Lentil soup, made from scratch with affordable ingredients. It's nutritious, filling, and comforting, perfect to warm you up on a cold day.
This lentil soup is extremely easy to make! Super healthy, satiating, and nutritious, it is perfect to enjoy on a daily basis. It only requires one pot and simple ingredients, and you can keep it in the freezer for quite a long time.
You can customize it with any veggies you want and use some vegetable stock to give it a little bit more flavor. Besides, you can make a big batch of it and enjoy it all week long. It really is delicious!
Lentil soup recipe - Short video
How to make lentil soup - Step by step
- Heat the oil in a large pot (photo 1) and add the veggies (photo 2). Cook over medium-high heat until golden brown (photo 3), stirring occasionally.
- Add all remaining ingredients except the salt and pepper (photo 4). Stir.
- Increase heat and bring to simmer (photo 5). Cover with a lid, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer for about 40 minutes (photo 6).
- Finally, add the salt and pepper (photo 7) and stir.
- To thicken the soup, use an immersion blender and do 3-4 quick pulses (photo 8). You could also transfer 1 cup (250 ml) of the soup to a regular blender and blend, then transfer it back into the pot.
- Serve your lentil soup immediately.
Ingredients and tips
- Extra virgin olive oil: I’m Spanish, so I use extra virgin olive oil to cook most of my dishes. However, using any type of oil is also okay. I always use extra virgin oils when possible because they’re healthier. However, if you don’t consume oil, just use some vegetable stock or water instead.
- Garlic: I prefer fresh garlic, but garlic powder is a good alternative.
- Onion: I used yellow onion, but any type of onion will do, though, even onion powder.
- Celery: feel free to omit or add any veggies you want or have on hand.
- Carrot: same as above.
- Dried brown or green lentils: I’ve only made this soup using brown and green lentils, but I guess you could use other types of lentils or even other legumes. However, in that case, you may need to add more or less liquid.
- Crushed tomatoes: canned tomatoes are so convenient. Tomato puree and tomato sauce are great. Feel free to use fresh tomatoes, but in that case, you’ll probably need to add more liquid (vegetable stock or water).
- Vegetable stock or water: I prefer vegetable stock because it enhances the flavor of this soup. However, water is okay too. Making your own vegetable stock at home is a good idea, but feel free to use a store-bought version if you want to.
- Dried oregano: any dried or fresh herb will do. I prefer to add fresh herbs at the end, once the soup is already cooked. You could also try it with poultry seasoning, Italian seasoning, or even chicken seasoning.
- Ground cumin: add any spices you like.
- Salt: I used iodized salt, but any salt will do.
- Ground black pepper: fresh ground black pepper tastes amazing. However, I find the store-bought one more convenient and also easier to measure with a teaspoon.
- Although this recipe is already super nutritious, if you want to serve it with a side of veggies, you could make vegetable tempura or veggie stir fry. They are delicious!
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Lentil Soup
Lentil soup, made from scratch with affordable ingredients. It's nutritious, filling, and comforting, perfect to warm you up on a cold day.
Servings:
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Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 4 cloves of garlic, chopped
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 celery stick, chopped
- 1 large carrot, chopped
- 1 cup dried brown or green lentils
- 2 14-ounce cans crushed tomatoes
- 4 cups vegetable stock or water
- 2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large pot and add the veggies (garlic, onion, celery, and carrot). Cook over medium-high heat until golden brown, stirring occasionally.
- Add all remaining ingredients except salt and pepper. Stir.
- Increase heat and bring to simmer. Cover with a lid, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer for about 40 minutes or until the lentils are soft.
- Finally, add the salt and pepper and stir.
- To thicken the soup, use an immersion blender and do 3-4 quick pulses. You could also transfer 1 cup (250 ml) of the soup to a regular blender and blend, then transfer it back into the pot. This step is totally optional.
- Serve your lentil soup immediately (I topped my soup with some chopped fresh parsley) with a side of vegetable tempura or veggie stir fry.
- Keep the leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for about 5-7 days or in the freezer for up to 2 months.
Notes
- Feel free to add your favorite veggies, herbs, and spices, such as poultry seasoning, Italian seasoning, or even chicken seasoning.
- Add more or less liquid depending on how thick you want your soup to be.
- If you want to reduce the amount of sodium in this recipe, omit the salt and use water instead of vegetable stock. You could also make your own vegetable stock with no salt or buy a low-sodium one.
- Lentils do not require it but they can be soaked in order to reduce cooking time. Soaked lentils are also easier to digest.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 291kcal | Carbohydrates: 48.9g | Protein: 15.3g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 0.6g | Sodium: 1124mg | Fiber: 11.1g | Sugar: 4.3g
Tried this recipe?Leave a comment below and let me know how it was!
Update Notes: This post was originally published in January of 2019, but was republished with new photos, step-by-step instructions, and tips in April of 2021.
Martha says
Just finished making this and had every intention of letting it sit in the fridge until tomorrow, because soup always tastes better the second day. Well, I'm on my third bowl. 😂 The only change I would make would be to cut back the cumin by half. It is too predominant in the dish and sort of cancels out the other spices. Still tastes good, but I'd like a more varied flavor profile. Was looking through your other recipes, and I'm going to try a bunch! Thank you
Iosune Robles says
Hi Martha! Thanks for your kind comment 🙂