Lentil Soup
Lentil soup is one of those cozy classics I always come back to, especially when cooking for my kids. It’s simple, hearty, and full of comforting flavors that make everyone at the table happy. Lentils may be small, but they bring such a wonderful texture and richness to every spoonful.
I love how easily this soup comes together with a handful of vegetables and a flavorful stock. It’s the kind of meal that feels satisfying without being complicated, and it fills the kitchen with the best aroma while it simmers.
This version is made with meat stock, which adds a deeper, richer flavor to the soup. Traditionally, lentil soup is often made without meat, but I like finding little ways to incorporate it when I can. It’s just something I’ve gotten used to doing over the years.
Of course, you can absolutely make this soup with vegetable stock instead. It’s a great option when you want to keep things simple, lighter, or vegetarian, and it still turns out just as cozy and delicious.
Making Bone Stock For The Soup
About 2-3 hours before making the soup, add 10 cups of water to a cooking pot. Set heat to medium-high.
Combine marrow bones, bay leaves, and coriander seeds in a pot with water. Bring it to boil.
Lower the heat to low and cook stock for 2-3 hours.
When stock is done, strain it off though a fine strainer and discard the bones, coriander seeds, and bay leaves.
That is as easy as it gets and it makes a wonderful base for the soup.
How To Make Lentil Soup
Prepare ingredients first. Rinse lentils in cold water and set aside. Dice onion, celery, tomatoes, and carrot and set them aside.
Preheat a 3-4 quart pot over medium heat and add a little oil for cooking the veggies.
Add onion, carrots, and celery to the pot and saute until softened and starts to brown.
Press garlic and add it to the pot. Stir and cook until garlic is fragrant.
Add diced tomatoes and cook until softened. Stir in lentils, mix and cook for a couple of minutes.
Pour in tomato sauce and 6 cups of prepared stock.
Stir in (ground) coriander, cumin, smoked paprika, salt, and pepper. Taste to make sure you have enough salt and other seasonings.
Mix well, and lower the temperature to medium-low. Cover but leave a crack for steam to escape.
Cook for 45 minutes to an hour, until the lentils are completely cooked and soft. Make sure to stir occasionally.
If the soup is getting too thick, add more stock. (I usually use 8 cups of stock total for the 1 lb bag of lentils.)
Freezing Instructions
When freezing any soup, it’s important to cool cooked soup as quickly as possible before freezing. Place the pot with lentil soup into a larger container filled with ice and let it cool, stirring occasionally.
Once soup is cooled to room temperature, portion it into freezer zip-lock bags. Get the air out and seal. Label and date each bag and lay them flat on a cutting board. Place it in the freezer.
It’s easier to freeze soup in freezer bags. When frozen flat, it can be stacked easily, which saves a lot of room.
Defrost lentil soup overnight in the refrigerator.
DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE? PLEASE leave a 🌟 star rating! Let me know how you liked it by leaving the 📝 comment below or share and tag me on social media @willcookforsmiles. DON’T FORGET to subscribe to my newsletter!
Lentil Soup Recipe
Ingredients
Stock:
- 10 cups water
- 1 lb marrow bones
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 tsp coriander seeds
Lentil Soup:
- 1 lb bag of lentils
- 2 tbsp canola oil
- 1 yellow onion
- 2 ribs of celery
- 1 medium carrot
- 3 garlic cloves
- 2 plum tomatoes peeled
- 8 oz tomato sauce
- 6-8 cup stock from above
- 1/2 tsp ground coriander
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- salt
- fresh cracked black pepper
Instructions
Stock:
- Add 10 cups of water to a cooking pot. Set heat to medium-high.
- Combine marrow bones, bay leaves, and coriander seeds in a pot with water. Bring it to boil.
- Lower the heat to low and cook stock for 2-3 hours.
- When stock is done, strain it off though a fine strainer and discard the bones, coriander seeds, and bay leaves.
Lentil Soup:
- Rinse lentils in cold water and set aside. Dice onion, celery, tomatoes, and carrot.
- Preheat a 3-4 quart pot over medium heat and add a little oil for cooking the veggies.
- Add onion, carrots, and celery to the pot and saute until softened and starts to brown.
- Press garlic and add it to the pot. Stir and cook until garlic is fragrant.
- Add diced tomatoes and cook until softened. Stir in lentils, mix and cook for a couple of minutes.
- Pour in tomato sauce and 6 cups of prepared stock.
- Stir in ground coriander, cumin, smoked paprika, salt, and pepper. Taste to make sure you have enough salt and other seasonings.
- Mix well, and lower the temperature to medium-low. Cover but leave a crack for steam to escape.
- Cook for 45 minutes to an hour, until the lentils are completely cooked and soft. Make sure to stir occasionally.
- If the soup is getting too thick, add more stock. (I usually use 8 cups total for the 1 lb bag of lentils.)
Notes
Nutrition
MORE SOUP RECIPES TO TRY
Don’t miss another hearty classic soup and check out my Split Pea Soup. You will need some bread to go along with a bowl of soup and this savory caprese quick bread and biscuits go very well with it.
Would you like to save this recipe?
We'll email this post recipe to you, so you can come back to it later!
All images and text ©Lyubov Brooke for ©Will Cook For Smiles. Please do not use my images without prior permission. If using my posts in collections and features, please link back to this post for the recipe.
Disclaimer: Nutrition information shown is not guaranteed to be 100% accurate as most ingredients and brands have variations.
Loved how you broke things down. Looking forward to your next post!
I love lentils and this soup did not disappoint! Thanks for the recipe!