Best Lentil Soup Recipe

This soup recipe was a long time coming! Over the years, I made some lackluster lentil soups that never saw the light of day on this website. No vegetarian food blog would be complete without a proper lentil soup, though, so I perfected one of my own.

Here it is. My lentil soup is made with mostly pantry ingredients but includes hearty greens and a squeeze of lemon for bright, fresh flavor. It’s seasoned with a few of my favorite spices and plenty of freshly ground black pepper. Honestly, it’s the best lentil soup I’ve ever had.

The original title of this recipe was “Spiced Vegan Lentil Soup,” which is accurate, but a mouthful. With over 500 five-star reviews, I think it’s safe to call this the Best Lentil Soup. Period.

Whether you’re looking to lighten up your meals or warm up with a steaming bowl of soup, this healthy lentil soup recipe is for you! It’s one of my all-time favorites and I hope it becomes a staple in your kitchen as well.

Please let me know how this lentil soup turns out for you in the comments. I’m always so eager to hear from you.

Don’t miss my lentil minestrone recipe in my cookbook—if you’re a fan of this soup, you’re going to love it.

This simple vegan lentil soup recipe comes together quickly with mostly pantry ingredients. Be sure to have your ingredients prepped and ready before you start cooking! Recipe yields four large bowls of soup, or six more modest servings.

Soup recipe roughly based on America’s Test Kitchen’s lentil soup in The Complete Vegetarian Cookbook, with reference to The First Mess’ favourite lentil soup.

Best Lentil Soup

This simple vegan lentil soup recipe comes together quickly with mostly pantry ingredients. Be sure to have your ingredients prepped and ready before you start cooking! Recipe yields four large bowls of soup, or six more modest servings.

Prep: 10min

Total: 55min

Yield: 4

Nutrition Facts: servingSize None, calories 367 calories, Sugar 10.8 g, Sodium 1375.5 mg, Fat 15.5 g, Saturated Fat 2.2 g, Trans Fat 0 g, Carbohydrate 47.8 g, Fiber 10.8 g, Protein 14.5 g, Cholesterol 0 mg

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1 medium yellow or white onion, chopped
• 2 carrots, peeled and chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, pressed or minced
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon curry powder
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 large can (28 ounces) diced tomatoes, lightly drained
• 1 cup brown or green lentils, picked over and rinsed
• 4 cups vegetable broth
• 2 cups water
• 1 teaspoon salt, more to taste
• Pinch of red pepper flakes
• Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 1 cup chopped fresh collard greens or kale, tough ribs removed
• 1 to 2 tablespoons lemon juice (1/2 to 1 medium lemon), to taste

Instruction:

1. Warm the olive oil in a large Dutch oven or pot over medium heat. One-fourth cup olive oil may seem like a lot, but it adds a lovely richness and heartiness to this nutritious soup.
2. Once the oil is shimmering, add the chopped onion and carrot and cook, stirring often, until the onion has softened and is turning translucent, about 5 minutes.
3. Add the garlic, cumin, curry powder and thyme. Cook until fragrant while stirring constantly, about 30 seconds. Pour in the drained diced tomatoes and cook for a few more minutes, stirring often, in order to enhance their flavor.
4. Pour in the lentils, broth and the water. Add 1 teaspoon salt and a pinch of red pepper flakes. Season generously with freshly ground black pepper. Raise heat and bring the mixture to a boil, then partially cover the pot and reduce the heat to maintain a gentle simmer. Cook for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the lentils are tender but still hold their shape.
5. Transfer 2 cups of the soup to a blender. Securely fasten the lid, protect your hand from steam with a tea towel placed over the lid, and purée the soup until smooth. Pour the puréed soup back into the pot. (Or, use an immersion blender to blend a portion of the soup.)
6. Add the chopped greens and cook for 5 more minutes, or until the greens have softened to your liking. Remove the pot from the heat and stir in 1 tablespoon of lemon juice. Taste and season with more salt, pepper and/or lemon juice until the flavors really sing. For spicier soup, add another pinch or two of red pepper flakes.
7. Serve while hot. Leftovers will keep well for about 4 days in the refrigerator, or can be frozen for several months (just defrost before serving).

The Best Lentil Soup

Brown lentils are the star of this dish. To boost flavor, we used a classic mirepoix—onion, celery and carrot – as well as thyme, bay and oregano for an herby finish. We found the fresh lemon juice and parsley at the end brightened up the soup and added a nice pop of color.

