Classic Greek Lentil Soup (Fakes)

Try your hand at a dish that my family has been making for decades! A Greek classic with nutritionally powerful ingredients that are hearty and filling. A protein powerhouse and loaded with lots of veggies.

Although soups can be eaten year round, there’s something especially satsifying about a hearty and savory soup when it’s bone-chillingly cold outside.

My go-to soup recipes usually stem from my family; from the cooking that I have been eating my entire life and the kinds of dishes that I introduced my own kids to at just 6 months old.

Most of you don’t know this but when I met my husband 10 years ago, I did not cook. Not kidding at all. As things got more serious, I figured I should probably start cooking like all the “good” Greek girls do (kinda joking, kinda not). So I called up my mom, aunts and grandmother and the cooking lessons commenced! Lentil soup, or fakes in Greek, is one of the first dishes I learned how to make. We make this dish weekly and it’s a household favorite, even with my toddlers.

I’m excited to share this recipe today because it’s been taught to me from my amazing family, and then tweaked to suit my husband and I (but not tweaked by much!). This recipe will have at least 8 servings (we always make extra to have for the next day and for school lunch!). If you are smaller than a family of four and aren’t meal prepping, you can certainly cut the recipe in half.

A lot of our soup recipes are traditionally made in a pressure cooker because they reduce the cooking time by at least half so instead of boiling lentils for 45 minutes, you can pressure cook them for 20. I live by my pressure cooker and if you don’t have one, I definitely recommend investing in it! I use this one by Calphalon that has treated me so good for over 5 years!

The Greeks usually serve a soup like this with fresh hot bread, a bowl of kalamata olives and a wedge of feta (yes, there is plant-based feta now available!).

Whatever you serve it with, enjoy it whole-heartedly.

καλή όρεξη (bon appetit!)

Classic Greek Lentil Soup (Fakes)

Stella Scaramangos

Try your hand at a dish that my family has been making for decades! A Greek classic with nutritionally powerful ingredients that are hearty and filling. A protein powerhouse and loaded with lots of veggies.

5 from 1 vote

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 45 minutes mins

Course Soup

Cuisine Greek

Servings 8 bowls

Equipment

• Pressure Cooker

Ingredients

  

• 2 cups dry lentils
• 1 large onion
• 3-5 cloves garlic, minced
• 4 carrots, peeled and diced
• 4 celery, diced
• 8 oz can tomato sauce
• 2 handfuls baby spinach chopped or whole
• 1/4 cup fresh chopped parsley
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tbsp dried oregano
• 3 tbsp olive oil

Instructions

 

• Saute your onion and garlic in olive oil for a couple of minutes. Once translucent, add the carrots, celery and spinach, and 1 cup water and saute for a few minutes.
• Add all of the rest of the ingredients (lentils, tomato sauce, bay leaf, parlsey, oregano, s+p) and mix well.
• Add enough water to cover your lentils and about 1/2 inch more.
• If pressure cooking, cover and bring to high pressure. Once pressurized, reduce heat to low and pressure cook for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, turn off the heat and depressurize before opening (make sure to follow the instructions on your pressure cooker).

  If boiling in a pot, bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for about 45 minutes or until lentils are cooked through (they should be soft but not mushy). You may need to add water so keep an eye as it's boiling. More water will make it a more runny soup. Less water will make it a thicker soup. Make sure to stir occasionally to ensure it's not sticking to the bottom.
• Once your lentils are cooked through and you have the desired soup texture (thin or thick), ladle into a bowl and serve!

Notes

1. There are several types of lentils: black beluga, french green, red. Some take longer than others to cook. For example, most red lentils I have seen are cut, making them thinner, so they typically need less time to cook. If you overcook, they will become mushy. Mushy is not necessarily a bad thing if you don’t mind the texture.

2. If you are adhering to a strict Whole Foods Plant Based Diet with no sugar, oil, or salt, simply take out the salt and oil in this recipe. It will not make a difference. To sautee your onions and garlic, use water or vegetable broth instead.

3. If you don’t have fresh parsley, you can sub with 2 tablespoons of dried parsley.

4. Lots of canned tomato sauces add extra ingredients. Be sure to get one with no added salt, sugars or oils.

5. Lentil soup can be stored up to 5 days in the refrigerator. You can also freeze in freezer safe tupperware for up to 2 months.

Did you make this? Leave a comment below and share a picture on Instagram with the hashtag #thewholescoopblog