Sure, there's no meat or dairy, but this vegan lentil soup is for everyone—everyone that likes to enjoy their food, that is.
Easy lentil soup
Every time I eat lentils, I find myself wondering why I don't do it more often. They're cheap, easy to prepare, and extremely versatile.
Lentils also do a great job of filling you up and helping you stay full—two things I like when I eat a meal!
And who says you can't have a little fun when eating lentils? This soup combines some tasty spices to add a little zip and character to each bite because, well, you have to live every once in a while!
Vegan lentil soup
Just to be clear: I'm not vegan. I love my dairy and animal proteins.
That said, I am very on board with incorporating plants and plant-based meals into my diet. The advantages of a plant-based diet are too numerous to ignore, and it really helps break into a week of eating with exciting new colors and flavors.
This vegan lentil soup has become one of my staples when I'm looking for such a meal. It comes together quickly, goes a long way, and doesn't get boring.
Vegan lentil soup ingredients
People who don't make a ton of soup can get this image of cooks sweating over a seemingly bottomless stock pot shoveling in dozens of ingredients to appease some kind of monster until they have a soup.
It's a good idea to get this image out of your head. While the ingredients list does technically go up into the mid-teens, a solid half of these are spices, so it really just depends on how well you're staying organized.
Here's what goes in to this vegan lentil soup:
- brown lentils (dry)
- low sodium vegetable broth
- cups water
- large carrots (diced)
- stalks celery (diced)
- yellow onion (diced)
- kale
- extra virgin olive oil
- garlic (minced)
- ginger (minced)
- turmeric
- coriander
- paprika
- cumin
- cayenne
- salt and pepper
How to make easy lentil soup
Now that you've gone to get all of your spices (and either patted yourself on the back or wept uncontrollably), this soup is a breeze to put together.
Here are the steps:
- Gather all recipe ingredients.
- Dice the carrots, celery, and onion. Mince the garlic and ginger. Set aside until needed.
- Heat a dutch oven or large pot over medium-high heat.
- Add olive oil to the pot and let it heat up.
- Add the carrots, onions, and celery to the pot. Cook until translucent, about 3-4 mins.
- Add the garlic, ginger, turmeric, coriander, paprika, cumin, cayenne, salt and pepper to the pot. Cook until spices become fragrant, about 2 minutes. (Be careful not to burn the garlic!)
- Add lentils, broth, and water. Turn up the heat to bring to a boil. Once rolling, turn down the heat and simmer for about 10 minutes.
- Add in kale, stir, and cover for 5-10 minutes.
- Add salt/pepper to taste. Serve.
Is it healthy to eat lentil soup?
It's no surprise that a food high in protein, fiber, potassium, iron, and a host of other beneficial nutrients does a great job at contributing to a healthy diet.
Paired with some simple spices and veggies, lentil soup can be very beneficial to your health. This recipe is no exception!
Do lentils need to be soaked before making soup?
Another advantage that lentils have over, say, beans (sorry beans! I love you!) is that they don't tend to require any prep time soaking before you cook with them.
As you can see, this recipe calls for dry lentils that cook up in the stock/water mixture. And that's all there is to it!
What kind of lentils are best for soup?
Not all lentils are created equal. That said, you could go for a number of different kind of lentils for this soup. While I tend to use brown lentils, green is pretty much an identical substitute.
If you use red lentils, you'll end up with a more smooth, creamy texture. If you use French lentils, you'll end up with a bit more chew.
Healthy lentil soup
As for the official macro-nutritional breakdown, here's what's coming to you in this soup (per serving):
- Calories: 276 kcal
- Carbohydrates: 44 g
- Protein: 14 g
- Fat: 5 g
How to store lentil soup
Got leftovers? No problem! The soup will actually become more flavorful sitting overnight. Store in an airtight container in the fridge for a week, or freeze and keep for several months!
How to reheat vegan lentil soup
If I'm serving a good bunch of people with reheated soup, I'll often have this vegan lentil soup still stored in its cooking vessel, ready to pop back on the stove.
That said, the microwave is also good for reheating smaller portions.
Looking for something else?
Why not try one of these Jordo's World staples:
Vegan Lentil Soup
Ingredients
- 1.5 cup brown lentils dry
- 32 oz low sodium vegetable broth
- 3 cups water
- 4 large carrots diced (about 3 cups)
- 6 stalks celery diced (about 3 cups)
- 1 yellow onion diced (about 1.5 cups)
- 3 cups kale
- ⅛ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 6 cloves garlic minced (about 2 tbsp)
- 1 tablespoon ginger minced
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
- ¼ teaspoon coriander
- ¼ teaspoon paprika
- ¼ teaspoon cumin
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne
- ¼ teaspoon each salt and pepper plus more to taste
Instructions
- Gather all recipe ingredients.
- Dice the carrots, celery, and onion. Mince the garlic and ginger. Set aside until needed.
- Heat a dutch oven or large pot over medium-high heat.
- Add olive oil to the pot and let it heat up.
- Add the carrots, onions, and celery to the pot. Cook until translucent, about 3-4 mins.
- Add the garlic, ginger, turmeric, coriander, paprika, cumin, cayenne, salt and pepper to the pot. Cook until spices become fragrant, about 2 minutes. (Be careful not to burn the garlic!)
- Add lentils, broth, and water. Turn up the heat to bring to a boil. Once rolling, turn down the heat and simmer for about 10 minutes.
- Add in kale, stir, and cover for 5-10 minutes.
- Add salt/pepper to taste. Serve.
Loren says
This recipe is so simple, but so full of flavor!
Jordyn Fink says
Loved this easy soup recipe! I did add some spicy chicken sausage for some meat and it added some extra protein! This recipe was husband approved!
Christina says
Simple and delicious. I added chicken for my husband and still very tasty!
Jamee Brick says
5 stars!
Delicious and simple!! I used spinach instead of kale.