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.
How much is a cup? In grams or ounces
Thanks
Hi Mary, I don’t provide metric conversions, sorry!
I love this recipe, it tastes even better the next day as the flavors are enhanced.
Thank you so much for sharing, I love trying recipes you post.
A cup is 8 ounces
1 cup=128grams=4.5oz
Must I defrost before serving frozen soup?
No freeze it with a stick in it. Serve it like that. Soupcicle!
I have reheated this in the microwave without having to defrost it. It turns out just fine.
I have reheated this soup from frozen in the microwave without having to defrost it. It turns out just fine.
I only had one can of diced tomatoes, but used Rotel’s diced tomatoes and green chilies in addition. Came out great! This is my 2nd time. First time, I used parsnips instead of carrots So many ways to make this. :) My family enjoyed this recipe. Thank you!
Delicious. It is the best lentil soup recipe ever!!! I added fresh spinach and canned quartered artichoke hearts. My family loved it. Thank you.
You’re welcome, Kim! Thank you for your review.
This Best Lentil Soup Recipe was excellent. Absolutely the most flavorful soup I’ve ever made. Thanks for sharing!
You’re welcome!
This recipe is perfect! I’ve made it so many times I’ve lost track. Thank you!
Love this recipe. Thanks. We’re not vegetarians so I used Organic Chicken Stock as I had it on hand.
I found this recipe 6 months ago and fell in love! Been making it every 2-3 weeks since. Bring it for lunch! FULL of flavor!!! So yummy! Thank you!
You’re welcome, Sarah! I appreciate your review.
Great flavor! I’ve made many different lentil soups and most were good, but the seasoning in this one is perfection! I go back to it over and over again and never tire of it. Thanks!
I never feel like a lentil soup with lots of tomatoes turns out hood. I tried this one because of all the ratings but the tomatoes and acidic taste took over. I can’t even taste anything else. In my opinion a brothy lentil soup with zero tomatoes tastes more hearty and comforting.
I’m sorry you didn’t enjoy this version, MA.
Wanted to say thank you! Such a flavorful and delicious dish
This is perfection! I made it exactly as written and I definitely will keep this in the rotation! Thank you!
I have prepared numerous lentil soup recipes and this selection is now at the top of my list….I added some diced chicken for added protein and I simply love the flavors….we grow many veggies in our garden, Kale being one of them, so we felt quite proud of ourselves and the nutritional value is fabulous….Keep those recipes coming!
Thank you for your review, Kathleen! I’m glad you loved it.
Best lentil soup I’ve ever eaten. GREAT flavor and easy to make. Don’t leave out the squeeze of lemon at the end – adds brightness and extra depth of flavor.
Wonderful soup! My family loved it! I added celery and used spinach (instead of kale) because is what we had available and cooked ground turkey because my husband likes some meat. SO tasty! Thank you!
I’m happy to hear it was a hit, Andrea. I appreciate your review!
I made this recipe by the book as you created it my first time. Only change was I added a bit more pepper flake. It was AMAZING!! My husband, who cooks, also loved it and asked me to make it again. My daughter is strict vegan so I will definitely share this recipe with her as well! Thank you!!
Delicious! It’s a very colorful pretty soup too. I’ve made several times. I had some extra butternut squash that I cut into smaller cubes and added w carrots. After a day it’s even more flavorful.
Thank you for sharing, Ann! I appreciate your review.
I’ve made this a few times now. It is my go-to for an easy nutritious soup! If I have extra veggies around, I will usually throw those in with the carrots and onions (this time I added celery and zucchini, last time I added fennel root). My “meat and potatoes” husband loves this!
I love that, Michelle! Thank you for your review.
We absolutely love this recipe! It has become a regular for us this winter. Since January we have been trying a different one of your soup recipes each week and we have enjoyed all of them so far! Thank you!!
Hi Kate,
I have made this soup a few times now and thought i should leave a comment based on how much I (and everyone in my life) enjoy it! I have shared this soup with roommates, my partner, and my family and it’s a huge hit every time :) Thank you!
I love that, Loren! Thank you for your review.
Made it for weekday dinner with fresh baked bread. It was absolutely delicious! I used only about a tablespoon of olive oil and it was fine. Magic is in the spices. Humble, healthy ingredients transformed into an amazingly flavorful, hearty meal worthy of any restaurant dinner. Thank you, Kate!
Thank you for your review, Hanh!
This is an awesome recipe! Have you tried a low sodium version? Do you think the majority of the sodium comes from the vegetable broth?
Hi Jim, it comes from the canned ingredients and added salt. Be sure to use low or no sodium if you need to and omit additional salt.
I made it low sodium and it was wonderful. A lot of low sodium recipes can be bland but not this one.
I love this soup. I make it once or twice a month and I double the recipe. I freeze it and take it out as I eat it. It’s so good. Thank you.
I just made this for my fam of 5 on a rainy day. So good! My 2 year old had 3rds!
I doubled the recipe but only had 3 cans of tomatoes 14.5oz. I added a large sweet potato peeled/cubed small and 1/2-3/4cup dry quinoa to give it an even heartier texture and make it more if a stew after I puréed part of it. I also added probably more like 3-4c kale. Delicious and my whole fam loved it!
