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.
Is it supposed to be tangy/tart? It tastes like I added the lemon juice but I did not!
Delicious!!! As a vegetarian, I use veg stock or just water and it still tastes rich.
very tasty, makes the tummy feel good, next time I will a little bit of cilantro
This soup is so delicious! I love how sweet it is without any sugar. It is one of my favorites now!
I just made this soup and I agree. It’s the BEST lintel soup. I made it exactly as written except I used 4 teaspoons of chicken bullion and 4 cups of water in place of the vegetable stock. I love the healthy ingredients and the flavor is perfect. Thank you so much for sharing this recipe!
I’m glad you enjoyed it, Sandra!
Really, really good soup! Just as good as you said. Thanks for the recipe.
You’re welcome, Marlene! Thank you for your review.
This soup was delicious. I didn’t have fresh greens so I used a can of Old Glory collard greens (drained). I also used chicken broth which I think enhanced the flavor. The lemon was a nice touch. I will be making this again. Thanks!
Such a great recipe – easy to make, healthy and tastes great every time! I’ve substituted spinach for the kale and don’t drain the tomatoes at all – delicious and much better than canned soup!
So delicious! The first time I made it I didn’t see the lemon part. This time I added the lemon. It made it super balanced and delicious!
Absolutely delicious! I made this and my husband (who is super picky with never-ending “constructive criticism” in the kitchen) LOVED LOVED LOVED this. He asked that I make this every week, which I am more than happy to do.
Hello! LOVE this recipe. I was wondering if there is an Instantpot version?
Thank you
Hi Jennifer! I don’t have and instant pot version. You could check the other comments to see if others have tried it.
I am forever a sceptic, and didn’t think it would be as good as the reviews say..
But I will gladly eat my words.
It’s pretty good soup. I used an extra teaspoon of the spices and actually dropped a chopped chipotle chilli in and then a dab of crème fraiche at the and with a bit of parsley. *chefs kiss*
Yeah.. It was delicious. Super easy too. This is going to be a go to recipe for a long time I can feel it.
This amazing soup was absolutely delicious! It has become an absolute favourite…… Thank you so much!❤️
Linda
I made this today for lunch, but I only had red lentils and frozen spinach instead of kale. It was extremely good, I’m delighted to say, and this will become a regular for me. Many thanks for your recipes x
This is a refreshing vegetable soup, in my opinion too thin and bland.
I’m sorry you didn’t enjoy this soup.
The very best lentil soup ever. Typically I go for more of an Italian style lentil soup but this was amazing. I sent some to a friend who was completely blown away – plant based with a fairly discriminating palate. I can’t wait to make it again. It’s a home run!
Kate – I love all of the recipes I’ve tried from your website. This soup in particular is wonderful. I followed the recipe exactly except I substituted the broth for chicken broth. Extra yummy! Thanks! I’ll for sure make this again!
This is my go to soup. It IS the “Best Lentil Soup”…
This recipe is so delicious,I was out of curry so I mixed turmeric,coriander,ginger and a sprinkle of allspice and cinnamon to make a teaspoon.I also used a tablespoon of balsamic vinegar in place of lemon juice,thank you again for a great recipe
I’m glad you love it, Barbie! Thank you for your review.
This is a good recipe, but it’s stupid to throw out the tomato juice in the tomato can and then add water.
Flavorful, nutritious, easy. I made it exactly as written and my family loved it. We really liked the cumin. Thank you!
You’re welcome, Karen!
I just finished mopping up the end of my second bowl with a slice of bread. I had everything except curry powder and greens but it is delicious!!! So healthy and simple! This is going to be a staple in my house – especially this winter!!!
I have made this recipe many times and it’s always delicious! The weather here in IN is turning coolers got out my big pot and all the ingredients, I only had 2 cups of veggie broth so subbed the other 2 with chicken, I know it will be just as good. I think the squeeze of lemon really makes it. Thanks for this great recipe!
I’m glad you enjoy it, Wendy! Thank you for your review.
The soup was perfect, and has become a staple in our family for dinner or lunch and even once for a quick breakfast. It is a wonderful and nutritious meal. Many thanks to you for sharing your recipe! l have also passed on the recipe to visiting family members who also loved the rich flavours. A quick note on cooking with lentils, you have to be careful when sifting through the dry lentils before you poceed to soak and cook them. I quite often find pebbles or even larger stones in the packaged lentils. It is a bit of a pain, but worth the trouble to examine the dry lentils. Others have commented on this, but this is a valuable lesson. Especially if you have experienced biting into a hard stone when eating soup.
Chilly day today and wanted some soup. I noticed the rating has 5 stars. The ingredients was simple and absolutely delicious. Thank you!
This is an amazing lentil recipe. Rich in protein and iron. Love it and will definitely continue to make it.
