Donβt settle for bland Lentil Soup!Β Make it right and youβll have everyone begging for secondsβ¦.and thirdsβ¦ This lentil recipe is one of the best nourishing, simple dishes you can make with dried lentils thatβs 100% delicious. Use green lentils, red lentils, brown lentils or a lentil soup mix.
All it takes is a hint of spice flavourings, bay leaves and finishing it off with a touch of lemon to elevate this soup. Itβs an easy recipe that delivers terrific results, a 5 star reader favourite with hundreds of feedback from readers!
Want to addΒ some protein? Try this Beef & Lentil Soup!
Lentil Soup
Lentil soup is quite possibly the least sexy sounding soup on the planet.
At least, in my world. Regular readers know that Iβm all about big flavours. Spicy, herby, curries β kapow, kapow, kapow!
But you know what? A well made Lentil Soup recipe is canβt-stop-eating-it good. Youβll go back for seconds and thirds, then youβll be taking big tubs of it to work for lunch and happily have it for dinner again.
And β Iβm going to say it (*head swell*) β plenty of readers have said this is theΒ best lentil soup theyβve ever had!
A well made Lentil Soup recipe is canβt-stop-eating-it good.
Is lentil soup good for you?
If youβre wondering if lentil soup is good for you, the answer isΒ yes!Β Lentils areΒ nutritious, rich in minerals, protein, low in fat, high in fibre (digestive health). They are a terrific vegetarianΒ source of proteinΒ with 25% of the calories in lentils attributable to protein.
Lentils are a carbohydrate, but itβs slow burning which means it keeps you fuller for longer.Β Studies also suggest that lentils are good for heart health.
The added benefit is thatΒ they are low in calories with 116 calories in 1 cup of cooked lentils (which is roughly the amount per serving of this lentil soup).
What does lentil soup taste like?
It tastes savoury and has a flavour boost from a hint of spices. Thereβs an undertone of natural sweetness from the soffritoΒ flavour base of onion, carrot and celery. My favourite part is the texture! Itβs thick and comforting, and just made for dunking in hot crusty bread!
What goes in Lentil Soup
Hereβs what goes in my lentil soup. Nothing fancy, just everyday ingredients.
So what makes this Lentil Soup so good?
A touch of spices.
Cooking the onion, carrot and celery slowly so they sweeten and make a beautiful flavour base.
Lemon βΒ The βsecretβ ingredient.Β Yes really. Little tip I picked up from Ina Garten. Just a bit of zest and squeeze of fresh lemon makes all the difference which takes it from really good to great!
Do you cook lentils before adding to soup?
Nope! Dried lentils cook in 35 minutesΒ in the soup, and thereβs no need to soak them either!
What type of lentils are best for lentil soup?
Dried lentils are best for lentil soup. You can use most types of lentils for this recipe β brown, green, red or yellow, though it will affectΒ the colour of the soup. Iβve used green lentils, pictured below.
The only type of lentil I do not recommend isΒ Puy Lentils (little black French lentils) because they hold their shape and donβt soften like other lentils.
Can you used canned cooked lentils?
Yes you sure can, and directions are provided in the recipe notes. But itβs better made with dried lentils because of the texture in the soup, thereβs only 10 minutes difference in cook time and itβs more economical!
How to make Lentil Soup from scratch
SautΓ© your onion, garlic, carrots and celery overΒ over low heat for almost 10 minutes. Take your time here βΒ the lower the heat, the longer you take, the more these will transform to create an incredible flavour base for the soup!
Add everything else other than the lemon;
Simmer 35 minutes until lentils are soft; and
Finish with a dusting of zest and spritz of lemon.
A hint of lemon earthiness from the zest and touch of freshness from the juice just jazzes up the soup and takes it to that next level!
Youβll find that the lentils mostly breakdown and naturally thicken the soup. But what I like to do to get a really luscious creamy texture is to give the soup aΒ quick whizz with a blender stick (or transfer a couple of cups to the blender) to puree SOME but not all the lentils.
