• Make time to prepare a few stocks in advance and freeze them. Once you have the stock, this Greek lentil soup recipe will take less than 30 minutes to prepare.

    How to make vegetable stock:

    Heat 30ml (2 tbsp) of sunflower oil in a large pot and add 1 chopped onion, 3 chopped leeks, 3 chopped carrots, 2 chopped parsnips and 3 chopped celery sticks. Toss to coat, cover and cook, 3 – 5 minutes. Add 2,5L of water and bring to a boil. Skim the surface and add 3 bay leaves, a few peppercorns, 2 garlic cloves and 45ml (3tbsp) fresh flat-leaf parsley. Reduce heat and simmer, about 1 hour. Sieve the stock into a clean bowl, pressing the solids to extract all of the liquid. Set aside to cool and freeze until needed. Makes about 2 litres of stock.

    Greek lentil soup

    Serves: 4
    Cooking Time: 20 mins

    Ingredients

    • 125ml (½ cup) olive oil
    • 1 onion, sliced
    • 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
    • 1 x 420g tin lentils, drained and rinsed
    • 1L (4 cups) vegetable stock, hot
    • 2 fresh bay leaves
    • 10ml (2 tsp) dried oregano
    • 10ml (2 tsp) vinegar
    • 1 small potato, cubed
    • 1 carrot, cubed
    • salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
    • tahini, to serve

    Instructions

    1

    Heat the oil in a pot and sauté the onion and garlic for a few minutes.

    2

    Add the remaining ingredients except for the tahini and cook until the vegetables are tender, about 15 minutes.

    3

    Serve hot with a swirl of tahini.

    More delicious soup recipes for you to enjoy:

    Cannellini bean, bacon, rosemary and spinach soup

    Chicken tortellini and mushroom soup

    Hot and sour chicken and prawn wonton soup