I am a lover of all things lentil and soup and this REALLY is the best lentil soup recipe I’ve ever made. Easily adaptable for what you have in the kitchen and full of flavor but super nutritious. My variation- used black beluga lentils (I prefer their sturdier texture), homemade chicken bone broth, subbed curry powder with garam masala, and upped the red pepper flakes. Absolutely delicious! Served topped with buttery sauteed mushrooms which added some decadence. Can’t wait to make again with some crusty bread for dipping.
I’m glad this one passed your test! I appreciate your review, Jenna.
Holy cow this was hearty, flavorful, and so delicious! I loved the lemon squeezed at the end – it really made a difference. This is going on repeat in my house all fall/winter!
I’m glad you liked it, Melissa!
Amazing!
I lost 40 pounds over the last year living off of this soup.This recipe is delicious. I have never tasted a lintel soup this good!
Love love love ! I added some finely chopped celery n spinach along with onion, carrot, etc. Delicious. I’m gonna make this again real soon. TY!!
You’re welcome, Lora!
Can you use canned lentils and reduce the cooking time??
Sure, but I’m not sure the exact changes without trying it. You would need to reduce your liquid. If you try it, let me know!
I used a 28 oz can of fire roasted tomatoes, a 19 oz can of lentils, homemade chicken stock, and Swiss chard and added 1 tsp turmeric. DELICIOUS!!!!
I’m glad you loved it, Robyn! I appreciate your review.
I made this for my son who is vegan and he kept going back for more, my hubby and I love it too, it’s so delicious. I didn’t have lemon juice, or greens so added sweet potatoes, I also used 5 cups of vegetable stock and 1 cup of water and I only had red lentils, it turned out so yummy, I will definitely be making this on a weekly basis, love it, thank you.
I always double this recipe because we love it so much! Truly delicious and lucky it’s healthy, because we can never have just one bowl!
I forgot to rate as a 5 star recipe before. I give it 10 anyway
Hi there, What can I use as a substitute for the tomatoes? I have a special diet this week for which I need to avoid highly acidic foods. Thank you!
Hi, you can omit them and add some of your other vegetables to make up for it. You may need to adjust the seasonings as well.
I may try this soup if I can find ingredients to reduce the sodium content by at least 2/3, which probably means replacing canned ingredients with fresh. Your soup recipes sound excellent and have great reviews, but at over 1,300 mg sodium per serving in both lentil and black bean soup recipes, they are sadly not user friendly for my family and not really healthy for anyone.
Hi Cee, I appreciate your feedback. Please review my Nutrition Disclaimer. Yes, you can reduce the sodium by omitting the salt and using no salt added canned ingredients.
No you don’t soak lentils….
Yet All other types of beans its better to soak….
BAM!!!!
Ck#1
I love this soup! I’ve made it many times and it always tastes so delicious!
Loved it!
Omg, this is delicious. Thank you so much!
You’re welcome!
I wanted to love this soup. The cumin is way too much. If I make it again I will leave it out.
I’m sorry you didn’t love this as written. Thank you for sharing your feedback.
Made this for dinner tonight and it was excellent. I didn’t have kale or collards, but I used carrots, rutabaga, snap peas, and parsnips for my veg along with the lentils. I am looking forward to leftovers tomorrow!
This soup is absolutely amazing! I’ve made it many times over the past few years, and each time it’s always better than the last! I recently discovered the health benefits of lentils, and this soup is the perfect way to enjoy them. Then again, there’s really no wrong way to eat lentils! I love this soup not only because it tastes great and is so good for you, but because the recipe is so versatile and flexible. I’ve used lots of different greens from beet greens to baby spinach, I often triple the red pepper flakes for that added heat, and sometimes I’ll even add celery for some crunch, or cubed sweet potatoes for some color and an extra kick of nutrition! I like to make a big pot of it and divide it up into small bowls for the freezer, so I have ready-made lunches to take to work! It’s the perfect cool-weather meal, but it’s even great in the summer, too! Thank you SO MUCH, Kate, for my new favorite recipe!
I didn’t change a thing; followed the recipe to a “t!” I’m so glad I did, it tastes delicious, and absolutely perfect! Yum-yum for my tum-tum. A huge thank you!
You’re welcome, Sheila!
I made this for lunch today exactly as suggested. It was a big hit, so much so that the pot is empty.
I eat lentils everyday for lunch in either a salad or on sweet potatoes. I had some time early this morning and made this and will make a bigger batch for freezer. The flavors are amazing. Thank you so much for this recipe!
I’m glad you loved it! Thank you for your comment, Cosmo.
This recipe is simple flavorful and delicious. Highly recommend. I have made this once a week as a staple, go to… Simple fast lunch. I have added extra veggies at various times. Thank you for the recipe!
You’re welcome, Debbie!
Yum,yum,yum!
Do you know how much a serving size is?