This Lentil Spinach Soup with Lemon is a quick and easy one-pot vegetarian meal that is full of unexpected flavor. It’s light, nutritious and satisfying with lots of fiber. Serve it over rice for a complete vegan protein. What’s not to love?
The winter holidays are loaded with culinary temptations. From party cocktails to comfort food to dessert platters, we’re indulging like there’s no tomorrow. Around this time of year I often feel the need to clean up my diet a bit. My energy level becomes low; I feel sluggish. Last winter I came across Melissa Clark’s recipe for Red Lentil Soup with Lemon and it seemed just the ticket. Using the ingredients I had on hand, I made my own version of this popular soup. The result was a perfect combination of healthy and tasty.
Since last year I have made this soup repeatedly, refining it to suit my taste– using brown lentils, less stock for a thicker soup, and wilting in lots of healthy greens. The result is a simple stew-like lentil soup, richly flavored and full of vitamins. The lemon gives it an unexpected brightness that just sings. My husband, who tends to think lentil soup is boring, was pleasantly surprised. “So much flavor! And it tastes healthy, in a good way.”
Suffice it to say, this has become one of our winter staple meals. It’s so easy to throw together. I’ve thickened the broth so it’s halfway between a soup and a stew; pour it over white or brown rice for a complete protein and a heartier meal. Enjoy!
Hungry for more? Find me on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, YouTube and Instagram for all the latest updates!
Recommended Products:
We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Food Photography and Styling by Kelly Jaggers
Lentil Spinach Soup with Lemon
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 whole onion, diced
- 1 whole carrot, peeled and diced
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 1/2 teaspoons cumin
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 quart low sodium vegetable stock (if not vegetarian, you can substitute chicken stock)
- 1 cup water
- 1 1/4 cups brown, green or red lentils, rinsed and sorted
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 cups fresh spinach leaves (or substitute kale, swiss chard, or another favorite green)
- 1/4 cup chopped cilantro (or can substitute parsley-- I prefer the flavor of cilantro here)
- 1 whole lemon
NOTES
Instructions
- Heat up the olive oil in a soup pot over medium heat. Add the diced onion and carrot. Sauté until the onion softens and starts to turn golden. Add the garlic and sauté for 1-2 minutes longer until fragrant. Add the tomato paste, cumin, cayenne, salt and black pepper. Stir and sauté for 2 minutes longer.
- Add the vegetable stock, water, lentils and bay leaf. Bring to a simmer then cover the pot, slightly vented. Let the soup cook for about 30 minutes until the lentils are soft.
- Remove soup from heat, remove the bay leaf and discard. Use an immersion blender to puree the soup halfway, so that it thickens but still has texture.Put soup over medium heat again. Add the fresh spinach leaves and cilantro. Stir the greens into the soup for 1-2 minutes until just wilted (covering the pot will wilt them faster).
- Turn off the heat and stir in fresh lemon juice to taste. Adjust seasonings if desired, and serve.
Nutrition
tried this recipe?
Let us know in the comments!
SaveSave
2pots2cook says
This is so beautiful combination of flavours ! Thank you so much !
Hilary Evart says
Made it, loved it.
Courteney says
I absolutely Love this soup. Cumin seed is my favorite, gives the soup such an earthy tone. And don’t skimp out on the lemon juice, it really ties the soup together!! Yum! I’ve already made it twice. A huge thank you Tori! ?✨ God Bless
Anne says
Just found your recipe pages when I was looking for instructions for something else. It was cold here today in Birmingham so I decided to try this soup which sounded really good. It was! My husband and I have just become empty nesters and are looking for new recipes as we are adventurous eaters but like light, filling, delicious, and healthy fare. Glad I found your cooking page and I look forward to trying more of your recipes.
Andrea Kerrigan says
This was by far the best lentil soup my husband and I ever had!! The lemon really makes it.
Irina says
I made it and my family loved it!
danielle says
I’ve been looking for a good lentil soup with a kick in it and I found exactly what I wanted . Didn’t have an emersion blender but it turned out just as good and it looks beautiful. Thank you for a great recipe!
