I've played around with a few versions of this soup and have come up with what closely resembles the lentil soup you get at every restaurant in Turkey. It's pretty simple and I highly advise serving the soup with fresh lemon wedges to sprinkle on and mix in at the last minute. This recipe make about 5 servings.

1 tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 tbsp tomato paste
5 cups stock or broth (I usually use pacific organic chickenbroth but beef would be fine too)
1.5 c red lentils (washed in sieve and picked for stones)
1 c bulgar (washed in sieve)
1 tsp dried mint
Salt & Pepper to taste
0.5 - 1 tsp red pepper (optional)

Heat the olive oil in a heavy pot over medium heat, add the onions and cook until soft.
Add the tomato paste and 1/4 cup of water and stir to combine.
Add the stock or broth and bring to a boil.
Add the lentils and bulgar and simmer until they are done, usually about 45 mins. Add the mint half way through the cooking time, and season it to taste when finished. I sometimes use my immersion blender and half puree it before serving. It's usually pretty smooth anyway so that's not necessary. Serve with lemon wedges to squirt on and enjoy!

Posted by Maggie at 10:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Ok I promised Lisa I would send this recipe. Why not kill 2 birds and post it here. This is as close as I can get to the version Melik is used to from Vienna.

Serves 12, about 20 cups!

Ingredients:
5 bacon slices, chopped
3 lbs boneless beef chuck, trimmed and cut into 0.5 inch cubes
2 tbsp vege oil
1.5 lbs onions (4 med), finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
3 tbsp paprika, preferably hungarian sweet
1.5 tsp caraway seeds
1/3 c. a/p flour
1/4 c. red wine vinegar
1/4 c. tomato paste
5 c. (40 oz) beef stock or broth
5 c. water
1/2 tsp salt
2 red bell peppers
2.5 lbs russet potatoes (4 large)
Freshly ground black pepper

Cook Bacon in an 8-qt heavy pot over medium heat, stirring, until crisp, about 5 mins. With a slotted spoon, transfer to a large bowl.
Brown beef in small batches in fat remaining in pot over high heat and transfer with slotted spoon to a bowl.
Reduce heat to medium and add oil. Add onions and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden, 7-8 mins. Stir in paprika, caraway seeds, and flour and cook, stirring, for 2 mins. Whisk in vinegar and tomato paste and cook, whisking, for 1 min (mixture will be very thick).
Stir in stock, water, salt, bell peppers, beef, and bacon and bring to a boil over high heat, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 45 mins.
Peel Potatoes and cut into 0.5 in cubes. Add potatoes to soup, cover, and simmer, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 20 mins. Season with salt and pepper.

Posted by Maggie at 09:47 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)