Best Lentil Soup
This healthy lentil soup recipe comes together quickly with pantry ingredients. Simple spices, fresh greens and a squeeze of lemon make it the best! Vegan.
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on October 3, 2024
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.
How to Make the Best Lentil Soup
Five reasons to love this recipe:
- The recipe calls for seasonal vegetables and affordable pantry ingredients, but tastes gourmet.
- This lentil soup has an amazing hearty texture that’s lightly creamy (yet there is no cream). The trick is to blend up a portion of the soup once the lentils are tender, and then pour it back into the pot. It’s like magic.
- This nutritious, well-balanced soup counts as a meal if you enjoy a generous portion. Lentils are rich in protein, fiber, iron and folate.
- Lentil soup packs well for lunch in a leak-proof container, and it tastes even better the next day.
- This soup freezes and defrosts well. Make soup now and enjoy it later!
Watch How to Make Lentil Soup
Please let me know how this lentil soup turns out for you in the comments. I’m always so eager to hear from you.
If you love this soup, check out my hearty vegetarian chili, favorite black bean soup and pinto posole. You can check out all my soup and stew recipes here.
Don’t miss my lentil minestrone recipe in my cookbook—if you’re a fan of this soup, you’re going to love it.
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.
Ingredients
- ¼ 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
- ½ 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 (½ to 1 medium lemon), to taste
Instructions
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.)
- 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.
- 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).
Notes
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.
Recommended equipment: I love my Vitamix blender and Le Creuset 5.5-quart Dutch oven (affiliate links).
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
Man, lentil soup is the best!! So hearty and comforting. This looks like an awesome ingredient list packed full of nutrition. Nothing like a good bowl of soup – thanks for sharing:)
This is an amazing recipe I made this while in NYC over Christmas Holiday and my dad and myself enjoyed this so much. So easy and tasty. I am about to make it tonight that is how much I love this recipe :)
A hearty, nourishing soup. What’s there not to love?
My fiance said this was the best soup he has ever had . I used chile diced tomatoes and put cayenne pepper instead of the pepper flakes bc we both love spicy food. Thank you for the recipe.
Hooray! Thank you, Dee, for taking the time to say so!
This is very tasty. I probably will end up eating the whole pot with in the next two day.
That looks so yummy! Lentil soup sounds so good right now!
A nice soup. Thanks so much and have a great weekend.
Thank you, Liz! Hope your weekend is lovely.
this looks delicious. i love lentil soup in the wintertime — it’s so cozy.
Do you think beet greens could work in this recipe instead of collards or kale?
I think so, as long as you like their flavor!
I used beet greens in this recipe as I also made a side of roasted root veggies it turned out incredible! Really liked the beer greens in the soup
Indulging in tacos and tequila is almost mandatory when you’re in Texas. Oh, and Shinerbock. Make sure you try a Shiner while you’re there! :)
This soup sounds like a great way to balance everything out. I love the addition of collard greens and lemon. Perfect for winter!
Yesss absolutely my kind of dish!
Lauren x
would red lentils be ok?
I think so! They will have a slightly different flavor and may break apart more while they cook… but I suspect you’d end up with a tasty soup anyway.
Did the red lentils work?
Tried this recipe today with the red lentils; though I liked it, I think green ones would have been more to my liking, as I find they make for a heartier flavor. Can’t go wrong either way.
I know I’m a little late to the party, but if anyone else happens to wonder about this, I use this recipe all the time with red lentils. It does change the flavour slightly but I think the red lentils work really well.
Lovely looking soup! Have you cooked with BroccoLeaf yet? I am using a lot of it, just as I would like kale…it would be great as the greens in this recipe…just a thought. By the way, your dog Cookie is absolutely precious, and I always love to see new pictures posted of her…she looks so adorable. :)
No, I haven’t, but I think I just saw some at a grocery store. Cookie says hi!
Cheers to lentil soup…cumin rocks it and I especially love black lentils.
Happy Feasting.
Ok, so here’s a shocker (not): yet another amazing recipe from our gal, Tequila Kate! I just made this as its hovering around -4 here and it’s going to make a delicious, healthy, cozy dinner this evening. I did find I had to add about a tablespoon of honey because my tomatoes were a tad on the acidic side. I also opted to throw in some parsley at the end. Kate, you’re my BBFF – Best Blogger Friend Forever – thank you!!
Rose, thank you! Your comment made me smile. :)
This is right up my street Katie! SO comforting and delicious!
The tacos and tequila sound delicious…but I have to say this soup looks equally so. Yum.
Oh man it is negative five with windchill here in Chicago. Do you even remember what windchill is? Oh, sooo jealous of all the IG adventures you guys are having. I looove the flavors of the curry and cumin balanced with the bright lemon!
Haha! Yes, I remember windchill well. Brrr. Stay warm up there!
I love lentil soup- your recipe looks great! Love the squeeze of lemon.
I’ll have a bowl please – actually, no, I’ll have a whole pot! It’s absolutely glacial outside here today and soup is pretty much all I want right now (in addition to a big fluffy hoodie, my pj pants and a blanket!) Lentils have been in regular rotation in my house lately, and I’m thrilled to have another use for them. Awesome job on this recipe, Kate!
This recipe is RIGHT up my alley – absolutely gorgeous and sounds so good!!
A gorgeous and healthy simple soup. I just love the flavour!
