Arabic Lentil Soup Recipes

ARABIC LENTIL SOUP - SHORBAT ADDAS

Steps:

• In a large pot or pressure cooker, saute chopped onions in vegetable oil until soft.
• Rinse dried lentils several times.
• Add lentils, water, salt and pepper to the pot.
• Bring to boil and simmer for an hour or more until lentils turn yellow in color and are soft and dissolving in broth.
• If using a pressure cooker, cook for 15 minutes after pressure has risen. Release pressure before removing lid.
• Whisk lentils to make a smooth soup, or stir to blend for a more textured soup.

ARABIC LENTIL SOUP

Steps:

• Rinse lentils well.
• Saute onions, carrots, potatoes, & celery in large pot, Cook until veggies are soft and aromatic.
• Add water, chicken (or veg) stock, bay leaf, and lentils to veggies. Add vegetable soup if using. Bring to a boil and simmer for at least 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add 1 tsp cumin & rest of spices, stir in and taste, add more. I find the cumin flavor kind of disappears with long cooking so I usually add half in the beginning and half about 15-30 minutes before serving.
• Let cook on low for as long as you have time. Flavor of soup improves with longer cooking.
• Blend soup in blender or with immersion blender until texture is mostly smooth.
• Serve with freshly ground black pepper, croutons and wedges of lemon to squeeze over the soup (essential!).

MIDDLE EASTERN LENTIL SOUP

Steps:

• Heat oil in a pan and gently fry the chopped onions for 5 minutes.
• Add the chopped garlic, turmeric and cumin and continue cooking for a few minutes more.
• Stir in the lentils, add the stock and cook for 35 minutes. Stir several times during cooking, especially towards the end, to prevent lentils from sticking to base of pan.
• Toss in parsley, stir in lemon juice and leave to cook for 2-3 minutes more.
• No blending is necessary unless you want it really smooth.
• Serve with chunks of crusty bread.

LEBANESE-STYLE RED LENTIL SOUP

Steps:

• Bring chicken stock and lentils to a boil in a large saucepan over high heat, then reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer for 20 minutes.
• Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in garlic and onion, and cook until the onion has softened and turned translucent, about 3 minutes.
• Stir onions into the lentils and season with cumin and cayenne. Continue simmering until the lentils are tender, about 10 minutes.
• Carefully puree the soup in a standing blender, or with a stick blender until smooth. Stir in cilantro and lemon juice before serving.

LEBANESE LEMON LENTIL SOUP

Steps:

• Heat olive oil in a large heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat. Cook and stir onion, celery, and carrots until slightly tender, about 5 minutes. Add garlic; cook and stir until fragrant, 30 seconds. Add water, lentils, 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, salt, coriander, cumin, black pepper, and cayenne pepper; stir to incorporate. Cover and simmer until lentils are tender, stirring occasionally, 1 1/2 hours.
• Whisk butter and flour together in a small saucepan over medium-low heat; stir constantly until thickened and paste-like, about 10 minutes. Reduce heat to low, stirring every 2 to 3 minutes, until light brown, about 20 more minutes. Whisk flour paste into finished soup, a spoonful at a time, until smooth and creamy. Serve with lemon wedges, 2 tablespoons parsley, and a sprinkle of freshly ground pepper.

ARABIC LENTIL SOUP

Steps:

• Wash lentils thoroughly and soak if desired.
• I never soak them, and they always seem to cook up quickly.
• Bring stock to a boil.
• Add quartered onion, garlic, tomato and lentils.
• Return to boil, then lower heat and allow to simmer, partially covered, until lentils are tender.
• The amount of time will depend on the freshness of the lentils and whether or not they were soaked, but plan on an hour to an hour and a half.
• Over-cooking wouldn't be a problem since this is a blended soup, but under-cooking would.
• As lentils approach tenderness, melt butter in a small frying pan over medium-low heat.
• Add thinly sliced onion and allow to fry until very dark brown.
• Add cumin, saute briefly.
• Add mixture to soup and stir through.
• Ladle one ladle-full of soup at a time into a blender or food processor.
• Using a dishtowel, hold lid down and process soup until homogenous.
• When soup has been completely pureed, return to a pot and reheat until ready to serve.
• Enjoy!

ADAS BIL HAMOD (LEBANESE LENTIL LEMON SOUP)

Steps:

• Heat oil in large pot over high heat. When oil is very hot, add onions and stir until onions begin to turn dark brown and caramelize, about 10 minutes. Put the lentils, garlic, frozen spinach, and mint into the pot. Pour in enough water so that it is about 2 inches deeper than the lentil mixture. Stir well to loosen browned bits of onion on the bottom of the pot.
• Bring to a boil; reduce heat to medium. Simmer, uncovered, until lentils are tender, about 20 minutes. If soup gets too thick, add a little more water. Salt to taste. Lower heat and stir in lemon juice.