Spiced with paprika and topped with soured cream, this Hungarian Lentil Soup is as delicious as it is simple.
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🍅 Ingredients for Hungarian Lentil Soup
- Onion.
- Garlic Cloves.
- Oil. A suitable oil for frying the onions. I use either olive oil or sunflower oil.
- Ground Paprika.
- Green Lentils.
- Salt.
- Soured Cream (optional).
See the Recipe Card below for quantities and the full recipe.
🍽 Useful Equipment
No special equipment is needed for this Simple Hungarian Lentil Soup recipe. I have listed the key useful items below.
- chopping board
- chopping knives suitable for chopping the onion and garlic cloves
- large saucepan
- spoon for mixing
🔪 How to Make Hungarian Lentil Soup
With only an onion and a couple of garlic cloves to chop, this easiest of soups can be made from scratch in no time. Here's how to make a Simple Hungarian Lentil Soup.
- Prepare the onion and garlic. Finely chop 1 medium-sized onion and 2 garlic cloves.
- Fry the onion. Put 3 or 4 tablespoons of oil, such as sunflower or olive oil in a saucepan. Add the finely chopped onion and over a medium heat gently fry the onion for about 5 minutes until it has softened.
- Fry the garlic and paprika with the onion. Add 2 finely chopped garlic cloves and 2 teaspoons of sweet paprika to the fried onion. Fry over a low heat for a couple of minutes until the garlic aroma is released. Paprika burns easily, becoming bitter, so take care not cook at too high a heat.
- Combine all remaining ingredients and cook. Add the dried lentils and enough cold water to generously cover all the ingredients. Bring the mixture to a boil and then turn down the heat so that the soup comes to a gentle simmer.
- Simmer and Season. Gently simmer the soup for about 20 to 25 minutes. Add extra water if needed towards the end of the cooking time to give your preferred consistency and volume of soup. Check the seasoning at the end of the cooking time, and add salt and pepper as needed.
- Ladle into soup bowls, top with a dollop of sour cream and enjoy!
More Soup Recipes
Lentils. If you want to make a healthy soup in a hurry, lentils are a perfect choice. Another great green lentil soup is this Simple French Green Lentil Soup with Bacon. It can easily be transformed into a vegetarian version and, like the Hungarian Lentil Soup, you can add celery, carrots or your other favourite vegetables without losing the character of the soup.
Chickpeas. Moving away from lentils, but still with healthy pulses, try this super Quick Chickpea and Tomato Soup with Peppers. Made with canned chickpeas and tomatoes, this soup is a brilliant as a last minute meal.
📋 Recipe Card
A Simple Hungarian Lentil Soup
Ingredients
- 1 onion
- 2-3 garlic cloves
- 3-4 tablespoon oil (sunflower or olive)
- 2 teaspoon paprika
- 1½ cups (250g) green lentils
- 5 cups (1250ml) water
Instructions
- Prepare the onion and garlic. Finely chop 1 medium-sized onion and 2 garlic cloves.
- Fry the onion. Put 3 or 4 tablespoons of oil, such as sunflower or olive oil in a saucepan. Add the finely chopped onion and over a medium heat gently fry the onion for about 5 minutes until it has softened.
- Fry the garlic and paprika with the onion. Add 2 finely chopped garlic cloves and 2 teaspoons of sweet paprika to the fried onion. Fry over a low heat for a couple of minutes until the garlic aroma is released. Paprika burns easily, becoming bitter, so take care not cook at too high a heat.
- Combine all remaining ingredients and cook. Add the dried lentils and enough cold water to generously cover all the ingredients. Bring the mixture to a boil and then turn down the heat so that the soup comes to a gentle simmer.
- Simmer and Season. Gently simmer the soup for about 20 to 25 minutes. Add extra water if needed towards the end of the cooking time to give your preferred consistency and volume of soup. Check the seasoning at the end of the cooking time, and add salt and pepper as needed.
- Ladle into soup bowls, top with a dollop of sour cream and enjoy!
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