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.
Does this recipe use dried lentils or what kind? Where do you find them in the grocery store?
Hi! Yes, dried lentils and it’s in the ingredients list. You can find them with the other dried beans at your grocery store.
I made this on a cool rainy day and it is perfect. I didn’t have red pepper flakes and left them out but doubled up on the cumin and curry. So good! The lemon gives it a boost of flavor and keeps the tomatoes from taking over. I’ll definitely make this again
My go to lentil soup! It’s a cold, rainy day, so I whipped this up for dinner. Just waiting for it to finish. I always have the ingredients on hand. I also add diced potatoes – my husband’s idea.
Hi
just about to try your lentil soup
Can I use celery also vegetable stock instead of broth
Thanks
Bern
If you’re going to make this recipe, you absolutely have to cook the collard greens with the soup for the 25/30 minute duration. Otherwise you’re going to have a great soup with uncooked greens. Or use spinach. This is a really good tasting soup. The greens(if you’re using collard or kale) have to be cooked down though.
Thanks for another great recipe, Kate! Between your vegetarian chili, black bean soup, and now this lentil soup, I’ve got a winning trifecta of delicious vegan/vegetarian soups. I got my sister your cookbook and she’s also now enjoying your healthful recipes with her family. We appreciate what you do!
You’re welcome, Tara! Thank you for your review. I’m happy you enjoyed it.
Thank you for this awesome recipe. Quick and easy and full of flavour. Simply delicious
Best lentil soup I’ve ever had! I am admittedly not a lentil soup lover, but I love this soup. My friend introduced it to us 4 years ago and we still make it all the time. It’s my 8-year old’s favorite soup. We also frequently add other veggies from the fridge that need to be used up like cauliflower and celery.
I love that! Thank you for sharing, Myndee.
Great recipe. Made it to more of a broth and added a tin of Berlotti beans at end of process. Delicious
Thank you for your review, Shaun!
This is very similar to the Indian dal that my Mom makes. My mom is an excellent cook. I made it with everything you did. Used red dal ( masoor)and green lentil.( walmart bought) added turnips and roasted cauliflower plus fresh tomatoes. adding parsley and spinach at the end. Nice recipe. it is just a variation of what I grew up on. It is a dal recipe.
thanks for sharing. I made enough for Mom, my family and friends.
thanks
I’m glad this had familiar roots for you, Sarla! Thank you for your comment and review.
Made this soup twice already and it’s amazing. So rich and flavourful!
I’m trying to eat more vegetarian meals so for years I’ve been trying to like lentils. Guess what, it’s the first time I didn’t have to pretend that I like them, because I truly enjoyed each spoonful :)
Thanks a lot!
Hooray! I love it, Liza. Thank you for sharing.
Really good soup!
I think lime would be better than lemon and I’m going to try lime next time I make this. I freshly grated Parmesan over the finished soup and it was super Duper.
This was the first recipe I tried when my husband and I decided to go vegetarian. Wow! What a stunning soup. Absolutely delicious and so satisfying (you do not miss meat at all). It was such a great start to our vegetarian journey.
If a better lentil soup recipe exists, I haven’t found it yet. I’ve made this dozens of times, love how versatile it is. I love adding celery if I have some. I also like replacing the red pepper with sichuan peppercorns in a tea infuser, gives it a different kind of spice and complements the lentils well.
I’m glad you have made it so much, Mark! Thank you for taking the time to review.
This recipe is Yum! Thank you! I used chicken broth in place of vegetable broth, because that is what I had. I used a small can of tomatoes. I also added a few xtras from my fridge, chopped leeks and mini diced potatoe with peel. Very good spices and flavor.
So good!! I’m trying to lower my cholesterol and this will become a staple in our household!! My daughter quickly went for seconds – might have to make a double batch to ensure left overs!!
The best ever. Very flavorful and robust .Even my Grand Daughter that is 18 loved it. A great soup for a snack or a meal. Add a piece of bread or sandwich.
That’s great! Thank you for your review, Gerianne.
I just bought the cookbook so I can support you anyway I can. Every single one of the recipes that I have tried is absolutely amazing. I am rather hard to please everything is soooooo great. Keep up the great work, you deserve it. I am making this tonight for my picky teenagers that are not vegetarian. :)
When I made this soup for the second time the tomatoes made it so tart. It was not enjoyable. I was very disappointed as the first time it was so delicious. The only difference I can think of is I used a slightly different recipe which used 400g tomatoes.
With the remaining soup I added coconut milk and cooked it longer.
How do you get rid of tartness
Regards Rhonda
I’m sorry you were disappointed. What brand did you use? Did you add salt to your soup?
Hi just made your best lentil soup,I replaced the kale with spinach,absolutely delicious and creamy, best lentil soup ever,thank you the recipe is so easy to follow,
Thank you for sharing, Nadia! I appreciate your review.
This is the 2nd time I have made this soup with your recipe. I love it and then Love it some more!
It is the best I have found and I have been around a long time.
Thank you for sharing, Virginia!
Truly is a great Lentil soup, I can’t stop making it .
It will be our first course at a dinner party soon.
Thankyou for this great recipe.
Jean from Tasmania, Australia xx
I can attest to this being a very durable recipe. Mid-recipe, I discovered that my vegetable broth had expired so I had to use just water. Then I screwed up and used a whole package (2 cups) of lentils instead of one cup, so I added two more cups of water (to make 8 total), and had to cook it a little longer (about 15 minutes longer). The only greens they had at the store that looked fresh were spinach, so spinach it was instead of kale or collards. And, I added no salt because I’m on a severely salt-restricted diet. And it’s still freaking delicious. It’s more stew-like because of the extra lentils.
