Adas (Red Lentil Soup)
Also: Shorbat adas, Iraqi lentil soup, Adas soup
A smooth red lentil soup seasoned with cumin and lemon and finished with fried onion, a staple light meal across Iraq and the wider Levant.
Identity criteria
- 1Red (split) lentils cooked until they break down into a smooth, thick soup
- 2Cumin as the defining spice
- 3Finished with lemon juice for brightness
- 4Garnished with fried or crisped onion (and often a drizzle of oil)
- 5Comforting, blended, golden-orange texture rather than chunky
Components
Red split lentilsessentialTheir tendency to disintegrate gives the soup its body
Onion, garlicessential
Olive oil or butteressential
Lemon juiceessentialServed squeezed in or alongside
Water or stockessential
CuminessentialThe signature spice of adas soup
Turmeric, salt, sometimes chilioptional
Fried onionessentialThe characteristic topping
Technique
- Simmering lentils to collapse
- Red lentils break apart and thicken the soup naturally without a separate thickener
- Frying onion garnish
- Adds sweet, caramelized depth and textural contrast to the smooth soup
- Finishing with lemon
- Acidity lifts the earthy lentils and balances the richness
Form & serving
- Served
- In a bowl, often blended smooth, with lemon wedges on the side
- Temperature
- Hot
- Portion
- A bowl as a light main or starter
- Pairs with
- Flatbread or pita · Lemon wedges · Fried bread croutons · Pickles
Character
Flavour
Texture
Smooth, thick, velvety with crisp onion topping
Eaten
An everyday comforting soup, especially common in winter and as a Ramadan iftar opener across Iraq and the Levant.
When
year-round · especially winter and Ramadan
Variations & related
Regional variations
- Egyptian shorbet ads · Egypt
Very smooth, sometimes with carrot, cumin-forward
- Levantine shorbat adas · Lebanon, Syria, Jordan
May include greens like chard (rishta variants) or pasta
- Iraqi adas · Iraq
Cumin-and-lemon profile with fried onion garnish
Related dishes
- sibling Shorbet ads (Egyptian)
Egyptian cousin, typically blended very smooth
- pairs-with Pita bread
Standard accompaniment for scooping
Substitutions
Red split lentils → Yellow split lentilsadmissible
Similar disintegrating texture; acceptable
Red lentils → Whole green/brown lentilsinadmissible
They hold shape and won't thicken into the smooth soup
Lemon juice → Vinegarinadmissible
Loses the characteristic citrus brightness
Common mistakes
- Using whole lentils that stay firm instead of breaking down
- Skipping the cumin or lemon that define the flavor
- Forgetting the fried onion garnish that completes the dish
- Under-seasoning so it tastes flat and starchy
Provenance
Red lentil soup is an ancient Middle Eastern staple, shared and beloved across Iraq, the Levant and Egypt with regional seasonings.
Shared by: Iraq, Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Egypt
References
- 1.Iraqi and Levantine home cooking
- 2.Middle Eastern culinary tradition
Confidence: high