Easy Lentil Soup Recipe (2024)

Why It Works

Keep it simple with basic aromatics and good stock as the background for dried lentils.
A mixture of parsley, garlic, and lemon zest combined with olive oil goes into the vegetables as they are sautéed and also gets stirred into the soup just before serving for maximum flavor.

My wife loves lentil soup, which means I make a lot of it. It's my go-to meal when I want to make something I know she'll enjoy without having to spend too much time, thought, or effort on it. The thing is, my wife likes itultrasimple. I mean, about as simple as you can get. Nothing more than abasic mirepoix, some good stock, and dried lentilsfor her, please.

I, on the other hand, prefer to punch mine up with other flavors, like, say,curryorcoconut and habanero. Every time I do, my wife complains.

Little does she know that she's been the subject of a little experiment of mine. See, every time I make lentil soup, I push the boundary of what an acceptable level of extra flavor is for her, bouncing back and forth between too much (hello, coconut) and just enough. I've finally hit on what I believe is the upper limit of her tolerance, and therefore the most flavor-packed lentil soup I can make while still keeping my home life content.

How to Add Flavor to Lentil Soup

The secret to this version?Gremolata, the Italian condiment of chopped fresh parsley, lemon zest, and garlic typically served with osso bucco. In this case, I use it to develop two distinct levels of flavor, once while sautéing my aromatics, and again by stirring it in at the very end.

While a typical gremolata is a dry condiment, I combine mine with some extra-virgin olive oil. As the gremolata sits while the soup simmers, the fat-soluble aromatic compounds in the lemon, parsley, and garlic are drawn out into the oil, making it much easier to add mellow flavor to the whole bowl of soup when we serve it.

Making Lentil Soup, Step-By-Step

To start out, I cook my basic mirepoix—diced onions, carrots, celery, and leek in this case—in some extra-virgin olive oil (don't worry—the steam coming off the vegetables will keep the oil down to a low enough temperature that you won't scorch it and ruin those extra-virgin flavors) just until softened.

Then I add half of my gremolata mixture, stirring it in and sautéing until aromatic.

Are you ready for the hard part? Yes? That's really unfortunate, as the hard part is already over.

All we have left to do is add our lentils (brown or Puy lentils will both work fine) along with some goodvegetableorchicken stockand a couple of bay leaves, bring it to a simmer, and walk away for an hour.

When we get back, the lentils should be falling apart-tender and packed with flavor.

I like my lentil soup to be lightly blended but not smooth. Brown and sludgy is how I'd describe it if I were simultaneously really good at describing things and really terrible at writing menus.

You get what I mean though, right?

A shot of lemon juice at the very end brightens it up with some acid before the final kicker: an extra drizzle of oily gremolata drizzled on top of each serving.

If you're feeling particularly feisty, you should consider doing what I did with one of these batches: adding a good pinch of dried chile flakes (I used dried Thai chile) to the gremolata for just a kiss of heat.

Now here's a soup that we can both be happy with, and while lentil soup may not be the most exciting thing in the world, a tranquil marriageis.

October 2014

Recipe Details

Easy Lentil Soup

Active25 mins

Total90 mins

Serves3to 4 servings

Ingredients

2 tablespoons grated zest and 2 tablespoons juice from 1 to 2 lemons
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsleyleaves
6 medium cloves garlic, minced (about 2 tablespoons)
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil, divided
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 large leek, white and pale green parts only, finely chopped (about 1 cup)
1 medium onion, finely diced (about 1 cup)
1 large carrot, peeled and finely diced (about 1 cup)
2 stalks celery, finely diced (about 1 cup)
1 pounddried brown or Puy lentils
2 bay leaves
2 quarts homemade or store-bought low-sodiumchicken stockorvegetable stock

Directions

Combine lemon zest, parsley, garlic, and half of olive oil in a medium bowl and stir with a fork until hom*ogenous. Season to taste with salt and pepper and set aside.
Heat remaining olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add leek, onion, carrot, and celery and cook, stirring frequently, until softened but not browned, about 5 minutes. Add half of parsley-lemon mixture and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add lentils and stir until coated in oil. Add bay leaves and stock. Bring to a boil, reduce to a bare simmer, cover with lid slightly cracked, and cook until lentils are completely tender and falling apart, about 1 hour, adding water as necessary (lentils should be fully covered at all times).
Using a hand blender, blend soup until as smooth as desired. Alternatively, transfer half of soup to a standing blender, blend until smooth, and fold back into remaining soup. Whisk in lemon juice and season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve, drizzling extra lemon-parsley mixture on top of each serving. Soup can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

Special Equipment

Microplane grater, large Dutch oven, immersion blender or standing blender

Soups
Vegan Mains
Vegetarian Mains
Lentils
Winter Mains