Total: 0 1h30min0

Yield: 4 to 6 servings

Serving Size: 1 of 6 servings

Nutrition Facts: servingSize 1 of 6 servings, calories 263, Fat 8g, Saturated Fat 1g, Carbohydrate 38g, Fiber 7g, Sugar 4g, Protein 13g, Cholesterol 0mg, Sodium 648mg

Ingredients:

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 medium carrots, cut into 1/4-inch pieces
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 1 large celery stalk (about 2 ounces), cut into 1/4-inch pieces
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1 large clove garlic, minced
• 1 1/2 cups dried brown lentils
• 4 cups vegetable stock
• 7 sprigs thyme, leaves stripped (about 1 teaspoon leaves)
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest, plus the juice of 1/2 lemon (about 2 tablespoons)
• 1/2 cup flat-leaf parsley leaves, plus more for garnish, roughly chopped

Instruction:

1. Heat the oil in a large heavy-bottom pot over medium-high heat. Add the carrot, onion, celery and 1 teaspoon salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are starting to caramelize and take on a dark brown color, 8 to 10 minutes (this step is important as it will add tons of flavor to your soup!).
2. Stir in the tomato paste and garlic and cook, scraping up the brown bits, until the garlic is fragrant and slightly softened, 1 to 2 minutes. Add in the lentils, stock, 4 cups water, thyme, bay leaf, oregano, red pepper flakes, lemon zest, 2 teaspoons salt and a generous amount of black pepper and stir to combine. Bring to a boil then reduce the heat to low. Cover and cook until the lentils are softened with just a bit of bite, 25 to 30 minutes.
3. Remove the bay leaf. Puree 2 1/2 cups of the soup in a blender until smooth then stir back into the pot. Stir in the lemon juice and parsley. Ladle into bowls and garnish with more parsley.

Lentil Soup

Recipe VIDEO above. Don’t settle for a bland lentil soup. Make it right, and you’ll have everyone begging for seconds…and thirds! The touch of spices and finishing it off with lemon really lifts this soup to the next level.

Prep: 10min

Total: 55min

Serving Size: 421 g

Nutrition Facts: servingSize 421 g, calories 311 kcal, Carbohydrate 48 g, Protein 18 g, Fat 5 g, Sodium 111 mg, Fiber 22 g, Sugar 5 g

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)
• Chopped fresh parsley, for garnish
• Warm bread, to serve

Instruction:

1. Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add garlic and onion, cook for 2 minutes.
2. Add celery and carrot. Cook for 7 – 10 minutes or until softened and the onion is sweet. Don’t rush this step, it is key to the flavour base of the soup.
3. Add all remaining ingredients except the lemon and salt. Stir.
4. 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 – 40 minutes or until lentils are soft.
5. Remove bay leaves.
6. 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.
7. 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!

Best Lentil Soup

Meet my favorite recipe for lentil soup! It’s warming & delicious, made with tomato, creamy coconut milk, ginger, and a bit of curry.

Prep: 10min

Total: 45min

Yield: 4

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons coconut oil
• 1 medium onion (chopped)
• 4 garlic cloves (minced)
• 3 tablespoons minced ginger
• 1 tablespoon mild curry powder
• ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (more to taste)
• 1 (28-ounce) can fire roasted diced tomatoes
• 1 cup dried French green lentils (rinsed and drained)
• 2½ cups water
• 1 (14-ounce) can full-fat coconut milk
• ½ teaspoon sea salt (more to taste)
• Freshly ground black pepper
• ½ cup diced cilantro
• 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice

Instruction:

1. Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion and a pinch of salt and cook until soft and lightly browned around the edges, 8 to 10 minutes, reducing the heat to low as needed.
2. With the heat on low, add the garlic, ginger, curry powder, and red pepper flakes and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 2 minutes.
3. Add the tomatoes, lentils, water, coconut milk, ½ teaspoon salt, and several grinds of black pepper. Bring to a boil, cover, and reduce to a simmer, stirring only occasionally, until the lentils are tender, 25 to 35 minutes. If your soup is too thick, stir in 1/2 to 1 cup more water to reach your desired consistency.
4. Stir in the cilantro and lime juice. Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve.

The Best Lentil Soup Recipe

FAQ

Is lentil soup really good for you?

Do you have to soak lentils before making soup?

Why does my lentil soup taste bland?

Which color lentil is healthiest?