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?
A touch of spices.
Cooking the onion, carrot and celery slowly so they sweeten and make a beautiful flavour base.
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
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!
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!
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
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:
Sexy Lentil Salad – try it, then you’ll get the name….
Dal – Indian lentil curry. The highest and best use of lentils, full stop!
Coconut Lentil Curry – outrageously addictive, and easy (I make this for a curry fix when I don’t have time for dal)
Mejadra (Middle Eastern Spiced Lentil Rice) – 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 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.
Really liked this recipe. The lemon jest and juice were a great addition. Thank you
I am so happy you enjoyed it Mirel! N x
Great recipe!! I’ll be making this on a regular basis. Thank you for an awesome recipe.
This is my favorite recipe for Lintel soup!! I add a touch of curry paste or powder to spice it up just a notch. It is so good with warm naan bread!
So, I didn’t have enough lentils. I used small white beans instead. I added crushed red pepper to give it a little kick.
it was amazing!
I was hesitant about adding the lemon juice and zest, but that really added to the flavor without making it taste too lemony
I am so glad that you enjoyed it Johnny! N x
Please advise whether plain or smoked paprika thanks
It is always plain Sharon, unless I specify smoked! N x
can you make this lentil soup in the crock pot.. if so how long do you cook it
I use the crockpot all the time, and I love it,
However, when I am using dried beans or lentils, I find that using the high pressure of the Instant pot, really softens them up quickly. I never get the beans soft enough in the crockpot
LOVE THIS RECIPE! Spices were spot one for hubby and Me.
Only change was I added some mushrooms.
How misleading you are! You include only favorable comments, and delete any that are least bit critical. I tried this recipe, and was underwhelmed. Deceiving people will not gain you many followers.
I added bacon and some Chicken Bouillon and it was not bland at all. I like a little bit of meat with my lentils. I love to follow recipes as a guide and make modifications when possible. Thanks for the great recipe 👍
Take a chill pill Will! Just because you were underwhelmed doesn’t mean this recipe isn’t delicious… I tried it and rate it 5 stars!
Hi Will – I am sorry that you didn’t like the recipe but I assure you if you scroll through comments on my recipes you will find some that are critical. I get hundreds of comments a day, largely positive because I work very hard to test my recipes and be sure that they work and are delicious so I can publish them out there for FREE. If one of them is not to your taste then that’s fine – just don’t make it again! 😀 N x
I’m sorry, but this recipe is bland. I’m a fan of lentil soup, but I was really disappointed.
I hope you Will get to make lentil soup for a friend (one day) and they love it
Loved this tastes amazing
HI Nagi, Love your recipes so yummy have tried lots of them. My question is can i make this lentil soup tin a rice/multi cooker? set it and come home to a finished cooked meal? What changes would i need to make if so.
Thank you Nagi for all the time you take to test and do recipes, all yummy 🙂
THanks Sandra
I had just made a lentil soup from a recipe found online. It was so bland, and I was looking for a way to rescue it. I came across your recipe and laughed at the opening line of this post. I knew I had come to the right place. I looked over the recipe and added the seasonings you listed that had not been in the recipe I tried, but I made one tweak. I used smoked paprika. We loved the final product–bland no longer!! Thank you for the rescue, and next time I am using your recipe!
This soup was absolutely delicious.. After tasting it both ways, I’ve decided to leave out the lemon. I think it detracts from the delicious vegie & bean flavor.
I have made Lentin soup before but this is so good I absolutely could not believe the fantastic taste and texture. This will now be my favorite soup! Thank you!
My husband took one bite of this soup and said it was the second-best lentil soup he has ever had. We are surrounded by outstanding Middle Eastern restaurants so this is extremely high praise.
Really good.
This recipe is so simple and delicious! I made it as a meal prep for my lunch this work week and it worked perfectly! Thank you for this deliciousness!
I’m not generally a big soup fan, but this was delicious! I think the lemon zest is an inspired touch. I really appreciate the time and effort you put into developing and testing these recipes and then putting them out there for the world to enjoy. Thank you!
This soup is so easy to make with simple ingredients and is next-level good.
I have tried a few other lentil soup recipes, but I keep coming back to this one!
Making this soup for a second time this year! it is so comforting and flavorful. Sounds like the most boring thing in the world( I’m Pakistani by birth, and lentils are common) but its delicious. I make a quick homemade baguette to dunk in it. Oh and both times i used red lentils, worked perfect. i would love to try it with types of lentils! Thank you from Toronto!
You are very welcome Charlotte! N x