Before you cook
Background Recipe story & origin
Soupa fakes (Greek lentil soup) is ancient Mediterranean sustenance, with lentils among humanity's earliest cultivated crops. The Greek version is simple: brown lentils simmered with onion, garlic, tomatoes, bay leaves, and olive oil until tender and slightly broken down. Red wine vinegar added at the end provides key brightness. The soup is served with bread, olives, and feta—a complete, economical meal. Fakes is everyday food, not festive fare, representing Greek home cooking's humble heart. It's appropriate during Orthodox fasting periods (vegan by nature). The dish demonstrates Mediterranean cuisine's legume traditions and the Greek approach to vegetables: prepared, generously oiled, finished with acid. Regional variations add celery, carrots, or different spices, but the essence—lentils, tomato, olive oil, vinegar—remains constant across Greece.
Before you start Equipment you'll need
- large pot — Provides capacity for cooking lentil soup until tender and flavors are developed
Ingredients
Instructions
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Saute the aromatics
Heat 1/4 cup olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add 1 diced onion, 2 diced carrots, 2 diced celery stalks. Cook 8 minutes until softened. Add 4 minced garlic cloves, cook 1 minute.
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Wilt the greens
Add 1.5 cups brown or green lentils (rinsed), one 14-oz can diced tomatoes, 2 bay leaves, 1 tsp oregano, and 8 cups water. Bring to a boil.
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Simmer the until tender
Reduce heat and simmer 35-40 minutes until lentils are tender. Add salt to taste (adding salt earlier can toughen lentils).
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Ladle into bowls
Remove bay leaves. Stir in 2 tbsp red wine vinegar. Ladle into bowls. Drizzle generously with good olive oil. Serve with crusty bread.