Red Lentil Soup with Spinach is a delicious, Middle Eastern inspired Lentil Soup, made with red lentils, turmeric, spinach, carrots and lemon. It’s golden in color, and very easy to make and leftovers are freezer-friendly.
Red Lentil Soup
I love lentils and lentil soup. One of my staples is this Chicken and Lentil Soup made with green lentils. This Persian recipe, which I recreated from a meal I had at a Persian restaurant is amazing, a new favorite! Directions included for stove or Instant Pot!
I tested this recipe a few times to get the consistency just right on the stove and in the Instant Pot. Since I had so much soup, my daughter Karina brought some to her boyfriend and he went crazy over it! Since I made so much, I froze the leftovers so now I have soup for another night. This tastes just as good heated up for leftovers the next day.
To Meal Prep:
I like to make soup for meal prep. I make a large batch of soup, enjoy it for dinner and freeze or refrigerate the rest.
To Refrigerate: Keep covered and refrigerate for 3 to 4 days. Reheat in microwave in 30-second intervals until heated through.
To Freeze: Divide into individual freezer-safe containers. Freeze, covered for up to 3 months. To reheat, transfer to the refrigerator or reheat from frozen in 30-second intervals until heated through.
Tips:
- For a thicker soup, puree half of the soup with an immersion blender for a creamier texture.
- Anytime I convert a stove top recipe to the Instant Pot, use 1/4 cup less broth since there is no evaporation.
More Lentil Recipes You May Enjoy:
- Lentil Bowls with Avocado, Egg and Cholula
- Asparagus with Green Lentils and Poached Egg
- Creamy Lentil Soup
- Lentil Salad
- Lentils and Rice with Bacon and Egg
Red Lentil Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 2 medium carrots, diced
- 2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
- 16 ounces red or yellow lentils (I used red), (2 1/3 cups )
- 8 cups of chicken or vegetable broth
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1/4 cup fresh chopped flat-leaf parsley
- 2 cups baby spinach, 2 oz
- Juice of half a lemon
Instructions
Stove Directions:
- Heat the oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat, add the onions and carrots and saute until soft, about 5 to 6 minutes, stirring.
- Add the chopped garlic, turmeric and cumin and continue cooking for 2 - 3 minutes more.
- Stir in the lentils, add the broth and bring to a boil, reduce heat and cook covered on low for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally until thickened. Remove from heat.
- Toss in parsley, spinach and stir in lemon juice and serve.
Instant Pot Directions:
- Press saute and add the oil to the insert, add the onions and carrots and saute until soft, about 5 minutes, stirring.
- Add the chopped garlic, turmeric and cumin and continue cooking for 2 - 3 minutes. Press cancel.
- Add the lentils and broth, cover and cook on high pressure 15 minutes. Natural or quick release.
- Toss in parsley, spinach and stir in lemon juice and serve.
Last Step:
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Photo credit: Jess Larson
My 18-month old baby and husband loooooooved the soup. It was very easy and quick enough to make. This can easily be made vegan if you desire. I love having a hot meal for my lunch and this hits the spot without being heavy. Don’t skip the lemon juice! I actually squeeze about half a lemon directly on by bowl of soup! Yum!
This was a huge hit with my family. So easy and delicious.
Delicious as usual Nina. I have not made a bomb yet with any of your recipes. They are always seasoned just right despite being calorie conscious .Thanks for feeding us creative , healthy, and nutritious meals. 🙂
Absolutely delicious. One of my fav ST recipes. So easy! Made twice now (on stove) and it freezes beautifully. I add WAY more spinach (a full 12 oz bag from Trader Joes); and tripled the garlic (as I normally do). I generally plus up on all the spices. Had some celery to use up so added about 2 stalks chopped. I like it creamy so blended about 1/2 of the soup. Added more lemon juice as I like the acid. Reheated some for lunch just now and threw in some chopped fresh tomato that needed to get used up. It is my new go-to for easy, freezer friendly, filling and low WW point meal.
