger bowl with warm bread makes it a full, satisfying weeknight dinner at our house too.