Meet the BEST lentil soup recipe! Made with dried lentils, fresh vegetables, flavorful spices, and hearty greens, it's simple, healthy, and delicious.
This easy lentil soup recipe is warming, nourishing, and delicious. It’s packed with hearty greens, tender vegetables, and fiber- and protein-rich lentils. Fresh herbs and spices fill it with complex flavor, and a splash of vinegar adds a bright, tangy kick.
It’s not just my best lentil soup recipe—it’s one of my best recipes, period. It’s been a staple in my rotation for years. Easy to make with pantry ingredients, it’s the perfect healthy dinner for a winter weeknight (save any leftovers for lunch the next day!). I hope you love this simple lentil soup as much as I do.
Lentil Soup Ingredients
Here’s what you’ll need to make this soup:
- Lentils, of course! The best types of lentils for this recipe are green lentils or French lentils, also known as Le Puy lentils. They hold their shape nicely in the soup, adding satisfying texture. Brown lentils are also a fine option. Red lentils are too mushy for this recipe. If you have them on hand, go check out my red lentil soup instead!
- Extra-virgin olive oil – For richness.
- Onion, garlic, carrot, and celery – They create the soup’s aromatic base.
- Fresh kale – You’ll use the whole leaves, stems and all!
- Fire-roasted diced tomatoes – I love the smoky flavor that fire-roasted tomatoes add to this soup. In a pinch, regular diced tomatoes work here too!
- Vegetable broth – Make homemade vegetable stock, or use store-bought.
- Fresh thyme – For fresh, woodsy flavor. I like to bundle whole sprigs together with kitchen twine. Then, I add the bundle to the soup like a bay leaf, removing it before serving.
- Cumin – The secret ingredient! It adds savory, earthy depth.
- White wine vinegar – It gives the soup a tangy kick.
- And salt and pepper – To make all the flavors pop!
Find the complete recipe with measurements below.
Recipe Variations
Don’t have these exact ingredients on hand? These swaps work nicely:
- Replace the kale with another leafy green like fresh spinach or Swiss chard.
- Use 1 teaspoon dried thyme instead of the fresh sprigs.
- Replace the celery with 1 small fennel bulb, diced.
- No vinegar? Finish the soup with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice instead!
How to Make Lentil Soup
This lentil soup recipe is easy to make! Here’s how it goes:
First, sauté the aromatics. Heat the olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat and add the onion, carrots, celery, kale stems, and cumin. Cook until they soften, about 8 minutes.
Next, simmer the soup. Add the garlic, tomatoes, lentils, vinegar, thyme, and broth.
Tip: Rinse the lentils before cooking to remove any stones or debris.
Cover and cook until the lentils are tender, 25 to 30 minutes. Adjust the heat as needed to maintain a gentle simmer.
Finally, add the greens. Cook until they wilt, about 5 minutes, and then season to taste.
Serve the lentil soup topped with garnishes like fresh parsley, grated Parmesan, and/or red pepper flakes. Enjoy with crusty bread!
Love cooking soup in the Instant Pot? Check out this Instant Pot Lentil Soup for pressure cooker instructions!
How to Store Lentil Soup
Store leftover soup in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Simply reheat in the microwave or on the stovetop.
I actually like this soup better leftover. The flavor only improves as it sits in the fridge!
Can you freeze lentil soup?
Yes, this vegan lentil soup is freezer-friendly! Allow it to cool to room temperature, and then seal it in airtight containers or jars, leaving an inch for the soup to expand at the top. Freeze for up to 3 months.
More Favorite Soup Recipes
If you love this lentil soup, try one of these nourishing soup recipes next:
- Minestrone Soup
- Vegetable Soup
- Butternut Squash Soup
- Vegetarian Chili
- Black Bean Soup
- Tomato Soup
- Or any of these 35 Best Soup Recipes!
Best Lentil Soup
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
- 4 medium carrots, chopped (2 cups)
- 2 celery stalks, chopped
- 6 small or 3 large kale leaves, stems finely diced, leaves chopped (8 cups)
- Heaping ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- 1½ teaspoons sea salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 4 garlic cloves, grated
- 1 (14-ounce) can fire-roasted diced tomatoes
- ¾ cup dry green lentils, rinsed
- 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
- 12 fresh thyme sprigs, bundled
- 6 cups vegetable broth
- ½ cup chopped fresh parsley, for garnish
- Red pepper flakes
- Grated Parmesan cheese, for serving, optional
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots, celery, kale stems, cumin, salt, and several grinds of pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, for 8 minutes, or until the vegetables begin to soften.
- Stir in the garlic, tomatoes, lentils, vinegar, thyme, and broth. Cover and simmer for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the lentils are tender. Add the kale leaves and cook for 5 minutes, or until wilted.
- Remove the thyme bundle and season to taste. Serve topped with the parsley, red pepper flakes, and Parmesan, if desired.
