This vegan lentil soup recipe is so good! With fresh veggies, savory spices and a squeeze of lemon, it just bursts with flavor. It is THE BEST lentil soup.
Oh the loveliness of fresh lentil soup, it's savory aroma just wafting gracefully through the kitchen. This recipe is a staple, and for good reason. It is nutritious and filling enough to stand alone as a healthy meal, but not too heavy or rich to be a great get-up-and-go lunch on a busy day. I love, love, LOVE this recipe. 🙂
The ingredients
All super healthy and easy to find ingredients in this recipe; you may even have many of them on hand already!
- onion, celery, carrots, garlic and lemon
- olive oil
- green or brown dried lentils
- low-sodium vegetable broth (or substitute chicken broth if you'd like)
- canned diced tomatoes
- cumin, thyme, bay leaf
- sea salt and pepper
- fresh parsley (to garnish)
This is a vegetarian and vegan lentil soup, provided of course that you use vegetable broth instead of opting for chicken broth.
How to make lentil soup
The method for this lentil soup with veggies is easy peasy!
First, get everything chopped and ready to go (onion, celery and carrots, and mince the garlic.) Then, heat the oil in a large soup pot over medium-high heat and sauté the onion, celery and carrots for a few minutes, adding the garlic next and sautéing for one more minute.
Next, add the lentils, broth, tomatoes and spices and bring everything to a boil. Once it boils, reduce the heat, cover and simmer for about 35 minutes. Skim the foam off the soup a couple times during cooking. Before you serve it, don't forget to remove the bay leaf. Stir in the lemon juice, season to taste with additional salt and pepper, and garnish with fresh parsley, and enjoy!
Tip: If you have leftovers or just want to meal prep some healthy dishes in advance, this easy lentil soup recipe stores extremely well for up to 5 days in the fridge or 2 months in the freezer.
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🍳 Recipe
Best Lentil Soup
Ingredients
- 1 small onion
- 2 stalks celery
- 2 medium carrots
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 ¼ cups green lentils or brown lentils, about half of a 1-pound bag, rinsed
- 4 cups low-sodium vegetable broth or chicken broth
- 1 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes with their juices
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- ¼ teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 bay leaf
- ½ teaspoon sea salt plus more to taste
- freshly ground black pepper to taste
- ½ lemon juiced
- ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley to garnish
Instructions
- Prep: Chop the onion, celery and carrots, and mince the garlic.
- Sauté: Heat the oil in a large soup pot over medium-high heat. When it shimmers, sauté the onion, celery and carrots for a few minutes, add the garlic, and sauté for one more minute. Add the lentils, broth, tomatoes and spices and bring to a boil. Skim off any foam that rises to the top with a slotted spoon.
- Simmer: Reduce heat, cover and simmer for about 35 minutes. Skim the foam off the soup a couple times during cooking.
- Season: Remove the bay leaf, stir in the lemon juice, season to taste with additional salt and pepper, and garnish with fresh parsley.
- Enjoy: Serve immediately, or store up to 5 days in the fridge or 2 months in the freezer. Enjoy!
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