Delicious! Eating it right now as I’m typing this! I used low sodium broth and no salt added diced tomatoes to significantly cut down on the sodium levels. And I added a teaspoon of chili powder for personal taste. My new staple recipe for lentil soup :)
I’m happy to hear it’s a new staple, Ingrid!
I am about to try this but I only have orange lentils. Should I wait until I have green / brown lentils or try it with orange?
Ann
Hi Ann, sorry for my delay! What did you decide to do? This is best with the lentils listed. You would need to adjust cooking time and liquid for red/orange.
Yummy! Delish and different. Made exactly as written except used arugula in place of the kale. Seasoning at the end with lemon salt and pepper was key. Lovely!
I love this recipe and have been making it every other week since I found it. Thank you.
The soup was excellent! I was surprised how flavorful it was! We don’t like curry in our family, so I replaced the curry seasoning with Italian seasoning. I skipped the greens completely. I pureed the entire soup with my immersion blender. My meat eater husband had three helpings and my 11 and 9 year old liked it too! My five year old did not…lol, but that’s ok! Will definitely make again!
Mary…one cup = 8 ounces and 128 grams.
Best lentil soup recipe I’ve ever made!
So good!!! Thank you! Will be making this again and again and again
I’m going to guess (hope) it’s dried lentils since the recipe doesn’t specify canned and all I have is dried. Fingers crossed!
Hi Pats, this is for dried. I hope you enjoy the soup!
Followed the recipe as closely as I could. So yummy! The 10 year old said it’s better than Grama soup. That’s quite a compliment!
That’s high praise! Thank you for your review, Brandy.
This is my favorite lentil soup recipe. Someone recently suggested the lentil soup-monastery style in Diet for a Small Planet and guess what? It’s almost the same! That version had sherry instead of lemon juice though, and no greens. They used swiss cheese in it as well. Thank you so much for this and your other recipes too!
This Lentil soup is wonderful and so flavourful. The lemon really makes it pop. Thank you. Could you check the calorie count. I’m having a hard time understanding (based on the ingredients how a single generous serving is 366 calories). Thanks
Thank you, Carolyn!
My 5yr girls LOVE this soup. They are always asking me to make it. My husband is not a soup fan but likes it! It is a family favorite.
That’s great to hear, Heather!
absolutely delicious. doubled the lentils for more of a stew texture and used frozen tomatoes from my garden and homemade frozen marinara. the best spices-love it.
I’ve never left a comment over several years of enjoying Cookie + Kate recipes, but this soup is that good. It has become a staple in my house and I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of it!
I’m so glad you left a comment, Sadie! I appreciate your review.
Delicious!!! The flavors are amazing and layered. I made this with red lentils because I had some I was trying to use up and it came out great (tasted almost like dal because of the red lentils but that’s a great thing in my book).
Yummy and hearty! Made this on a rainy day – added beet greens instead of kale at the end which gave the soup a lovely rainbow look :)
I also added a dash of turmeric and ginger. It turned out really good
I made this recipe yesterday and since I had no vegetable broth I used chicken broth instead..this is definitely a keeper. Even better the next day! Thank you so much for this wonderful recipe!
Love this easy to create soup, quick to make in instant pot. I use red lentils for added vibrant color. This soup can be modified in so many ways: add 1/4 cup brown rice and 1/2 cup more water; add dehydrated mixed veggies (after rehydrating); a few chunks potato or sweet potato. Stir in fresh baby spinach to serve, add chunks of home baked sourdough; hot comfort with long lasting satiation.—Thank you!
How long do you cook in the instant pot for?
thx Kathryne, saved my day!
Really excellent soup. I thought the seasoning was going to be too strong, but it was perfect. I added some celery too, used spinach for the greens, and skipped the red pepper flakes. I’ll definitely make this soup again.
I’m glad you enjoyed it, Jo!
I’ve made many different lentil soup recipes over the years, but this one is by far the best! This will be my go-to lentil soup from now on. Thanks again Kate!
I’m happy you enjoyed it, Linda! Thank you for your review.
Cannot wait to try this soup, it’s cooking now. I used what I had on hand to replace certain ingredients so I didn’t have to get out and drive in this snowstorm. My changes were to substitute ground spice for the garlic and used fresh spinach instead of kale. Also added frozen mixed veggies and didn’t have any type of broth, so added alittle tomato paste with water along with the canned tomatoes. It smells really good while it is cooking too!
Loved it! No kale, used spinach, not ideal but seemed to work out okay.
I suddenly had a craving for my mother’s lentil soup, and searched online for a recipe. I found your site and decided to give your recipe a go, and admit being a tad reluctant to try it because of the seemingly huge amounts of tomatoes. Nonetheless, I followed your recipe but subbed spinach for kale, as I had no kale on hand. I made the mistake of pureeing the soup a bit more than the recipe called for, but it is still delicious! The lemon addition is genius because it brightens and enhances the flavors. This is the best lentil soup I’ve ever had, thank you so much for sharing it!
Tried THE best lentil soup recipe tonight, and it was delicious! It went together quickly and easily-a perfect Sunday night supper! SO good!
I’m glad you enjoyed it, KTM!
I just made this yesterday and my husband said that this was the best soup I’ve ever made.
We are planning to transition to more a plant-based diet and eat less meat, so I think I will make this soup a lot. Thank you!!
Wonderful to hear, Yoko! I appreciate your review.