Abas bil Hamod (Lebanese Lentil Lemon Soup)
Easy, healthy, Middle Eastern cuisine.
This recipe comes from the wonderful Lauren Gold, who knew me way back when I was little Lauren Beth, slurping soup from the bowl in my childhood home (big Lauren Beth still does this in her new home).
I’ve had variations of lentil soups from around the globe: from Indian dal soup, Greek lentil soup, and a general Middle Eastern lentil soup. But as LG noted, this recipe specifically calls for black or brown lentils. I actually had trouble finding those lentils in the general grocery store—only green or red. So I decided to opt for Trader Joe’s steamed brown lentils (in the produce section. Bonus, since they’re already cooked, it made the recipe that much quicker and easier. I then decided to lean in to easy and opted for pre-cut veggies so that this recipe involved basically zero prep.
Because the soup is so quick and easy and light, I think it makes an excellent winter lunch. You’ll feel warm and cozy, without the afternoon sluggishness. So dig in and enjoy!
Ingredients
Olive oil
Carrots, onion, celery, pre-chopped (or 1 small onion, 2 carrots, 2 stalks of celery)
1 pound brown lentils, pre-steamed (or dry if you’re able to find them)
2 cloves garlic, diced
1 quart vegetable broth
1 package leafy greens (spinach and swiss chard are the most popular for this recipe, I opted for a blend)
1 lemon
1 tbsp dried mint, or a bunch of fresh mint
Salt and pepper
Directions
Saute: Heat oil in large pot over medium-high heat. When oil is hot, add carrots, onion, and celery and stir until they begin to turn brown and caramelize, about 10 minutes. Add garlic and saute another minute, until aromatic.
Juice lemons: While the veggies are cooking, squeeze the lemon into a measuring cup until you have about 1/8 to 1/4 cups of juice. Discard any seeds.
Cook soup: Add the lentils and dried mint into the pot (if using fresh mint, add at end). Pour in the broth. Stir well to loosen browned bits of onion on the bottom of the pot. Bring to a simmer and cook until flavors blend, about 10 minutes (if cooking with dry lentils, cook about 20 minutes until lentils are softened, add extra liquid if soup becomes too thick).
Optional blend: Using an immersion blender, blend some of the soup for a thicker broth.
Finish and serve: Add in the lemon juice, stir in the greens until wilted. If using, stir in the fresh mint. Add salt and pepper to taste. Enjoy with a crunchy baguette or pita chips.
