Lentil Soup is a wholesome and delightful soup to warm your soul. This classic Spanish Lentil Soup, or Lentejas, is a flavorful, comforting dish that's easy to make and ready for around an hour. It's the perfect cozy meal for cooler weather, warming your soul and nourishing your body.
This hearty and nutritious soup is a great mix of earthy lentils and colorful vegetables, all cooked together in one pot for simplicity and ease.
Loaded with essential nutrients and rich flavors, this lentil recipe offers comfort while highlighting how versatile lentils can be.
In Spain and Mediterranean countries, this dish is a common sight in restaurants and homes alike. It’s a straightforward, traditional recipe that’s packed with amazing flavor and is also really good for you.
If you’ve ever thought lentils were bland, this easy lentil soup will change your mind! With bold Mediterranean spices and aromatic flavors, this spicy lentil soup is anything but boring.
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⭐Why You'll Love Lentil Soup
- Nutrient-Packed: Lentils are loaded with protein, fiber, and essential nutrients, and adding veggies boosts the soup’s health benefits.
- Budget-Friendly: Lentils are affordable, making this a nutritious and wallet-friendly meal.
- Versatile: You can easily customize this soup with your favorite veggies, herbs, or spices.
- One-Pot Wonder: Everything cooks in one pot, making it simple to prepare and easy to clean up.
- Cozy Comfort: Perfect for colder months, lentil soup offers a warm, comforting meal that's both hearty and satisfying.
🧾Lentil Soup Ingredients
Here’s what you need to make this lentil soup recipe:
- Lentils: I prefer small brown lentils because they keep their shape and give the soup a nice texture. Green lentils work well too, but avoid red lentils—they get too mushy. You can also use black lentils, chickpeas, or beans instead.
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil: I love using Spanish extra virgin olive oil. It gives the soup a rich, fruity flavor.
- Veggies: I make a sofrito with red pepper, onion, leek, garlic, carrot, and tomatoes. This mix adds layers of flavor to the dish. Each veggie adds its touch: The red pepper brings a sweet tang, onion gives a savory base, leeks add a milder onion taste, garlic adds depth, carrots bring sweetness, and tomatoes provide a bit of acidity. You can easily substitute with what you have on hand, like using different bell pepper colors or swapping white onion for shallots.
- Potatoes: They thicken the soup and add to its hearty texture.
- Seasoning: I season with salt and pepper—salt boosts all the flavors, and pepper adds a touch of heat.
- Spices: I love using cinnamon, cumin, sweet paprika, hot paprika, clove, and bay leaves, they are the stars here. Cinnamon adds warmth, cumin gives an earthy note, sweet paprika adds color and mild sweetness, hot paprika brings some heat, clove adds a spicy warmth, and bay leaves give a subtle aroma.
- Water: I use water as the base to bring it all together.
See the recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and measurements.
👩🏻🍳How to Make Lentil Soup
These step-by-step instructions and photos will help you to visualize how to make this recipe. See the recipe card for a printable version of this recipe.
1. Add chopped pepper and onion, sprinkle some salt, and cook until they become soft and translucent.
2. Add chopped leek and sauté. Add chopped garlic and sauté for 2 minutes until it releases its aromatic fragrance.
3. Add peeled and chopped carrots, and cook for a few minutes until the veggies soften.
4. Add cinnamon, cumin powder, sweet paprika, hot paprika, cloves, and bay leaves to the mixture and stir to blend. Add chopped tomatoes and cook until softened.
5. Transfer the cooked vegetables to a blender, remove the bay leaves, and set aside. Pour in water and blend until the mixture is smooth.
6. Pour the vegetable paste into the pot, add water, and toss in the bay leaves. Mix thoroughly to combine all the ingredients. Add the lentils and stir thoroughly to combine.
7. Add diced carrots and potatoes to the pot, mix well, cover, and cook until lentils and vegetables are soft.
8. Enjoy lentil soup while it is hot!
📖Variations
- Harvest Vegetable Lentil Soup: Include seasonal vegetables like butternut squash, Brussels sprouts, and kale.
- Green Lentil and Spinach Soup: Use green lentils and add a generous amount of fresh spinach for a vibrant and nutritious version.