Lisa Lefkovits says
I can officially say that I can make Lentil soup, thanks to you Tori! My husband and son are huge lentil fans and now I can finally make this for them.
Love your blog, your perspective and your recipes. Thank you!
Lisa
Tori Avey says
So glad you like it Lisa! I agree, this is my go-to lentil soup recipe from now on. 🙂
Karen says
Delicious and easy. I didn’t use cilantro because I don’t care for it and it was still great and very flavorful and filling!
Darlene Kapenga says
I love this soup/stew…. I served it last night over couscous…. yummm!!!
I love your site as well… very detailed step by step directions are ‘very’ helpful to me..
and the recipes are most flavorful…
thank you for putting together such a wonderful site!!
Carolyn Abrams says
We had this last night for dinner. Yum! I did add a bit of extra lemon and cilantro, because we like both of those. I also had to be cute and combine my lentils – half red & half brown. Very tasty! Thank you very much! ???
Ian Gibson says
Dinner last night – 750ml serves by itself; excellent. Lunch today, even better! Cayenne had blended in. Used red lentils, and didn’t need the blender; indeed had to add additional cup of water to cut viscosity down to stew level. Used 1/2 cup frozen spinach, as this was a ‘what’s in the pantry” brew; some frozen cilantro/coriander leaf from back of the freezer. I found your site by accident while looking for falafel hints; have now downloaded a bunch that sound good for vegetarian church lunches! Thank you!
Lauren says
Delicious and wonderful. I would really like to see the nutritional content of your fabulous recipes. Is this information available anywhere that I may have missed?
Cathy Keller says
I made this for my family of 4 and they all LOVED it. Great flavor combination and textures.
I will make it again soon.
Bonnie Leigh says
Absolutely excellent, not only easy and beautiful, it tastes fantastic. I look forward to making it again.
Thank you.
Rosemary Gold says
Just made this soup and both my husband and I loved it. I prefer a chunkier soup so I would not use the immersion blender and would use bigger chunks of carrot. But the flavor was terrific. If I use less liquid can this be a side dish topped with a piece of seared salmon?
Tori Avey says
Absolutely! Use this technique: https://toriavey.com/how-to/how-to-sear-salmon-fillets/ for the salmon, and cut the liquid down in the soup. Omitting the extra water would probably be enough to bring it to a stew-like texture, or you might start with 3 cups of stock and add more liquid as needed during cooking to ensure it doesn’t become dry.
Ilana says
Hi Tori! This recipe looks really yummy. I think I’ll make it for my Hannukkah party. I’m wondering if it can be made in a crockpot? Thanks!
Tori Avey says
Hi Ilana – I’m sure it could but I don’t have specifics on timing, etc. If you try it, be sure to add the greens and lemon juice right at the end of cooking for best flavor.
Anthony Brown says
We don’t have too many near-freezing temperatures in Los Angeles, but last two night it was very cold. I made this recipe the first night and everybody liked it. Everyone in my family had two bowls of this healthy soup. I used Swiss Chard instead of spinach. Tonight, I made more quantity of this recipe for the second night in a row. And again, everyone devoured it. Nothing was left.
.
Tory, thanks for your lovely recipes. Easy and healthy dishes.
Tori Avey says
So glad you enjoyed it! I’m in Los Angeles too, and it has been cold. This soup really hits the spot.
Vicki says
It s basically the same recipe I make but no frying and instead of chicken broth I use a sachet if miso. Also, beating the oil with the lemon and pour into soup is better, too.
Love your recipes. Thanks
Jamie says
Lentils in any form, hits a home run for me. I don’t have a recipe but I’ve made something similar in the past. I always soak my brown lentils. I know you don’t need to but I find as they start to open makes a nice yumminess for them. As any other pulse/dried bean adding citric until they are done makes them hard. But after? Brightens the whole dish. I’ve added lemon and orange and tomatoes after. It’s just the last few years, I’ve appreciated cilantro too. Maybe because of your falafel recipe? Regardless, as a vegetarian I’m always interested in your recipes. Thanks! Cheers Jamie