Red Lentil Soup with Cumin and Lemon

👨‍🍳 Method

For the Fried onion

1. 1
   Ahead of time, rinse the legumes in a colander until the water runs clear. No need to soak.

   Colander

   💡Split peas and small lentils don't need soaking; dried beans do, otherwise they cook for hours and stay hard inside.
2. 2
   Heat the olive oil in a pot over medium heat.

   ⚙ Pan-fryingStovePot
3. 3
   Add the onion and fry 5 minutes, stirring now and then, until the onion is soft and translucent and starts to turn golden at the edges. If it browns too fast, lower the heat.

   ⚙ Adding to the hot fat and fryingStove

   💡Add by cooking time: what needs long (onion, carrot, meat) goes in first, and what burns fast (garlic, dry spices) goes in last, only until fragrant.
4. 4
   Add the garlic and fry about 30 seconds to 1 minute, just until fragrant. Don't let the garlic brown.

   ⚙ Adding to the hot fat and fryingStove

   💡Garlic burns quickly and turns bitter. Add it only after the onion has softened, over medium heat, and add the next ingredient as soon as it smells fragrant.

To assemble

1. 5
   Sprinkle in the turmeric and cumin and stir for 30 seconds to a minute, until fragrant.
2. 6
   Add the tomato and carrot and cook 3 minutes, stirring, until the tomato softens.

   Stove
3. 7
   Add the legumes and water and bring to a boil.

   Stove
4. 8
   Turn down the heat and simmer with the lid slightly open 20–25 minutes, until the legumes is tender.

   ⚙ SimmeringStove

   💡A gentle simmer, not a boil: a hard boil dries the food out and clouds it, a slow simmer cooks it evenly.
5. 9
   Blend half the soup with a stick blender and return it to the pot, for a thick, chunky texture.

   Stick blender
6. 10
   Season with salt and black pepper and the lemon juice, taste and adjust.

   💡The lemon goes in at the end: acid at the start of cooking slows down the softening of the legumes. Adjust the salt at the end, after the soup has reduced.
7. 11
   Sprinkle the cilantro on top and drizzle with olive oil.