That way you get the benefit of both worlds β creamy soup with soft bits of lentils. YES!
How to store lentil soup
Lentil Soup will easily keep for 5 days in the fridge, making it ideal for cooking on the weekend and serving throughout the week. And it also freezes 100% perfectly for 3 months β even longer!
Every time I make this, I always wonder why I donβt make it more often. Itβs healthy, filling, super economical, freezes perfectly, versatile and itβsΒ seriously good.
Serving this with some sort of warm crusty bread for dunking is not optional.Β ItβsΒ an essential part of the Lentil Soup experience.
But itΒ is optional whether you slather said bread with butter, or grill it with cheese! Β Here are a few options β including making your ownΒ ultra easy homemade bread with NO YEAST:
β Nagi xx
Watch How To Make It
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Lentil Soup
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 onion, chopped (white, brown, yellow)
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 large carrot , chopped (about 1 1/4 cups)
- 2 celery ribs , chopped (about 1 1/4 cups)
- 2 cups / 400g dried lentils , green or brown, rinsed (Note 1)
- 400g / 14 oz crushed tomato
- 1.5 litres / 1.5 quarts (6 cups) vegetable or chicken stock / broth, low sodium
- 1/2 tsp each cumin and coriander powder
- 1 1/2 tsp paprika powder
- 2 dried bay leaves
- 1 lemon (zest + juice)
- 1/4 tsp salt and pepper, each
To Serve
- Chopped fresh parsley, for garnish
- Warm bread, to serve
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add garlic and onion, cook for 2 minutes.
- Add celery and carrot. Cook for 7 β 10 minutes or until softened and the onion is sweet. Donβt rush this step, it is key to the flavour base of the soup.
- Add all remaining ingredients except the lemon and salt. Stir.Β
- Increase heat and bring to simmer. Scoop scum on the surface off and discard (do this again during cooking if required). Place lid on and turn heat down to medium low. Simmer for 35 β 40 minutes or until lentils are soft.
- Remove bay leaves.
- Thicken Soup: Using a stick blender, do 2 or 3 quick whizzes to thicken the soup (see video below). Or transfer 2 cups to a blender, let it cool slightly, then hold lid with tea towel and blend then transfer back into pot.
- Add a touch of water if you want to adjust soup consistency. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Grate over the zest of the lemon then add a squeeze of lemon juice just before serving. Garnish with parsley if desired and serve with warm crusty bread slathered liberally with butter!
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
Recipe originally published March 2017, spruced up with new pics, new video and fresh new writing. Absolutely no change to recipe β itβs been a firm reader favourite from day 1, so IΒ wouldnβt dare touch it!
More totally delicious lentil recipes:
Sexy Lentil Salad β try it, then youβll get the nameβ¦.
Dal β Indian lentil curry. The highest and best use of lentils, full stop!
Coconut Lentil Curry β outrageously addictive, andΒ easyΒ (I make this for a curry fix when I donβt have time for dal)
Mejadra (Middle Eastern Spiced Lentil Rice) β so good you can eat it plain, seriously!
Browse all Beans and Lentil recipes
Life of Dozer
He contributes less than nothing to this household, he actually contributesΒ negative.Β Dropping fur everywhere, shaking vigorously so it flies everywhere along with an inordinate amountΒ of sand, constantly sprawling out in my path so Iβm forced to step over him (remember, Iβm vertically challenged = giant steps).
Giant π© all over the backyard. Barks furiously at tree branches swaying in the breeze but I swear, he would happily show a robber where my jewellery box is in exchange for a pat.
Useless!!! (And yet we love them so much, donβt we? π)
PS Another example of his uselessness β he spends 22 hours a day doing this. The other 2 hours are spent a) eating b) hoping to eat c) playing.
This dish is amazing! The spice blend is right on point. Itβs perfect for a cozy winter day by the fire.
