Description
This simple red lentil soup recipe is bursting with flavor! It’s hearty and cozy, flavored with aromatic vegetables and lemon.
Ingredients
Scale
- 3 large carrots
- 1 medium yellow onion
- 3 celery ribs
- 6 garlic cloves
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 2 quarts vegetable broth
- 1 cup water
- 1 pound split red lentils*
- 1 1/2 tablespoons smoked paprika
- 1 1/2 teaspoons lemon zest
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- Fresh ground black pepper
- Greek yogurt or sour cream (or cashew cream for vegan), for serving
-
Cilantro, for serving
Instructions
- Peel the carrots. Finely dice the carrot, onion, and celery. Mince the garlic.
- In a large pot or Dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots and celery, and sauté until the carrots are tender, about 5 to 7 minutes.
- Stir in the garlic and sauté for 1 minute. Add the broth, water, red lentils, smoked paprika, lemon zest, kosher salt and fresh ground pepper.
- Bring to a low simmer, then cover halfway and gently simmer until the lentils are just soft but before they start to break apart, about 7 to 10 minutes. Watch closely and taste to assess doneness. The finished soup should be brothy with the lentils just soft; cooking past this point yields a very thick stew which is just as delicious but less soup-like. (If you’d like, you can add handfuls of greens in the last few minutes, like chopped spinach or kale).
- Taste and add additional salt to taste, and a few grinds black pepper. Leftovers can become very thick, so you can add a little water or broth when reheating.
Notes
*Most of what you’ll find in stores are split red lentils, even if it doesn’t specify split on the package. Avoid buying whole red lentils.
- Category: Soup
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Soup
- Diet: Vegan
