Don’t settle for bland Lentil Soup! Make it right and you’ll have everyone begging for seconds….and thirds… This lentil recipe is one of the best nourishing, simple dishes you can make with dried lentils that’s 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. It’s an easy recipe that delivers terrific results, a 5 star reader favourite with hundreds of feedback from readers!
Want to add 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 I’m all about big flavours. Spicy, herby, curries – kapow, kapow, kapow!
But you know what? A well made Lentil Soup recipe is can’t-stop-eating-it good. You’ll go back for seconds and thirds, then you’ll be taking big tubs of it to work for lunch and happily have it for dinner again.
And – I’m going to say it (*head swell*) – plenty of readers have said this is the best lentil soup they’ve ever had!
A well made Lentil Soup recipe is can’t-stop-eating-it good.
Is lentil soup good for you?
If you’re wondering if lentil soup is good for you, the answer is yes! Lentils are nutritious, rich in minerals, protein, low in fat, high in fibre (digestive health). They are a terrific vegetarian source of protein with 25% of the calories in lentils attributable to protein.
Lentils are a carbohydrate, but it’s slow burning which means it keeps you fuller for longer. Studies also suggest that lentils are good for heart health.
The added benefit is that 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. There’s an undertone of natural sweetness from the soffrito flavour base of onion, carrot and celery. My favourite part is the texture! It’s thick and comforting, and just made for dunking in hot crusty bread!
What goes in Lentil Soup
Here’s what goes in my lentil soup. Nothing fancy, just everyday ingredients.
So what makes this Lentil Soup so good?
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A touch of spices.
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Cooking the onion, carrot and celery slowly so they sweeten and make a beautiful flavour base.
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Lemon – The “secret” ingredient. 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 minutes in the soup, and there’s 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 – brown, green, red or yellow, though it will affect the colour of the soup. I’ve used green lentils, pictured below.
The only type of lentil I do not recommend is Puy Lentils (little black French lentils) because they hold their shape and don’t soften like other lentils.
Can you used canned cooked lentils?
Yes you sure can, and directions are provided in the recipe notes. But it’s better made with dried lentils because of the texture in the soup, there’s only 10 minutes difference in cook time and it’s more economical!
How to make Lentil Soup from scratch
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Sauté your onion, garlic, carrots and celery over over low heat for almost 10 minutes. Take your time here – the lower the heat, the longer you take, the more these will transform to create an incredible flavour base for the soup!
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Add everything else other than the lemon;
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Simmer 35 minutes until lentils are soft; and
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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!
You’ll 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 a 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 – 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 – even longer!
Every time I make this, I always wonder why I don’t make it more often. It’s healthy, filling, super economical, freezes perfectly, versatile and it’s seriously good.
Serving this with some sort of warm crusty bread for dunking is not optional. It’s an essential part of the Lentil Soup experience.
But it is optional whether you slather said bread with butter, or grill it with cheese! Here are a few options – including making your own ultra easy homemade bread with NO YEAST:
– Nagi xx
Lentil Soup
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 - 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.
- Add all remaining ingredients except the lemon and salt. Stir.
- 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.
- 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 – it’s been a firm reader favourite from day 1, so I wouldn’t dare touch it!
More totally delicious lentil recipes:
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Sexy Lentil Salad – try it, then you’ll get the name….
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Dal – Indian lentil curry. The highest and best use of lentils, full stop!
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Coconut Lentil Curry – outrageously addictive, and easy (I make this for a curry fix when I don’t have time for dal)
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Mejadra (Middle Eastern Spiced Lentil Rice) – so good you can eat it plain, seriously!
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Browse all Beans and Lentil recipes
Life of Dozer
He contributes less than nothing to this household, he actually contributes negative. Dropping fur everywhere, shaking vigorously so it flies everywhere along with an inordinate amount of sand, constantly sprawling out in my path so I’m forced to step over him (remember, I’m vertically challenged = giant steps).
