Turkish Soups (Çorba): Red Lentil, Yogurt-Rice, Ezogelin and Tomato

Çorba is the first course at many Turkish tables, and in plenty of homes a bowl with bread counts as a light lunch. Turkish soups are rarely delicate. They are built on red lentils, rice, yogurt or tomato, and the finish matters as much as the base: a spoon of sizzling butter with pepper flakes can turn a plain pot into something you want to make again. Four soups cover most of what you will cook: red lentil, yogurt-rice, ezogelin and tomato.

Red lentil soup (mercimek çorbası)

Mercimek çorbası is the everyday soup, and it is hard to get wrong. Rinse 1 cup of red lentils until the water runs clear. Soften a finely chopped onion and a diced carrot (plus a small diced potato if you want body) in olive oil, about 8 minutes. Add the lentils and 6 cups of water or light stock, bring to a simmer, and cook 20 to 25 minutes until the lentils collapse. Blend smooth, thin with hot water to the consistency you like, and season well with salt. Red lentils break down quickly, which is why this soup needs little attention. See the mercimek çorbası recipe.

Yogurt-rice soup (yayla çorbası): temper, do not curdle

Yayla çorbası is a rice soup finished with a yogurt and egg liaison and a drizzle of mint butter. The risk is curdling, because yogurt and egg split when they meet a hot pot directly. Whisk together 1 cup of yogurt, 1 egg and 1 tablespoon of flour. Then temper: ladle in hot broth a spoonful at a time while whisking constantly, until the mixture is warm and loose, and only then pour it back into the pot. Keep the soup below a boil, stirring, until it thickens lightly. Mint is the traditional herb: sizzle 1 tablespoon of dried mint in 2 tablespoons of butter for a few seconds and spoon it over the top. Yogurt soups do not freeze well; they separate when reheated. See yayla çorbası, and make the yogurt itself with the homemade Turkish yogurt recipe if you like.

Ezogelin and tomato soups

Ezogelin çorbası is a thicker, more filling soup built from red lentils, bulgur and rice, with tomato paste and pepper paste for colour and depth. Dried mint and pul biber (Turkish red pepper flakes) are standard. It is a sturdy one-pot meal in its own right. Tomato soup (domates çorbası) is lighter: softened onion, tomato paste and tomatoes simmered with rice or a small flour roux, then blended or left rustic. Both take the same finishing butter as the lentil soup. See ezogelin çorbası and domates çorbası.

The sizzling butter finish

This is the step that makes these soups taste Turkish. Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a small pan over medium heat until it foams, then stir in 1 teaspoon of pul biber or sweet paprika and, if you like, 1 teaspoon of dried mint. Take it off the heat as soon as the colour deepens, after about 30 seconds, and pour it over the soup. It should sizzle and bloom. Watch closely: paprika burns in seconds, so keep the pan moving and stay off high heat. Serve with lemon wedges and bread, and let each person squeeze in lemon to taste.

Make-ahead and freezing

Lentil and tomato soups keep 3 to 4 days in the fridge and freeze for up to 3 months. Freeze in portions, leave headroom for expansion, and thaw overnight in the fridge. Make yayla fresh each time.

The key takeaway: lentil and tomato soups are forgiving and freeze well, yogurt soup needs tempering and must be eaten fresh, and the sizzling butter finish is what makes them taste like a Turkish kitchen. Serve with lemon and bread every time.

The formula for building any soup from pantry ingredients is in the soup formula guide, the lentil varieties are compared in the lentils guide, and freezing times are in the freezer storage guide.