Oh no! I’m glad it all worked out in the end, Sara.
Excellent soup. So healthy.
Awesome recipe! Made it twice now once with tomato sauce and once with diced tomatoes and both times it turned out great. I prefer substituting tomato sauce for tomatoes but both work. Just don’t forget to drain the tomatoes if you used canned, I forgot to and it slightly diluted the taste.
Honestly this is the best soup I’ve ever had. It is SO easy to make and I feel like a real chef. I don’t know what Claire Grover was talking about. Peace and god bless
Great to hear, Jackie! Thank you for sharing.
So easy and SO delicious. Thank you!
You’re welcome, Joanne! Thank you for your review.
I love this recipe sooo much! Soup is my comfort food and this one is perfect! Thank you.
Absolutely delicious!!! I only had 1tsp of cumin left, so subbed 1tsp of Garram Masala in place of it. I also added 1 extra carrot(cuz I love them in soup) and a diced green pepper(needed to use it up). I used a can of fire roasted tomatoes and a can of diced tomatoes with green chili (all I had), and b/c I like heat, used the recommendation of adding red pepper flakes as well. Used chopped fresh spinach at the end (again-what I had). It turned out waaaayyyyy better than I expected! Thank you so much for the recipe
Since finding this recipe in 2019 I’ve not stopped making it. Warms my insides. Nutritious and so delicious! So simple with easy to access ingredients which are almost always staples in my cupboard and fridge. Thank you
This was delicious! I added celery and spinach instead of kale. Hands down one of the best!
This is one of the best soups I’ve ever had!! Not being vegetarian, I wasn’t sure it would hold me for dinner. Not only could I not finish my bowl, but didn’t snack later in the evening as I sometimes do. I’ve always had anemia issues and will definitely add this to my life! Am sharing with friends too :)
Amazing lentil soup. I have never commented on a recipe I’ve tried before. This was worth making exactly as written.
Thank you, Mary! I’m glad you enjoyed it.
I made this soup for dinner tonight and it was delicious! I added some vegan Italian sausage when I added the garlic and spices to mimic the Carraba’s version. Yummy. Thanks for another great recipe.
It was the best day to discover this recipe, I just love it have made it two way and it’s so yummy, use chicken meat and chicken stock and made the vegetarian vision as well. Just yummy, yummy love it. Thanks Kate for sharing.
Every time I make this soup, I think — Oh, this is healthy and made with pretty simple ingredients, it’ll be fine. I *always* forget how insanely delicious it is!! If you’re on the fence about making this recipe, just jump over already, you won’t regret it! It really is The Best! <3 <3 <3
I’ve been making this soup now for years. It’s my favorite soup recipe! I share with everyone I know. So good! I tweak things to mix it up from time to time, but honestly the best version is this version. Only change I recommend is using more veggie stock in place of the water for a richer flavor.
What type of lentils did you use? Brown or green?
Hi! Green, but either work.
Great recipe, due to temporary diet restrictions I had to modify it. Instead of tomatoes, I used red bell peppers and celery. I only had frozen mustard greens, so I used this instead. Everything came out great and it was delicious.
Boy did I want to use the tomatoes. The lemon juice did add an additional flavor to the soup. Thanks so much for the recipe.
You’re welcome, Michelle! I appreciate your review.
This was so good, my 16year old daughter was suspicious, but even she loved it! Thank you for sharing.
I’m happy she enjoyed it too, Dione!
I now make this soup every Sunday to have for the week. I love it so much I’ve actually left a comment for the first time ever in my whole life!
Really delicious!!!!!
Ok, the lentil soup is amazing. I’m not a great cook, but this came out super good! I love it!
Thank you, Robert! I’m happy you love it.
This really is a lovely recipe, I keep coming back to it again and again.
My son’s favourite soup is Lentil but in Toronto Canada they only make it in Winter.
I hate Lintel soup but I made this for him and used collard greens as I don’t like kale.
This soup smelt so good I had to try it. One bite and I was in love with this soup. It is absolutely delicious and so much more healthier than buying it at a Bistro.
This is my go to soup recipe.
Hooray! I’m happy you tried it and liked it too, Cheryl. I appreciate your review.
Quite possibly my favourite soup recipe (and I love all types of soup). It has been on our winter rotation for a couple of years now. I always add extra veg, usually zucchini and sweet potato, and adjust the liquid levels accordingly. My husband, who is a devout carnivore, usually goes back for seconds. Thank you Kate for an amazing recipe!
Absolutely delicious. Made this without any changes to the recipe. This one has now been written out in my favourites book. My husband said it’s the tastiest soup he’s ever had!
I’m new to a plant based diet so am looking for tasty recipes and I’m definitely going to look at your other recipes.
Thank you.
Made it this afternoon and now eating some. So happy that I came across your recipe. It’s absolutely delicious!! Thank you
Is it possible to make this in the slow cooker as it is only half an hour cook time not too sure how this would work any advice would be appreciated can’t wait to try this :)
Hi Shellie, I haven’t made it in a slow cooker so I can’t say for sure. Sorry!
I used red lentils because I didn’t have the other kind and I substituted half of the broth requirement for homemade chicken broth because that’s what I had around. I still used vegetable broth for the other half. So delicious and comforting. Tomorrow I will add a little bit of sausage meat to the soup for my lunch.
I’m a recent arrival to a plant-based dietary lifestyle so I’ve been on the hunt for simple looking recipes. I never made soup from scratch before but this was easy and turned out great with a wonderful array of aromas, flavors and textures.