Notes
This lentil soup looks so nourishing and flavorful love how you balance hearty ingredients with bright, fresh flavors! Quick question: do you have any tips for keeping the lentils tender without turning mushy, especially if I’m making this ahead of time? Thanks for sharing this great recipe!
Could I use spinach in place of the kale?
Yes! Fresh or frozen spinach added about 4 minutes before “it’s done” works just fine. I once added canned spinach, and while it was edible, I regret not thoroughly rinsing it.
Hello, just read the recipe. For the kale you say 8 cups that seems like a crazy amount. Is that before chopping because it only calls for 6 small leaves?
Thank you
Hi Susan, it’s 8 cups chopped, or 6 leaves. Chopped kale doesn’t pack very fully in a measuring cup, so it’s not a crazy amount, it’ll also wilt down. If you’d like your soup with less greens, you can definitely add less and it’ll still be great. Hope that helps!
This soup had good flavor and was quick and easy to prepare – it just wasn’t the traditional lentil soup that I was expecting. With only 3/4 cup of lentils in 6 cups of broth, it was more like vegetable soup with lentils. If I was to make it again, I would double or even triple the amount of lentils used.
In case anyone else didn’t realize that they were out of green lentils, red lentils work too but require less time to cook.
Delicious. Thank you for a crowd pleaser.
I increased the cumin and salt, omitted the celery (I hate cooked celery) and used lemon juice instead of vinegar because I was out of white vinegar. It came out beautifully and that’s the magic of soup! Thank you for a great recipe that I’m definitely making on repeat this winter.
Would love to make this soup, but I can’t eat tomatoes given acid reflux.
Any suggestions?
(I have to go easy with onions & garlic, too – usually sub garlic-infused olive oil as a substitute for fresh garlic.)
Thanks,
Barbara
Hi Barbara, I think you could simply omit them from this soup! Just make sure to season to taste before serving and add broth/water as needed if the soup gets too thick. We also have a red lentil soup recipe without tomatoes: https://strong-nights.today/red-lentil-soup/%3C/a%3E I hope this helps!
My partner and I made this together, and when it says “Best Lentil Soup” it’s not kidding! This was so flavorful, cozy, and delicious all around. We added a pound of ground venison just for the heck of it and I will be going into a lovely soup coma after this. This soup is the soup of the Gods.
I’m so glad you both enjoyed it!
Absolutely delicious! I didn’t have any vinegar so squeezed an entire lemon into the soup. It was perfect! Thank you for such a wonderful recipe.
Six stars????? Seven??? I’ve never had lentils in my life and this soup is absolutely heavenly. About to grab my third bowl.
I love this soup! I make a double batch and freeze in 16 oz mason jars to pull out as needed. Tonight I put the contents of a 16oz jar in an oven proof ramekin. Sliced then sautéed 7-8 leftover cremini mushrooms and placed those on top of the lentil soup. Make mashed potatoes with unpeeled yellow potatoes, olive oil, fresh basil and salt and pepper. Scooped mashed potatoes on top of mushrooms. Baked in a 375 degree oven for 30 minutes. It is SO delicious. I do think when I make the lentil soup I possibly am a bit more generous with lentils than the recipe calls for … so that it is probably thicker, like a stew.
I second the Incredible!!!! Wow. Double Wow! I made changes that didn’t distract from the basic delicious lentil recipe posted here.
I didn’t have any celery, but substituted the celery for some yellow and red peppers.
I also added a random potato that I had on hand & I substituted the kale for a package of (almost expired) fresh spinach that I already had.
I also added turmeric and a heaping tablespoon of red chili flakes since I love very spicy food.
Instead of canned diced tomatoes, I roasted some old cherry tomatoes and some frozen tomatoes that I had in the freezer.
I love bean and vegetable dishes and this one helped me use items that I had on hand while making a super tasty soup!
btalavan (second comment) here again:
I also added frozen corn and frozen peas that I had in the freezer.
I don’t usually edit other people’s recipes, but this recipe was so friendly and gave me the chance to stretch my cooking skills in addition to using a lot of items that I already had.
Thank you!
Very flavorful ! Will definitely make again.
Incredible!!!! Wow.
We didn’t add the peppers and we used cherry tomatoes fresh instead of canned and it was outstanding. Had it with spelt sourdough and good butter !
Leave the vinegar out until the lentils are softened. My lentils never softened and that may be why. This recipe, however, is hand down the best lentil soup recipe I have ever tried.
I was unsure about the cumin, but this soup was so full of flavor, I loved it!!!
Do you soak your lentils overnight before cooking?
I just made this, I didn’t, it turned out perfect!
I highly recommend a cracker with it. We crunched up Ritz crackers and added it. It really gave it a bit more of a wow factor.
We don’t.
Can you used canned lentils?
I love lentils. Can’t wait to make this