Easy Lentil Soup
This post contains affiliate links. Read our disclosure policy.
The best Easy Lentil Soup Recipe that you can make on the stove, in the slow cooker or in the instant pot! Vegan, gluten free and delicious!
This easy lentil soup is so delicious, hearty, and is the perfect protein-packed soup, especially for a vegan soup. It will quickly become one of your favorite comfort foods!
The soup comes together in as quick as an hour with only 15 ingredients.
This recipe is also extremely versatile based on your preferences and dietary needs (see green box below).
We also love our 15 Bean Soup and Vegetable Soup!
Why We Love This Easy Lentil Soup:
- Easy: This lentil soup is such an easy recipe. It only requires 8 ingredients and some spices and comes together in less than an hour on the stove or instant pot. If you would rather the flavors come together all day, the crockpot takes between 4 and 8 hours.
- Healthy: This easy soup is packed with vegetables and lentils, which have so many nutrients. There are 20g of protein and 24g of fiber per serving.
- Perfect for all diets: This lentil soup is vegan, vegetarian, gluten and dairy free – perfect for all diets!
- Budget Friendly: All of the ingredients in this soup are very affordable! If you’re looking for more budget recipes – check out this post on Eating Healthy on a Budget.
Easy Lentil Soup Recipe Ingredients
To make easy lentil soup you’ll need:
- lentils (soaked)
- onion, celery, carrots
- crushed tomatoes
- vegetable broth
- water
- olive oil
- garlic, bay leaves, thyme, parsley, basil, salt and pepper
For the full recipe and ingredient substitutions, see green shaded box below.
How To Make Lentil Soup
You can make this easy lentil soup in the crockpot, the instant pot, or on the stovetop. Here’s how to make it on the stovetop (for the other directions, see below):
- Sauté onions and garlic in olive oil in a pan for 2 minutes. Add celery and carrots; then sauté for an additional 5 minutes until onions/garlic are translucent.
- Add the soaked and drained lentils, broth, water, tomatoes, and spices.
- Stir and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce and simmer for 15-20 minutes until the lentils are tender and carrots are soft.
- Remove the bay leaves and enjoy!
There are lots of substitutions included below – look for the shaded green box.
Do I need to soak Lentils?
Soaking the lentils is an important step for this easy lentil soup and if you don’t soak the lentils ahead of time your soup will not cook the same.
This not only affects the cook time but also the flavor and can help to make the lentils easier to digest.
You don’t need to soak lentils, you can cook them in the soup from dry – but it will take longer to cook, can affect the flavor, and you will need to add more broth.
Do you cook lentils before adding to soup?
You shouldn’t cook lentils before adding them to the soup. It’s best to soak dry lentils before cooking them because it helps make them easier to digest, but most lentil soup recipes have the dry lentils cooking right within the broth.
Substitutions for the Best Lentil Soup Recipe
This lentil soup recipe is so versatile! Here are some ways to customize it:
Lentil Soup Recipe with Chicken: Add 1 lb raw chicken breasts to this soup when it starts to cook, but before serving, remove chicken breasts from the soup, shred on a cutting board, and stir shredded chicken back into the pot.
Lentil Soup Recipe with Sausage: Smoked sausage is a delicious addition to this recipe. We like to brown it in the pan, slice + stir it into the soup while it cooks.
Lentil Soup Recipe with Ham: Add 1 lb chopped cooked ham to this recipe for a delicious protein boost.
Canned Lentils: If you use canned lentils, cut the cook time in half.
Lentils: I have not tried this recipe with anything besides lentils but I think it would also work with split peas! You can also try this Split Pea Soup.
Cheese: I love to add a parmesan cheese rind into soup while it’s cooking. You can also top this lentil soup with freshly grated parmesan cheese. (The soup will no longer be vegan)
Broth: If you like a broth-ier soup, add more liquid (either broth or water). The lentils can also absorb the liquid as they soak. If you are reheating this soup, you may need to add more broth.
Veggies: Feel free to add your preferred veggies to this soup. Mushrooms and zucchini are some of our favorite additions. If you don’t have carrots, celery, or onion (or don’t prefer them) – omit them. You can add 1 teaspoon of onion powder or garlic powder instead!
Dried Herbs: Substitute 2 tablespoons of fresh herbs for every 1 teaspoon of dried herbs.
Salt/Pepper: We use unsalted vegetable broth in this lentil soup recipe and prefer to add salt/pepper to taste. You may need to add more/less to the soup depending on your taste buds.
How to Store Healthy Lentil Soup?
Refrigerator: This lentil soup will last in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Does Healthy Lentil Soup freeze well? Yes, this healthy lentil soup freezes well! It will last in the freezer for up to 3 months. Defrost in your fridge the night before you plan on eating and/or heat on the stove top. We love these containers for freezing. Use code CLEANEATINGCOUPLE to save $$ on our favorite freezing molds!
We have a whole post on the best way to freeze soup!