- Coconut Curry Lentil Soup: Combine lentils with coconut milk, curry paste, and lime juice for a creamy variation.
- Curried Lentil Soup: Add curry powder, turmeric, and coconut milk for a flavorful and slightly spicy twist.
🍽 What to Serve with Lentil Soup
This lentil soup is hearty and satisfying on its own, but I love pairing it with some ciabatta or garlic bread to soak up all the goodness.
For sides, some of my go-to's are pasta salad, potato salad, tuna salad, or tomato salad.
And to drink? A refreshing lemonade is my favorite choice.
For the perfect ending, treat yourself to a sweet dessert like chocolate mousse or tiramisu!
💭Tips for Recipe Success
Rinse the Lentils: Give the lentils a good rinse under cold water before using them. This helps clear away any debris and keeps the soup from getting too starchy.
Pick Fresh Ingredients: Using fresh, high-quality veggies makes a difference in the flavor of your soup.
Build Flavor: Start by sautéing the pepper, onions, leeks, and garlic. This step creates a rich and flavorful base for your soup.
Simmer: After adding all the ingredients, let the soup simmer on low heat. This gives the flavors time to come together beautifully.
Adjust Thickness: If the soup gets too thick, just add a bit more water until you reach your desired consistency.
Cook Vegetables Just Right: Be careful not to overcook the veggies. You want them tender but still with a bit of bite for the best texture.
Season as You Go: Taste the soup as it cooks and adjust the seasoning gradually to get the flavor just right.
Make Extra: Lentil soup often tastes even better the next day, so consider making a big batch to enjoy later.
Store Leftovers: Keep any leftover soup in a sealed container in the fridge, and it will stay good for 3-4 days.
🍛More Spanish Recipes to Try!
Love this Spanish Lentil Soup or Spanish Lentil Stew? You’ll also enjoy these delicious Spanish recipes:
- Easy Homemade Meatballs
- Spanish Paella Valenciana
- Gazpacho
- Spanish Omelette
- Garlic Shrimp (Gambas al Ajillo)
- Papas Arrugadas with Mojo Sauce
- Pan con Tomate
- Chicken Skewers (Pinchitos de Pollo)
🍛More Conford Food Recipes!
Here are more of my favorite Conford Food recipes! Try these:
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📖 Recipe
Lentil Soup
Ingredients
- 400 g Lentils
- 1 Red Pepper
- 2 Onions
- 1 Leek
- 2 Garlic Cloves
- 6 Carrots
- 2 Tomatoes
- 2 Potatoes
- ½ teaspoon Cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon Cumin Powder
- 1 tablespoon Sweet Paprika
- 1 tablespoon Hot Paprika
- 1 Clove
- 2 Bay Leaves
- 100 ml Water
- 1 ½ l Water
- 2 teaspoon Salt
- ½ teaspoon Pepper
- 8 tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Instructions
- In a large pot, heat extra virgin olive oil over medium heat.
- Dice the pepper, place into the pan, add salt, and sauté until softened.
- Chop the onions, place into the pan together with the pepper, add salt, and sauté until softened and translucent.
- Chop the leek, add to the pan and sauté.
- Mince the garlic, add to the pan, and sauté for 2 minutes until fragrant.
- Peel the carrots, dice them, add to the pan, and cook for a few minutes until the vegetables start to soften.
- Stir in cinnamon, cumin powder, sweet paprika, hot paprika, clove, and bay leaves. Mix well to combine.
- Dice the tomatoes, add to the pot, and cook until the tomatoes start to soften.
- Place the cooked and softened vegetables in a beaker, remove the bay leaves, and set aside. Then add water and blend with a blender until smooth.
- Pour the smooth vegetable paste into the pot, add water and bay leaves, and mix well to combine.
- Stir in the lentils and mix well.
- Bring the mixture to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer. Cover and cook for about 30 minutes.
- Cut the carrots, add to the pot, and mix well.
- Cut the potatoes, stir into the pot, and mix well to combine.
- Cover and cook until the lentils and vegetables are softened.
- Once the lentils and vegetables are cooked, adjust the seasoning if needed. Cook for a few minutes.
- Serve the lentil and vegetable stew hot.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
Sandra says
This lentil soup was so easy to make and packed with flavor! Definitely a new weeknight staple in our house.