Originally from Kate and Lynne, this recipe depends on red lentils (not green lentils) and generally can be made with ingredients already in stock in our house. Serve with pita and labneh (if you can manage to not eat all of the pita and labneh before dinner), and with a chopped green salad with a sumac vinagrette.
Middle Eastern Red Lentil Soup
- 1 medium yellow onion chopped
- 2 cloves of garlic, minced or pressed
- 1 T olive oil
- 1 and 1/2 C red lentils (NOT brown)
- 8 C water
- 1 t salt
- fresh ground pepper
- 1 T ground cumin
- lemon juice, to taste
In a big pot, saute the onion and garlic in the olive oil until the onion is soft. Add the lentils, water, salt, pepper and cumin and bring to a boil. Then reduce heat and simmer for at least 40 minutes (more is fine–if you are going to simmer for a LONG time then put a lid on the pot so all the water doesn't evaporate). Just before serving add half the lemon juice (at least one lemon's worth) and then taste to see if you want any more lemon juice, salt or pepper.
**If you don't have any fresh lemons in the house, bottled lemon juice will suffice.
Recipe adapted from Kate, "Cook with what ya got", from February 2006. Thanks Kate!
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