Red Lentil Soup With Halloumi

• gesamtzeit: 45 minutes

Zutaten

For the Soup:

5 tbsp olive oil

2 medium / 1 very large carrot, peeled + very finely diced

2 large celery sticks, very finely diced

250g red lentils

80g long grain white rice

3 litres of cold water

2 large brown onions, peeled and very finely diced

200g hellim (halloumi cheese), cut into 2cm cubes

50g dry black olives

75ml freshly squeezed lemon juice + more to taste

1 ½ tsp salt (or to taste)

¾ tsp coarse black pepper

Additional Garnishes:

Çörek” Peksemet / chunky broken bread sticks / croutons

Pul biber aka Aleppo pepper

Dried mint

Lemon wedges

Sea salt flakes

Coarse black pepper

Anweisungen

Check red lentils and rice for any stones or dud pulses, then wash under cold running water through a sieve until water runs clear. Leave to drain in a sieve over a large bowl.

Add 2 tbsp of the olive oil to a large soup pan on hob over a medium heat, once hot, soften carrots and celery for 10-15 mins until soft and caramelised.

Add drained rice and lentils to the pan, followed by cold water and cook on high heat, bringing up to boil for 5 mins, scraping off and discarding foam that forms on the top.

Reduce heat a little, stir and simmer on a low heat for 25-30 mins until soup thickens and lentils are tender

While the soup is cooking, add 3 tbsp of the olive oil to a large frying pan and place on the hob over a medium heat. Add the onions to the hot oil, sprinkle in half of the salt, turn down the heat, and soften the onions for 15-20 minutes until softened and translucent.

Turn the heat up a little so that the onions caramelise and turn a lovely golden-brown colour, then remove them from the pan to a plate lined with kitchen paper. Carefully give the pan a gentle wipe with some clean kitchen paper to get rid of any leftover crispy onion residue, then return the pan to the heat.

Add the remaining olive oil to the pan over a medium heat, and once hot, fry the cubes of Halloumi and bread, turning regularly, until golden brown all over. Add the olives to the pan and toast them for a couple of minutes too, then remove everything from the pan to a plate lined with kitchen paper.

Once the soup is pretty much cooked, add the freshly squeezed lemon juice, the remaining salt and ground black pepper to the soup pan, give everything a gentle stir and cook for a further minute before turning off the heat. Roughly blend the soup with a hand blender (it shouldn’t be completely smooth), or blend 1/3 of the soup in a stand-blender, then add the blended soup back to the soup pan and stir in half of the caramelised onions.

Serve portions of the soup with the remaining onions, the fried Halloumi, crispy croutons and black olives, a sprinkling of pul biber and dried mint and an extra squeeze of lemon juice. Season to taste with sea salt and coarse black pepper.

Notizen

Delish - the halloumi and the dried mint make this soup delicious. I didn't have the black olives so made it without and ended up toasting sourdough bread in the oven to make croutons (and without oil).

I also don't think you need as much olive oil to caramelize the onions as she said - just vibe with what you think.

Store the halloumi and the croutons separetely. Add halloumi halfway through reheating so they're warm by the time you serve it.