Soup or ‘çorba’ is an integral part of the Turkish meal plan. Served as a prelude to most lunches and dinners – or as a light meal on its own – Turks have certainly mastered the art of cooking this local favorite. This is lucky for me, I guess, as I love to both cook and eat çorba. I especially love the simple but fresh flavours of this roasted Turkish tomato soup. However, please note that I found this an especially light-bodied soup, very much suited for summer. It could also be served as a gazpacho (cold, or room temperature). For a little more body when eating as a stand-alone meal, I shredded some poached chicken as added it.
Turkish Tomato Soup Ingredients:
- 1 kg of tomatoes (about 7-8 medium-sized tomatoes)
- 1 onion
- 3 cloves of garlic
- 2 tbsp of olive oil, plus extra to serve
- 1 tbsp of flour
- 3 cups of water (or chicken or vegetable stock)
- Freshly ground black pepper and salt, to season
- Fresh basil leaves
Method:
- Before you start cooking Turkish tomato soup, preheat oven to 200-degrees.
- Cut the tomatoes and onion in half.
- Put the tomatoes and onions (in the shell) on a tray with the garlic (also in the shells), and drizzle with 1 tbsp of olive oil. Season with salt and pepper, and top with 2 sprigs of fresh basil.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes.
- Once cooled slightly, peel and chop the tomatoes, onions and garlic.
- Heat a saucepan with the other tbsp of olive oil and add the chopped roasted onions, tomatoes and garlic. Saute the vegetables for 3 minutes over a medium heat.
- Add the flour to the vegetables in the pan and stir in.
- Add 4 cups of hot water (or stock) and bring to the boil. Simmer uncovered for 10 minutes.
- Blend all ingredients until the desired consistency of Turkish tomato soup is achieved. (add more boiling water if you find it too thick)
- Serve topped with freshly ground black pepper and salt, and a few basil leaves.