Absolutely delicious. One of my fav ST recipes. So easy! Made twice now (on stove) and it freezes beautifully. I add WAY more spinach (a full 12 oz bag from Trader Joes); and tripled the garlic (as I normally do). I generally plus up on all the spices. Had some celery to use up so added about 2 stalks chopped. I like it creamy so blended about 1/2 of the soup. Added more lemon juice as I like the acid. Reheated some for lunch just now and threw in some chopped fresh tomato that needed to get used up. It is my new go-to for easy, freezer friendly, filling and low WW point meal.
Grade: A+
So delicious! The recipe was simple, and I followed instructions exactly. Another wonderful Skinnytaste soup!
Loved the texture, and the ease of preparation! Tried it exactly according to the directions and it tasted a little off, but I think that’s just because our family isn’t crazy about Cumin :). We wound up adding paprika, coriander, and cinnamon, and the end result was very good. I would recommend trying that if you’re not crazy about Cumin like us or just want to try a variation.  Thanks for another great recipe!
I made this soup in my Instant Pot and It’s one of the best soups I’ve ever made!  So tasty I’ve recommended it to family and friends! The added bonus is that with 8 cups of broth there is plenty for leftovers (I love leftovers!).  Thank you Gina for all your recipes – they are always a hit 🙂
Thanks Judith!
This soup is good. I like it a lot. But has anyone found there is not enough water to cook the lentils even? I’m a terrible cook so it could be my lack of knowledge. I bought a pack of lentils 16oz dry and put them all in with 2 cups of broth had to add one more and then 3 more and it was still not soup consistency. Maybe I added too many lentils? I did have to use the only lentils I could find which were not red they were kinda brown colored but not labeled as a color. I will try next time with actual red lentils if that makes a difference.Â
Where are you reading 2 cups of broth?? It says 8 cups.
Will this work with split peas?
This soup is absolutely delicious! So healthy, clean, and easy to make. Thank you!!!
My pleasure!
This soup is absolutely delicious and incredibly easy to make. I used half water and added salt and pepper to taste. I topped it with Greek yogurt to make it a complete meal. So very glad I have enough to freeze. I did add extra spices per suggested and am pleased. Do give this a try.
Love this soup, I make it quite a bit. Easy and filling!
Love it and it’s so weight watchers friendly!Â
Hi!  Long time fan of yours Gina – have literally loved every one of them.  They’ve been my go to for years of fun healthy meals. Wondering if I am freezing this to take on a trip if I should hold off on adding the spinach, parsley and lemon juice until I thaw and reheat? Sorry if the answer to my question is further down in the posts but I didn’t see it.  Thanks again.  It’s simmering on the stove and smells great’n 😄
Tastes very similar to a dish my mom makes. Delicious!Â
I made this soup about every other week last winter. Â It is Fall now and I just made my first batch. Â This soup is so easy to make and so delicious! Â
This isn’t just the best lentil soup I have ever had, it’s the best soup I’ve ever had. I have made it  many times. My family loves it.
Great recipe! Just made another batch in under a week! Love the quick recipe, easy ingredients and recipe. The leftovers are amazing as well!
Great flavor! Â I made this in my Ninja Foodie. Â Required twice the broth, added some kosher salt, and less pressure cooking time. Â I would reduce time due to how thick it was. Â
Great flavor!  It does need salt and I served with Trappey’s Hot Pepper Vinegar for a kick.  I made in the pressure cooker and the lentils broke down and made it very creamy which I loved (my  husband prefers more texture).  We enjoy your recipes and will defiantly make this again!
Excellent! I just started a plant based diet and this recipe was so easy and delish!
Glad you enjoyed it!
The soup had great flavor, however, after 10 minutes the lentils were mush. Â Stovetop directions. Lesson learned to add them later – I did cook on low but maybe my low is too high. I can tell though this will be a great soup!Â