Mercimek

Red lentil soup has a special place in Turkish culture. İf you go to a Turkish restaurant it can almost be guaranteed that they will have it on the menu. İn fact, Turks often eat soup for breakfast, especially in the winter. The soup is usually orange and sometimes has a red-pepper oil sprinkled over it. İn lots of places it comes in metal bowls with lots of bread and lemon on the side for squeezing. Sometimes the soup is just thick and creamy and sometimes it has bits of rice or bulgur wheat in it.

Here's how I make it:

Rinse about 2 cups of red lentils and soak them in water about 20 minutes.

İn a soup pot cook a chopped onion and a couple garlic cloves in 5-6 tablespoons of olive oil.

Add about 2 liters of hot water to the pot.

Strain the lentils and add them to the pot.

Add 2-3 chopped and peeled potatoes to the pot (and maybe a chopped carrot).

Add a couple cubes of chicken bouillon, some cumin, salt, and red or black pepper.

Bring the soup to a boil, turn down the heat and let it simmer for about 25 minutes.

İn a glass, mix a cup of milk with an egg yolk and 2 tablespoons of flour and save it for later.

When the potatoes (and/or carrots) and lentils are soft, use a hand blender to blend the soup into a creamy broth.

Slowly add the milk, flour, and yolk mixture, stirring as you pour.

Bring the soup back to a slow boil for a few minutes.

The soup is ready to serve.

To make the pepper-oil, use red pepper paste or blend a red pepper and fry it in some olive oil and sprinkle or drizzle it over the soup just before serving.