Rishta bil Adas (Lebanese Pasta & Lentil Soup)
Pasta has long been a staple of Levantine cuisine, where it has found its way into rice and lentil dishes, and even desserts. It has the ability to lift a humble meal of lentils into a complete protein, and makes it incredibly fun to eat. Rishta bil Adas is one of these dishes. It's a comforting lentil soup that gets its rich flavour from carefully caramelised onions, a few spices and fresh coriander. By cooking the lentils together in the same pan, they impart their hearty flavour and turn the liquid into a wholesome broth.
Ingredients
- 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil + extra for drizzling
- 2 large onions
- 30 g coriander
- 4 garlic cloves
- 300 g brown lentils
- 1 heaped tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper
- 3 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 heaped tsp plain flour
- 1 1/4 tbsp salt (18g)
- 300 g tagliatelle
Instructions
- Pre-heat the olive oil in a casserole. Finely dice the onions and sauté them in the oil until dark golden (15-20 mins). Meanwhile, discard the lower stems of the coriander, finely chop the rest and set aside.
- Grate the garlic into the casserole and cook for another minute until the raw scent has disappeared. Stir in the spices with most of the chopped coriander and let them heat through, then rinse the lentils and add them to the pan followed by 2l of water. Bring to a boil, then simmer covered for 20 minutes or until the lentils are just tender.
- Whisk together the lemon juice and flour and stir it into the soup along with the salt. Break the pasta into spoon-sized pieces into the casserole and cook for another 10 mins or until al dente. Divide the soup over plates, garnish with the remaining coriander and a drizzle of olive oil.