Shorbat Adas: Middle Eastern Red Lentil Soup Recipe

Shorbat adas is a smooth Middle Eastern red lentil soup: red split lentils simmered with onion, garlic and cumin, blended until silky and sharpened with lemon juice. This recipe serves 4–6, needs no soaking and takes about 55 minutes from start to finish. Below: what the name means, the method, garnishes, texture tips and how to store and freeze it.

What is shorbat adas?

Shorbat adas simply means lentil soup. Shorba is the word for soup in most Islamic countries, says the Oxford Companion to Food, which traces it to Persian rather than Arabic; adas is Arabic for lentils. The Michelin Guide calls shorbat adas a staple of Middle Eastern cuisine, and Lebanon’s Food Heritage Foundation describes red lentil soup as commonly prepared in Lebanon and other Arab countries, so you may also see it called Lebanese, Arabic or Middle Eastern lentil soup.

Recipes vary from home to home. The Food Heritage Foundation’s Lebanese version adds carrot and potato, while a Gulf version from Sarah al-Hamad’s cookbook Cardamom and Lime, reprinted by AramcoWorld, adds tomatoes, turmeric and dried limes; she notes that variations exist across the region and throughout the Indian subcontinent. Many families serve it at iftar, the sunset meal that breaks the fast during Ramadan (expected to begin around Monday 8 February 2027 in the UK, depending on the moon sighting); see our Ramadan 2027 guide.

Shorbat adas recipe (serves 4–6)

Serves: 4 as a main course with bread, or 6 as a starter. Prep: 15 minutes. Cook: about 40 minutes. Total: about 55 minutes, with no soaking. You need a large, heavy saucepan and a stick blender or jug blender.

Ingredients

• 250g red split lentils (masoor dal)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 1 medium carrot, finely diced (optional)
• 3 garlic cloves, crushed
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin, plus a pinch to serve
• 1.5 litres hot vegetable stock or water, plus extra to thin
• salt, to taste
• juice of 1 lemon, plus lemon wedges to serve
• to serve: crispy fried onions, a pinch of Aleppo chilli flakes or sumac, and extra virgin olive oil

Method

1. Rinse the lentils. Tip the lentils into a sieve and rinse them under cold running water, rubbing them between your fingers, until the water runs clear. Red split lentils need no soaking.
2. Soften the onion. Warm the oil in a large, heavy saucepan over a medium-low heat. Add the onion and the carrot, if using, and cook gently for 8–10 minutes, stirring often, until soft and just starting to turn golden.
3. Add the garlic and cumin. Stir in the garlic and cumin and cook for about 1 minute, until fragrant, without letting the garlic brown.
4. Simmer. Add the lentils and the hot stock or water, stir and bring to the boil. Skim off any foam in the first few minutes, then part-cover and simmer gently for 15–20 minutes, stirring now and then so nothing sticks, until the lentils have collapsed and the carrot is soft.
5. Blend. Take the pan off the heat and blend with a stick blender until completely smooth. If you use a jug blender, let the soup cool down well first and blend it in small batches, following your blender’s instructions for hot liquids.
6. Season and serve. Warm the soup through again if needed. Add salt to taste, then stir in the lemon juice a little at a time, tasting as you go. Loosen with hot water or stock if it is too thick, and serve hot with your choice of garnishes.

Why these steps: our Sara red split lentils are Canadian, small and skinless, so they cook fast and turn soft and creamy. Their product page gives 15–20 minutes’ simmering and advises skimming the foam and adding salt and acidic ingredients such as lemon near the end, so the lentils stay tender. Frying the cumin with the onion matters too: our Greenfields Ground Cumin page notes that briefly frying ground cumin in oil brings out its warm, nutty flavour.

No lemon? Our Abido Citric Acid (lemon salt) page suggests about ¼ teaspoon in lentil soup in place of a lemon. Dissolve it in a tablespoon of water and add it gradually, tasting as you go; it gives a clean, sharp sourness.