How to reheat this Easy Lentil Soup Recipe – It’s best to reheat this lentil soup recipe in the microwave or on the stove top. It should take about 2 minutes to heat up in the microwave or 4-5 minutes on the stove.
What goes well with Lentil Soup?
This lentil soup goes well with:
- a big piece of bread
- a side sandwich/salad-We love our Strawberry Spinach Salad
- a grilled cheese
Easy Lentil Soup FAQs
Lentils are a good source of protein and fiber and have been found to help with lowering cholesterol and stabilizing blood sugar.
This healthy lentil soup is also veggie-packed and is a great healthy lunch or dinner option!
Yes, you can eat lentil soup every day. It won’t hurt you! Eating lentils daily can potentially help with digestion.
Black lentils have the most nutritional value out of all lentils, but green, black and red lentils are all very similar in terms of how healthy they are.
Other healthy soup recipes:
We love soup SO much that we actually have a free healthy soup ebook! We also have a post filled with 25 Healthy Soup Recipes!
Looking for other healthy slow cooker recipes? Check out these Healthy Crockpot Recipes!
Lentil Soup Instant Pot, Crock Pot, or Stove Top Recipes
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 cup onion chopped
- 1/2 tablespoon garlic minced finely
- 1 cup celery finely chopped
- 2 cup carrots cut in small circles
- 2 bay leaves
- 28 oz canned crushed tomatoes
- 4 cups vegetable broth 1 quart
- 4 cups water
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ teaspoon dried parsley
- ½ teaspoon dried basil
- 2 cups lentils soaked at least 8 hours (about 12 oz dry)
Instructions
StoveTop Instructions:
- Important: Before making this soup recipe you must soak the lentils for at least 8 hours. This helps them to cook, and also helps with digestion. If you do not soak them it will change your cook time and also can affect the taste of the soup.
- Rinse + drain soaked lentils.
- In a pan, heat olive oil. Sauté onions + garlic for 2 minutes. Add celery and carrots. Sauté for additional 5 minutes until onions/garlic is translucent.
- Add soaked lentils, broth, water, tomatoes and spices.
- Stir and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce and simmer for 15- 20 minutes until lentils are tender and carrots are soft
- Remove bay leaves & enjoy!
Crockpot Instructions:
- Important: Before making this soup recipe you must soak the lentils for at least 8 hours. This helps them to cook, and also helps with digestion. If you do not soak them it will change your cook time and also can affect the taste of the soup.
- Rinse + drain soaked lentils.
- (Cooking vegetables ahead is optional, but recommended for best flavor) In a pan over the stove, heat olive oil. Sauté onions + garlic for 2 minutes. Add celery and carrots. Sauté for additional 5 minutes until onions/garlic is translucent.
- Add soaked lentils, broth, water, tomatoes and spices.
- Stir until combined. Cook on low for 6-8 hours, or high for 4 hours. Once cooked, stir together, remove bay leaves + serve.
Instant Pot Instructions
- Important: Before making this soup recipe you must soak the lentils for at least 8 hours. This helps them to cook, and also helps with digestion. If you do not soak them it will change your cook time and also can affect the taste of the soup.
- Rinse + drain soaked lentils.
- Set instant pot to sauté for 7 minutes. In a pan, heat olive oil. Sauté onions + garlic for 2 minutes. Add celery and carrots. Sauté for additional 5 minutes until onions/garlic is translucent.
- Add soaked lentils, broth, water, tomatoes and spices. Make sure to scrape any bits of onion or garlic off the bottom of the pan to avoid a burn notice.
- Set instant pot to sealing, pressure cook for 10 minutes. It will take the soup about 20-30 minutes to come to pressure.
- Once cooked, quick release the pressure. Stir, remove bay leaves + serve.
I made this in the instant pot and followed the recipe exactly. It was amazing. My roommate, who doesn’t like lentils, loved it too. It was quick, easy and yummy 😋
The most wonderful ,hearty soup!
Suggestions for cooking times in Instant Pot if using canned lentils? Thank you! Looking forward to try! 🙂
Unfortunately I can’t make a suggestion.Raw lentils vs canned cooked lentils are very different so I think these would turn to absolute mush in the instant pot for any amount of time. Sorry!
I made this recipe for my boss when she was recovering from surgery.
A great hearty soup with lots of flavors 💞💞
Hi. I am not all that familiar with dried lentils & there seem to be several types & colors. I have heard that red lentils dont need to be soaked beforehand.Perhaps they are a softer bean? Would you kindly comment on what would happen if I were to use dried red lentils? Thank You!
I’m not sure what would happen with this recipe if you used red lentils – I haven’t tried this recipe with them. I’m sorry I couldn’t be more help!
Its been forever since I had a lentil soup so I was excited to try this and I loved it! I remember growing up on similar recipes and this one for sure one-upped what I remember as a child most likely due to the multiple herbs used. I also really liked the simplicity of the recipe. I am a fan, thank you!
Can you use red or green lentils?
I haven’t tried it with red lentils but I think it would work. These are green lentils.