I must admit that I’ve never given lentil soup a second glance – until now! I love these flavors, what a great looking soup!
Love lentils, this looks really good!
This looks amaziing!! Perfect for winter days <3
This looks amazing! Yum!
I must admit lentil soups were the horror of my childhood. My mum always managed to make them look disgusting with a nasty green color. I guess, I my childhood memory prevented me from ever making one myself that I actually like but your recipe is definitely an inspiration to overcome my distaste for lentil soups: It looks simply delicious!
Oh no! Well, I hope you give this soup a shot. It’s nice and fresh!
This looks amazingly delicious! The perfect comfor
Thanks for sharing! We are still in the grip of winter here in the UK so a lovely hot soup is perfect for warming you up :)
Made this for dinner tonight and it was SO GOOD! Super tasty and felt like it was really doing the body good- full of good stuff. Thanks!
Awesome, thank you Elise!
This looks great! I’m going to make it for my lunches this week :)
Lentil soups can be really hit and miss… why is that?! Love the look of this chunky, hearty bowl :)
YUM. This sounds so good to me right now. I am pinning this!
So, I live in Boston. Your soup recipes have been a little slice of heaven amisdt record-falling snow and negative temperatures. Trying this one for lunch and already the house smells so good and comforting. Thank you!
Hope you’re staying warm up there, Lisa! Also hope the soup turned out well for you. Thank you for commenting!
Another beautiful soup! Love those colors. Lentils are always a favorite around here. Making a metal note to try your version soon!
Yay, lentil soup! I love how simple and classic this is and I especially love the addition of greens. Such a good plan.
Let me just say… oh. my. god. I’m not a big fan of lentil soups, but I *knew* by the ingredient list that it was going to be awesome. In fact I just made it the first time & doubled the recipe.
Yes!!! Thank you, Lori. :D
I made this delicious soup over the weekend while in Boston visiting. Love it. This recipe is a keeper and I will be making another batch this week for Fat Tuesday recovery. Thank you!
Thank you, Rhonda! I’m so glad you loved the soup! Hope you’re recovering nicely. :)
I’m so jealous of your blue skies and warm weather!! NYC is defintiely one of those places that’s experiencing extreme cold…and I desperately need a bowl of this!
This looks delicious! I just made some lentils earlier this week and I love what a cheap and easy source of protein they are! :)
I love all your recipes, but this was just wonderful. After a long day, it was easy to put together, and so flavorful and warming! I added extra greens and was so happy with how it turned out. Just the thing for winter!
Thank you, Madeline! I’m glad you enjoyed the soup.
My husband’s quote, “This is the BEST soup I’ve ever had!” I heartily concur. Absolutely delicious. Thank you!
Yesssss! Thanks, Heather!
Kate, this is the first recipe I’ve made from your site…and it was absolutely delicious! I used red lentils (because that’s what I had) and it turned out perfectly. Thank you so much — I can’t wait to enjoy it this week.
Hooray, thanks Alexa! Hope you enjoy my other recipes just as much. :)
This was so delicious! I followed the recipe exactly and loved it!
Hooray, thanks Nikki!
So easy and so delicious! Loved this one!!! Thanks Kate!
Awesome, thanks Krystal!
This soup was a huge hit! It was absolutely delicious and will definitely be making this again!
Awesome! Thanks, Tova!
I have never ever commented in a recipe blog and I almost never make soup (all the chopping and stirring), but this soup called out to me and it was amazing! Even better for lunch the next day. Thank you!!
Wendy, thank you for saying so! I’m glad you loved the soup!
This is the first recipe I’ve made from your site. I wanted to add that it has become our new staple soup in chilly NH; my husband and young daughters devour it! I use half green lentils and half millet and don’t tweak anything else…it’s so incredibly tasty! Looking forward to trying more of your recipes!
That’s wonderful to hear! Thank you, Martha!
I did the same with the millet and used spinach instead of kale because that is what I had on hand. It tastes so yummy and will be my lunch for the week!
After getting hit with the flu, this was amazing! Hit the spot and so warming! Thanks! Feeling better all ready! :)
So glad you are feeling better, Kelz!
Hi Kate, this looks delicious! Do you have a favorite brand of vegetable broth, or any broths for that matter?
Hi Gloria! I can’t say I’m particularly loyal to any one brand, but I always buy the organic versions in tetra-paks. Veggie broth is the only kind I buy since I’m a vegetarian. I like Whole Foods’ 365 broth, as well as Clearly Organic. I used Trader Joe’s quite a bit but it’s oddly orange!
Hi ladies, just finished the soup it was delicious! I haven’t tried out the recipe for homemade veggie broth, but definitely on my to do list!
I use spinach insted of kale and because i eat dairy products, after i plate it i put 2 big teble spoons of sour cream over, was perfect.
Thank you Kate.
Awesome, glad to hear it!
I just made this soup today. It was absolutely delicious! Even the kids asked for seconds.
Thank you, Porsha! So glad you all enjoyed it.
Google was spot on in bringing me to this recipe when I entered “vegan lentil soup delicious” in the search bar. My girlfriend declared it may now be her favorite soup, and that it reminds her of the sambar she loves so much at Indian restaurants. I appreciate the deliciousness as well as the simplicity of making it. Thank you thank you thank you!
That’s so great to hear! Thank you, Ted. Glad you both enjoyed the soup.