Garnishes and what to serve with shorbat adas

Lemon and crisp bread are the classic partners: the Michelin Guide’s recipe is served with fresh lemon juice and crispy pitta, and the Food Heritage Foundation suggests oven-toasted pitta on the side. To make your own, cut pitta into small squares and fry them in a little olive oil until golden. Then add one or two of these toppings:

• Crispy fried onions: Greenfields Crispy Fried Onions are ready to eat straight from the pack. Scatter them over each bowl just before serving so they stay crunchy. They contain wheat (gluten). Crispy onions also top our mujadara recipe of lentils and rice.
• Aleppo chilli: a pinch of Greenfields Aleppo Chilli Flakes adds colour and a mild, fruity heat; the flakes are prepared with a little salt and vegetable oil.
• Sumac: Greenfields Sumac is tangy and lemony, made with sumac and a little citric acid and no added salt. Dust a little over the top; our guide to sumac explains more.
• Olive oil: a swirl of Al Quds Palestinian Extra Virgin Olive Oil, which is fresh and fruity with a gentle peppery finish; its product page suggests it for finishing soups.
• Cumin and herbs: a final pinch of ground cumin, and some chopped parsley or coriander.

How to get the texture right

• Cook the lentils until they collapse. CooksInfo, a cookery reference, allows about 20 minutes for red lentils to cook to a purée, and older lentils can take longer, as cooking times vary with the age of pulses. Blend only when no firm pieces remain.
• Blend thoroughly. Give it a minute or two with a stick blender for a velvety finish. No blender? Whisk hard for about 30 seconds, as America’s Test Kitchen does, for a coarser, more rustic purée.
• Expect it to thicken. Lentil soup thickens as it stands, so loosen it with a splash of hot water or stock just before serving, and again when you reheat it.
• Find your consistency. Aim for a soup that coats the back of a spoon but still pours easily. If it is too thin, simmer it uncovered for a few minutes, stirring, to reduce it.

How to store, reheat and freeze lentil soup

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) says leftovers should be cooled and put in the fridge within two hours, and advises: “Eat leftovers within 48 hours or freeze them if you think this won’t be possible.” It also says to reheat leftovers only once, until steaming hot throughout rather than just warm, stirring as they heat. So reheat only the portion you need, adding a splash of water as it warms, then taste it again: Love Food Hate Waste suggests adjusting the seasoning with lemon juice, salt and cumin.

Can you freeze shorbat adas? Yes. Love Food Hate Waste suggests making double quantities of its lentil soup and freezing it in portions. The FSA’s freezing advice is to cool warm dishes before freezing, divide food into smaller portions, label it and keep your freezer at around -18°C. Defrost the soup in the fridge overnight, or in a microwave on the defrost setting just before reheating, and use it within 24 hours of defrosting. For the best flavour, eat it within about three months, the time Lentils.org gives for frozen cooked lentils, and add the garnishes after reheating.

Allergens and dietary notes: made with water or vegetable stock, this recipe is vegan as written. Our red split lentils contain none of the 14 major allergens but may contain traces of other pulses and cereals containing gluten. Greenfields Crispy Fried Onions contain wheat (gluten); Greenfields says some of its blends are made in a facility that also handles sesame, mustard and celery; and Abido’s citric acid pack states that it may contain traces of wheat (gluten), sesame and mustard. Stock cubes vary, so check every label if you are cooking for someone who is vegan or has an allergy.

You’ll find red lentils in our pulses, rice and grains range, with cooking times for other lentils in our guide to types of lentils and pulses, and cumin, sumac, Aleppo chilli and crispy onions in spices and herbs. We deliver to UK addresses only; see our delivery information.

Frequently asked questions

Do red lentils need soaking?

No. Our product page says red split lentils need no soaking: just rinse them until the water runs clear. Diabetes UK makes the same point, naming lentils and split peas as the dried pulses that don’t need soaking before cooking. Because they are skinned and split, red lentils cook quickly and collapse into a purée in about 15–20 minutes.

Can you freeze lentil soup?

Yes. Cool it, divide it into portions, label them and freeze, following the FSA’s advice. Defrost a portion in the fridge overnight, use it within 24 hours and reheat it only once, until steaming hot throughout. Stir in a little hot water if it has thickened. For the best flavour, use it within about three months, and add crispy onions and other garnishes after reheating.

Why is my lentil soup grainy?

Usually the lentils needed a little longer, or the soup needed more blending. Red lentils should be completely soft and falling apart before you blend; older lentils can take longer, as cooking times vary with the age of pulses. Simmer the soup for a few more minutes with a splash of water, then blend again for a minute or two. Dicing the carrot finely also helps it soften in time.

What do you serve with shorbat adas?

Lemon wedges and toasted or fried pitta are the classic partners, with crispy onions, a pinch of cumin or Aleppo chilli and a swirl of olive oil on top. Serve it as a starter before a main course, or as a simple meal with warm flatbread and a salad such as fattoush.