Royal Vacation in Eilat, Interview with Head Chef Nisim and his Recipe for Lentil Soup

Let me start by saying that DH and I have been super super careful this whole year due to Corona/Covid and haven’t eaten at any restaurants or even contemplated hotels. Then, after a coupla lockdowns, we decided to try to book a hotel in Eilat, at that point a “green” city. Suffice it to say it got postponed 4 times and we almost gave up when, lo and behold, the last lockdown (at this time) was lifted, just in time for our last booking (which we nearly cancelled!). Oh joy, oh delight, even the restaurants were opening. Okay, we are going we both decided with serious determination.

I am deeply grateful that we both got our “jabs” as our English friends say, or vaccination shots and went off in high spirits. A vacation?! You bet. It was awesome. We drove down to the gorgeous Royal Beach Hotel and had fantabulous weather and walked to our heart’s content and had the weird thing of wearing masks when you stand up to get your food at the buffet and remove them when sitting down. Say whaaat? Yeah, it makes no sense, as though the germs stay put when you sit down, but thems the rules, so we did it.

But, my friends, you know me by now, clearly there had to be something about food in all this. Now we indulged a bit, and took the fancier room with the special dining room and the lounge. (Hey a whole year no vacation, it was only 3 nights!) So you get a slightly snazzier setup and the food is wonderful. In the lounge DH ate a veritable sea of smoked salmon (I think he needs a break from it now 🙂 ) and the gorgeous snacks, drinks, salads and fish not only tasted divine, but looked it, too.

No worries, the pasta was homemade, the fish with a beautiful sear and they had these terrifying huge coffee machines (I figured it out last time we were at the Royal Beach, a coupla years ago) which produced awesome coffee. So, it’s the way I roll, I had to meet the chef. Being a friendly sort, I chatted with the waitresses (lovely) and one of the chefs named Meir (a terrific guy) and said I’d love to interview the chef. To make a long story short, he was running around like mad since the hotels keep opening and closing due to lockdowns, but he finally found time for a sit down interview which I really appreciated. We spoke in Hebrew, and he understood I was translating this for my audience.

Head Chef Nisim Yaakov Levy was born in Afula, Israel and is in his early forties. He’s a high energy, charming fellow and he asked if I minded his grabbing some lunch while we chatted (hey, he’s eating his own food, a good sign! Heh.) so I said, of course.

Me: What dish are you most proud of that you prepare for the hotel?

Chef Nisim: I don’t have a particular dish that I take pride in, rather each day I approach the menu anew and afresh, seeing the raw materials and deciding how I wish to transform them into different dishes.

Me: How would you define your cuisine?

Chef Nisim: I like authentic cuisine, the food should be based on my background with a modern twist.

Me: Who would you say was the most powerful influence on you as a chef?

Chef Nisim: Without a doubt, my grandmother Sara. We are of Kurdish descent and since both my parents worked long hours, my grandmother babysat us. We helped her from a very young age, I was about 6, to roll stuffed grape leaves and kubbeh. She would prepare them with us and sell them on Thursday. I loved helping her and was fascinated by food even then. I started working in catering very young, helping in kitchens and at age 17 went to learn to become a chef.
Me: Any tips on cooking in general?
Chef Nisim: I avoid using white pepper. I find its taste so sharp that it overpowers the taste of the food. In general, don’t overwhelm your food with spices, make them subtle to infuse flavor into a dish.

Me: Would you be willing to share a recipe with my readers?

Chef Nisim: Of course. I have a great recipe for lentil soup. Okay?

Me: Sure, wonderful!

It was lovely to meet him and very gracious of him to spend the time with me. So, here it is!

Chef Nisim Yaakov Levy’s Lentil Soup

A note, since the chef has this prepared in hotel quantities, the recipe is more general, it’s his technique rather than specifics. I made this into the quantities so you can make it at home.

1 500 gram package (2 1/2 cups) Green Lentils, picked through and cleaned and soaked for a few hoursk, although he didn’t specify, I strongly advise adding a teaspoon of baking soda per cup of lentils
1-2 large onions, peeled and chopped
3-4 tablespoons oil
Cilantro, washed and cleaned and chopped (which I loathe since it tastes like soap to me, he looked at me a bit pityingly but said you can skip it)
Bunch of Parsley, washed and cleaned and chopped
3 carrots, peeled and chopped
3 ribs/stalks celery, chopped
Salt & black pepper to taste
a pinch of cumin
a pinch of turmeric
8-10 cups water

Directions:

Take the onions and saute in the oil till very dark and caramelized. Add the chopped carrots, celery, parsley (cilantro if you must), cumin and turmeric and salt and pepper and stir into onions cooking briefly till coated with the oil and add the water, cooking on medium simmer for about 30-40 minutes. Drain and rinse the lentils and cook them separately in boiling water until they are very very soft and sort of sludgy, blend with a stick blender and add to the the vegetable mixture and continue cooking together for about another 20 minutes until ingredients are nicely melded. Taste to adjust spices.