This was amazing! Made it almost exactly as written except I added a frozen block of spinach I was trying to use up. Delicious!!!
Delicious, nutritious and simple! I take forever in prep time, but the process is straightforward. Iβll be making this again for sure!
Made the lentil soup here with homemade broth and tweaked it a little with smoked paprika, and the family LOVED it! This plus a loaf of fresh made bread and butter and we were all groaning. It was so good, thanks for the recipe!
This sounded like such a delicious recipe and reviews were positive, so a made a big pot of it. I probably cooked the lentils too hard or blended them too much. I thought it would be creamier β but little pieces of lentil skin were getting caught in my throat. The flavor was great β but the texture was a problem.
DELICIOUS. I canβt believe what a good cook I am now, thanks in part to you and this recipe. Incredible. And I havenβt yet added the lemon zest/juice. Just finished semi-blendering it in my Vitamix. Itβs good as is!
DELICIOUS. I canβt believe what a good cook I am now, thanks in part to you and this recipe. Incredible. And I havenβt yet added the lemon zest/juice. Just finished semi-blendering it in my Vitamix. Itβs good as is!
So good! We didnβt have a lemon so I mixed plain yogurt into my bowl and it gave it the same yummy tang and cooled the temperature a little.
This soup can be excellent with a couple of tweaks. I found that 2 cups of lentils with only 6 cups of broth made it far too thick. I added 2 more cups of broth for a total of 8 cups, and it was still thick after a couple of buzzes with the stick blender. In addition a whole lemon was way to much lemon to squeeze into this soup. Mine was overpowered by lemon and I only used a half. I would only add a quarter of a lemon and then test it and go from there.
However that being said, it was still a delicious soup and I would most certainly recommend this recipe minus some of that lemon!
Lovely combination with your garlic bread for lunch today, we enjoyed it, Nagi
Nagi you knocked this one out of the park! Not only nutritious but delicious!
Needing to make sure I get enough iron, Iβve learned Vit.C helps body absorb iron, so your spritz of fresh lemon is extra touch of genius for me!
As Adam Driver would say, βGood soup.β
But seriously, so much better than previous lentil soups Iβve made! Delicious.
Note: Followed recipe closely, but threw in a couple cinnamon sticks for warm and spicy fun.
Thank you Nagi. Yes, delicious & very filling. I added half a teaspoon of asafoetida to counter the after effects of so many lentils. I used little red lentils so they cooked in 20mins. The juice of half of one of our back yard lemons was too much but never mind.
If I add the garlic to the onions when sautΓ©ing, wonβt he garlic burn? When can I add it later?
It was really easy to make!!! Totally loved the lemon juice , and lemon grind flavor on it!!! Delicious! Will definitely make it over and over again.
I made this about a month ago as directed except that my husband wants meat, even if not much for his meals, so added about a cup of diced smoked brisket. I didnβt blend it as prefer some texture and it was a hit. Froze half and have eaten that as well. A few days ago hubby was asking when I was going to make it again and I bought a rotisserie chicken and will add that this time. We have enjoyed a variety of your recipes which are easily followed along with your notes. It feels like a friend is sharing their recipes and they are ones that I can trust. Thanks for all the work that you put into this endeavor.
Literally just made this for the first time and it was fantastic! Just finished eating it for dinner with a yummy fresh bread roll with butter.
I added potato because potato is life. I sieved my crushed tomato because ick to tomato chunks lol. I didnβt add celery or lemon because celery is too expensive currently and as for the lemon I forgot to buy one π other than my changes I was over the moon! Perfect for the chilly weather we have today in SE Qld
I love garlic so I tripled the amount of garlic and then added some garlic I roasted to my bowl along with the lemon juice. It was amazing! This will become a regular for me.
whatβs with the Honda advertisement takes awhile to disappear. annoying.
So simple to make and delicious! Brought it over to friends for a simple gathering. Everyone loved it and there was nothing left.
My 11 year old, who doesnβt like eating any veggies kept going back for more!