Lentil soup with garlic yoghurt

This lentil soup comes with a story: it's inspired by the Greek dish 'fakes' (“lentil soup”) that food writer Ella Mittas’ father once ate in his youth. His version was so plain, he always kept a bowl of olives next to eat, to season each mouthful. This is a heartier, more flavoursome version of his soup (but still including the olives!)

Credit: Jiwon Kim

• serves

  4

• prep

  20 minutes

• cook

  1 hour

• difficulty

  Easy

Ingredients

• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 2 brown onions, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 2 cups coarsely grated Kent pumpkin
• 3 celery sticks, leaves attached, roughly chopped
• 1 tsp curry powder
• ½ tsp ground cumin
• ½ tsp ground coriander
• 3 tbsp tomato paste
• 400 g can diced tomatoes
• 3 cups (750 ml) chicken stock
• 1 cup green lentils
• 1 cup red lentils
• 3 cups (750 ml) water
• 1 lemon, cut into wedges
• ¼ cup roughly chopped flat-leaf parsley, plus extra to serve
• 1 cup Greek-style yoghurt
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• Mixed olives, to serve

Instructions

1. Heat the oil in a large, heavy-based saucepan. Add the onions and a pinch of salt and cook, stirring, for 15 minutes, or until golden-brown.
2. Add the garlic to the onions and cook for 1 minute, then add the pumpkin, celery and ground spices. Cook, stirring, for 10 minutes, or until the vegetables soften. Add the tomato paste to the pan and cook for 1 minute, then add the tomatoes, chicken stock, lentils and water.
3. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cook until the lentils are cooked through, adding a splash of water to the pan during the cooking process, if needed. Once the lentils are cooked through, season to taste with salt and pepper. Add a squeeze of lemon juice and stir through the parsley.
4. While the soup simmers, combine the Greek-style yoghurt with the garlic in a small bowl.
5. When the soup is ready, ladle into serving bowls and top with a dollop of the garlic yoghurt. Sprinkle with extra parsley and serve with mixed olives on the side.

Photography by Jiwon Kim.

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Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.