Giant 💩 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, don’t we? 🙂)
PS Another example of his uselessness – he spends 22 hours a day doing this. The other 2 hours are spent a) eating b) hoping to eat c) playing.
Pat says
Great with sprouted lentils!
Sharie Nereu says
This recipe was “da bomb” – onolicious. I have tried many lentil recipes in the past but this one was the best.
Julie Scriver says
made your soup today, I did cheat and used canned lentils, well rinsed. Lots of veggies, carrots, onions, celery and I added cubed zucchini. The lemon at the end was a bonus. We both loved it, thanks again!
Jameelah says
OMG. This is sooooo good. I added a little kale to mine and it was divine. The lemon squeeze and zest really does give it that extra twist.
Tammy says
Amazing dish! Last 5 minutes I’ll throw in spinach or kale. Once in awhile I’ll add a ham hock in the beginning. Once you add that lemon though, it completely transforms it!
Simone Said says
should I soak the dried lentils before hand or there is no need?
Nagi says
I don’t soak here Simone 🙂 N x
Sue says
I had made lentil soup many times before, and it was getting “meh”. This recipe is the best! The lemon and lemon zest are perfect! Really does take the flavor up. Thank you!
Brenda says
Grew up vegetarian, eating lots of Lentil dishes/soups/stews. This is honestly my family’s favorite since trying it a few months ago. Have shared it with others. I add some hot paprika for a bit of extra zip. The lemon-acid bumps it up–so don’t skip it if you can’t. Lastly, a toasted baguette is the best “spoon” to enjoy…!
Kailie says
Awesome!!!!! So flavorful!!!!
Melissa Gnyp says
fantastic! I doubled the spices and added 1 tsp of curry powder. Since I had some potatoes , I also added 2 (diced fairly big). AMAZING
hannah fischer says
best soup ever – i probably quadrupled the recipe and added more spices. i loved the fresh lemon addition. brought a few quarts to my parents and then by mistake left it on low flame all afternoon. now its a thick yummy yummy side dish….better than ever. whichever way we eat it, its amazing!!!
Jasna says
Fantastic soup! I’d like to say one thing: The lemon is not just fabulous for enhancing the taste of this lentil soup, but when we add citrus to it, this helps our bodies absorb the good iron from the lentils into the blood stream. Very important for women, as some of us run low on iron. I made this a while back and I am making it again today, as I donated blood last night and need my iron replenished pronto. 🙂 Thanks for sharing good foods with the world and keeping it simple!
Gabriel says
This WAS seriously amazing until I ruined it with too much lemon zest and lemon juice. I’m guessing that a whole lemon is far too much! Managed to rectify the situation by adding water and a pinch of baking soda.
Isabel says
Had this tonight and the flavour was delicious. We all loved it. Thanks!!
Nagi says
I’m so glad you loved it Isabel!! N x
Isabel says
Making it right now!! I just added some smoked paprika. Know it will be delicious. Your recipes are always so good. Thanks.
Yasmine says
This recipe is seriously AMAZING indeed! I added a large potato and some sausage. My family loved it!!!!! Thank you for sharing it!!!!
Sampo says
Perfect! Everyone loved it.
PATRICIA Hausserman says
Excellent
Ossie says
Definitely the best lentil soup ever!
Doubled the recipe. Used smoked Spanish paprika, which gave it a “meaty” taste, and added a couple of thinly sliced black garlic bulbs with the carrot and celery.
The addition of lemon zest and juice is brilliant.
Served it with homemade spelt flour rolls.
My only comment is it came out so dense it was more of a stew than soup. Added a lot more broth to one half and had it as soup, kept the other half as is and served it the next day over basmati rice.
As my family said, this recipe is a keeper.
Thank you so much for sharing this recipe!
KikiCT says
Absolutely spectacular soup! I made it with red lentils so it’s the prettiest lentil soup ever. Thank you for yet another fantastic recipe, I always know your recipes will turn out great!