Turkish Red Lentil Soup (Mercimek Çorbası)
Sep 25, 2019, Updated Aug 19, 2021
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Mercimek Çorbası is a classic Turkish red lentil soup that’s a staple in many Turkish homes. Made with a handful of ingredients in just 30 minutes, this creamy and light soup is perfect with a squeeze of lemon!
If there’s one thing I’ve learned from living in Turkey for years and cooking Turkish food, it’s that you don’t need a long list of ingredients to make something truly delicious. Take this red lentil soup as an example, it’s made with the simplest ingredients, as if you ask anyone who has been to Turkey what their favorite food was, they would definitely name this soup as one.
Now imagine serving this soup with a quick cacik (Turkish yogurt and cucumber) or piyaz (Turkish white bean salad) and a bowl of manti (Turkish dumplings), it would be a real feast!
Table of Contents
Ingredients
- Red lentils: A staple in Turkish cooking, red lentils increase in volume and break down during the cooking process, meaning it’s best to blend this soup once it’s ready. If you have a bag of red lentils, you can use it to also make ezogelin soup and Turkish red lentil balls.
- Carrots: Make sure to cut them into smaller pieces so they cook faster.
- Tomato paste: the amount of tomato paste varies depending on the region. You need about a tablespoon or two for this recipe.
- Spices: This recipe is known for its simplicity. You only need to use salt, pepper and some Aleppo pepper if available.
How To Make Turkish Lentil Soup (Kırmızı Mercimek Çorbası)
Start by heating the olive oil in a pot over medium high heat. Saute the onion until golden, then add in the tomato paste and cook for a few minutes for it to release its color and aroma.
Next, add in the carrots followed by the red lentils and spices. Give it a good stir and add in the water or broth.
Bring to a simmer, then lower the heat to medium and cover the pot with a lid. Let it cook for 20 minutes until the lentils are tender. Uncover and cook for 10 more minutes.
Turn the heat off and using an immersion blender, blend the soup until silky and smooth. If using a regular blender, make sure to blend the soup in batches.
Divide the soup into bowls, and serve with a squeeze of fresh lemon!
What To Serve With Turkish Lentil Soup
Serve this Turkish red lentil soup as a light meal on its own with with some borek or gozleme (stuffed flatbread).
If you looking for a complete Turkish menu, serve this soup as a starter, followed by karniyarik (Turkish stuffed eggplant) and rice pilaf with a side of Coban salatasi (shepherd’s salad). Finish with a slice of baklava and that’s it, afiyet olsun!
What To Do With The Leftovers?
Store the leftovers in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days. Reheat in a saucepan over medium with 1/2 cup added water for about 10-15 minutes.
You can also freeze this soup using freezer-safe containers for up to 3 months. Let it thaw in the fridge overnight or reheat from frozen in a pot over medium heat.
Frequently Asked Questions
Unlike many other legumes, lentils don’t need to be soaked before cooking. Red lentils cook in about 20 to 30 minutes and you don’t need to soak them.
Red lentils tend to absorb a lot of water so make sure you add enough water to the soup. Start with 5 cups and then add more water if needed. Since you might need to add more water, please taste the soup before serving to make sure you’ve added enough salt and pepper. Alternatively, you can use broth to make this recipe.
More Soup and stew Recipes
Turkish Recipes
Ezogelin Soup (Turkish Red Lentil Soup with Bulgur)
Fall Recipe
Turkish Yogurt Soup (Yayla Çorbasi)
Soups and Stews
Healthy Potato Soup
Mediterranean recipes
Creamy Chicken Vegetable Soup
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Turkish Red Lentil Soup Recipe (Mercimek Corbasi)
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 large onion , chopped
- 1/2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 carrot, chopped
- 1 1/2 cups red lentils
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp Aleppo pepper
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 6 cups water , or broth
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a pot over medium high heat.
- Saute onion until golden. Add tomato paste and cook for a minute.
- Add in carrots and cook for a couple of minutes.
- To the onion and carrot, add the red lentils, salt, pepper, cumin, Aleppo pepper and black pepper. Stir well and cook for a minute.
- Pour in the water and bring the soup to simmer. Cook covered on medium heat for 20 minutes. Uncover and cook for another 10 minutes until the lentils are completely cooked.
- Blend the soup in the blender or using an immersion blender until it's creamy and smooth.
- Serve warm with a squeeze of lemon.
Video
Notes
- You can add one potato (chopped) to this recipe if you would like it to be more filling.
- If you don’t like carrots, you can leave them out in this recipe.
- Store the leftovers in a glass airtight container for up to 3 days. To reheat, place the soup in a sauce pan with 1/2 cup water and reheat over medium heat.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I used homemade chicken stock instead of water. Reduced the salt. Tastier.
Delicious, easy, and healthy. The perfect combination. Thanks for sharing!
This was literally SO easy to make and was ready super quickly! Not only that, it tasted GREAT! Definitely going in my meal rotation.
My family can’t get enough soups. I’m excited to add this one to our rotation!
Such a vibrant and delicious soup! Had such great flavor. I will be making again!
Tried this and loved it .Better than the tinned stuff I used to buy .Goes great with fresh baked bread to dip in ..Many thanks
Hi, in the picture it has a sprinkling on top plus a herb – are the red bits more Aleppo pepper? And what is the herb, is it coriander? Would have been nice to know how you garnished it.
Hi Mike, yes, the garnish is Aleppo pepper or Pul Biber and chopped parsley.
I’ve not tried this yet (but will be making it tonight) but I’ve spent months backpacking in Turkey over the years (and what a fabulous place to travel!) and I always ordered this soup wherever I went if it was available, I couldn’t get enough of it. I’d tried cooking it at home many times but other recipes always use paprika instead of Aleppo pepper so it just never tasted the same – but now I know what the secret ingredient is I’m going to buy some today so I can get a nice big pot of this made tonight 🙂
Hope you enjoy it!
The soup was delicious! As I didn’t have Aleppo pepper, I substituted Hungarian sweet pepper, and I’m sure that affected the taste. Will order the Aleppo to have on hand for next time. I also misread the amount of tomato paste, and ended up adding more during the 20-minute simmer. Regardless, it was very tasty, and I can’t wait until I’m able to make the more authentic version, hopefully with borek as an accompaniment ☺️
I bet it was a good dish! Glad you enjoyed it!
I made this soup. It was so delicious, I wanted it to be a bit more substantial, so I added the potato. It’s all I can do to not eat the entire pot! (I will…eventually). Thanks for all your wonderful recipes. I am addicted to your website.