This restaurant style vegan lentil soup will be your new go to meal! With just 5 ingredients, it’s perfect for a busy weeknight.
This post was originally published in September 2012. This post uses affiliate links.
I’ve often said that Mediterranean food is something I could eat every day, for every meal (followed closely by Thai!). I love the simple lentil soup that is served with my falafel—you know the kind—pale yellow, pureed smooth, with a hint of lemon. And I’ve always thought that it had to be fairly easy to make at home. So a few years ago I did some serious google searching, recipe comparing, and I combined my favorite elements into this recipe…the simplest, and yummiest, vegan lentil soup recipe. Make this for dinner tonight…you’ll never believe how easy it is!
Red Lentils
There are so many varieties of lentils. This Vegan Lentil Soup uses “red” lentils. Red lentils are actually a pale orange color. They practically dissolve and turn into mush when they cook. They are perfect for use in soups and dal (like my Mango Lentil Dal), but for a firmer texture in salads you might want to use green, brown, or black lentils.
Red lentils virtually fall apart—once your soup looks like this you can blend it….or not! Be your own chef! I like to blend mine with my immersion blender—so much easier than trying to transfer it to a big blender!
Soup for you!
Winter is soup season. It’s cold and grey outside, with a never ending icy cold rain. Soup is one of my favorite ways to warm up after a long day of running around!
My Favorite Soups!
Make Ahead Dinner
Vegan Lentil Soup is easy to make ahead of time! My favorite time to cook these days is in the morning, while both of my kids are at school. The house is quiet, I have the kitchen to myself, and I can float between Facebook, my coffee, and the meal I’m preparing. Soup is one of the easiest meals to make ahead, as it reheats so easily! Perfect for a day when you know you will be getting home right at dinner time!
More Lentil Recipes You Will Love!
I hope you have a chance to try my Vegan Lentil Soup! Leave a comment below and let me know how you like it!
Vegan Lentil Soup
Ingredients
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 1 pound dry red lentils
- 3 lemons, juiced
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 8 cups water
- handful of parsley
- 4 cloves of garlic
Instructions
- Pour olive oil into large pot, and warm on the stove over medium heat.
- Add the onion and saute until fairly soft. Add a little bit of water to scrape the bits off the bottom if needed.
- Add the garlic cloves (they can be whole, as you will blend the soup later).
- Rinse the lentils and add them to the pot.
- Add 6 cups of the water, leaving 2 more to add later.
- Add the juice of the lemons and the salt. Bring it all to a boil, then turn down to a simmer.
- When lentils begin to fall apart, turn off the heat. Stir in a handful of parsley.
- Using an immersion blender, blend the soup as desired (you can leave it chunky if you like!).
- Add remaining 2 cups of water if desired (the soup will thicken quite a bit as it cools).
- Serve with pita bread or basmati rice. Enjoy!
Notes
Check out this throwback picture from my original post!
