Lentil Soup
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This easy lentil soup recipe turns a handful of humble ingredients into a deeply flavorful and satisfying meal.
Many lentil soup recipes veer into porridge territory, but I prefer mine hearty without being so thick you could stand a spoon in it. Using French green lentils makes all the difference. They hold their shape beautifully as they cook, giving the soup plenty of texture without turning mushy. At the end, I also partially purée the soup—just enough to give the broth some body while leaving most of the lentils and vegetables intact.
For flavor, a little bacon adds smoky depth, while plenty of vegetables make it satisfying without feeling heavy. The result is a richly flavored lentil soup with great texture in every spoonful. Add some crusty bread on the side, and dinner is done.
“Husband is a big lentil soup fan, and said this was the best he’s ever had.”
What You’ll Need To Make Lentil Soup
- Bacon: Adds smoky, savory depth to the broth. You only need a few slices; the idea is to flavor the soup rather than make it bacon-heavy. For a vegetarian version, skip the bacon and add a pinch of smoked paprika for that hint of smokiness.
- Onion, celery, carrots, garlic: The classic veggie base adds sweetness, depth, and flavor to the soup.
- Canned diced tomatoes: Add acidity and a little sweetness, balancing the earthy lentils and smoky bacon.
- Chicken broth: Forms the base of the soup. Swap it with vegetable broth if you’re keeping it vegetarian.
- Lentils: My first choice is French green lentils, which are available at well-stocked grocery stores or online. Common brown or green lentils also work, but they’ll soften a bit more. Avoid red lentils, which will give the soup a very different texture.
- Thyme and bay leaves: These herbs give the soup delicious, earthy flavors.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
How To Make Lentil Soup
Cook the bacon and vegetables: Cook the bacon until crisp and the fat has rendered, then add the onion, celery, and carrots and cook until softened. Stir in the garlic and cook briefly until fragrant.
Simmer the soup: Add the tomatoes, broth, lentils, thyme, bay leaves, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until the lentils are tender but still hold their shape. The cook time will depend on the type of lentils you use; French green lentils take a little longer than common brown or green lentils, so use the texture—not just the clock—as your guide.
Partially purée and finish: Remove the bay leaves, then use an immersion blender to partially purée the soup, leaving most of the lentils and vegetables intact. This thickens the broth and gives the soup body without making it completely smooth. Taste and adjust the seasoning and consistency as needed—you can add a splash of water if the soup is too thick.
No immersion blender? Transfer a few cups of the soup to a regular blender, purée until smooth, then stir it back into the pot.
Serve: Ladle into bowls, garnish with parsley, and serve. This soup well for several days in the fridge or can be frozen for longer storage.
Video Tutorial
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Lentil Soup
Ingredients
- 3 slices bacon, finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 large yellow onion, finely chopped
- 1 stalk celery, finely chopped
- 2 medium carrots, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 (14.5-oz) can diced tomatoes
- 6 cups chicken broth, best quality such as Swanson
- 1 cup French lentils, lentilles du Puy or common brown or green lentils
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- A few tablespoons chopped fresh parsley, for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Fry the bacon in a large pot over medium heat, stirring frequently, until the fat is rendered and the bacon is crisp, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the olive oil, onions, celery, carrots, and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Do not brown; reduce heat if necessary. Add the tomatoes (with their juices), broth, lentils, thyme, bay leaves, salt and pepper and bring to a boil. Cover partially, reduce the heat to low, and simmer until the lentils are tender, 45 to 50 minutes (see note on cooking time if using common brown or green lentils). Fish out the bay leaves and discard.
- Use an immersion blender to purée the soup until the broth is slightly thickened, or to desired consistency. (Be careful not to purée too much or the soup will get too thick, and you'll lose the integrity of the lentils.) If you don't have an immersion blender, transfer about 2 cups of the soup to a blender and purée until smooth, then return the blended soup to the pot. Garnish with fresh chopped parsley if desired and serve. (Note: The soup may thicken as it sits; thin with a bit of water if necessary.)
Notes
- If using common brown or green lentils instead of French lentils, start checking for doneness around 30 minutes.
- Make-Ahead/Freezing Instructions: The soup can be prepared up to 3 days in advance, or frozen for up to 3 months for longer storage. To defrost, let the soup thaw in the refrigerator overnight. When ready to serve, reheat the soup on the stovetop over medium heat until it's thoroughly hot. If you find the soup has thickened more than you'd like during its time in the fridge or freezer, simply stir in a little water or broth to reach your desired consistency.
Nutrition Information
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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When you cook the bacon, do you drain the grease before sautéing the onions, celery, etc ?
No, you leave the bacon grease in there; it adds great flavor.
Hi I have some ham and bone from spiral cut ham and was wondering if that could be used instead of the bacon ,or would you recommend that the bacon is still needed.
Hi Lynn, I think the ham would work nicely in place of the bacon.
Per usual, another great recipe from Jen. I’m not a huge lentil fan, but had never tried red before and am glad I did. This had so much flavor for so few ingredients. I’ll definitely be making this again!
That soup is superb. I served it with a little yogourt.
I make this soup all the time. It is my “pantry staples” soup. It’s anything you would want in a soup: quick, easy, affordable, flavorful and heartwarming.
This bowl of delicious is on my rotation. I often add in some chopped kale. Thank you once again Jen
I’m about to make this soup for the first time but I’m confused. Does the soup contain all of the bacon fat PLUS another tablespoon of olive oil? Or, do you pour off the bacon renderings and only use the olive oil? If that is the case, why not just pout off all of the bacon renderings except 1 tablespoon and omit the additional olive oil? Thanks!
Hi Lee, you don’t discard the bacon fat, so you’re using both that as well as an additional tablespoon of olive oil. Hope you enjoy the soup!
Thanks Jenn! I made it today. The only thing I did differently was to use 4 slices of bacon (because I always freeze my bacon purchases in 4-slice zip-lock bags) and so I did omit the olive oil & extra salt in the recipe. I doubled the dried thyme & added a tsp of smoked paprika per another commenter’s recommendation. My lentils took a little longer to get tender but I may have just has the heat a little too low. Delicious soup!
This is a go to for me. Love it!
Turned out great. Added a splash of balsamic vinegar to my bowl with fresh parsley and Parmesan cheese. Lovely!
Delicious recipe! I can’t have tomatoes so omitted and replaced with a little diced potato and orange bell pepper. Added a splash of balsamic like others mentioned and used cilantro because that’s what I had. So nourishing and soothing! Definitely will make again.
Hi, this soup looks incredible and I can’t wait to make it! I was reading the recipe and you may want to instruct people to drain the rendered fat from the bacon before adding the olive oil, etc to the pot. It doesn’t specifically say to do that, and some people may not know to do it. Thank you for the recipe!
The reason she didn’t mention draining the rendered bacon grease is you are not supposed to. It is left in & you cook the carrots, onion & celery in it.
This lentil soup recipe is soooo good! We live at Tahoe, and we have a lot of snowed in days. I tend to make a big batch of soup on those days. This lentil soup does not last long, everyone loves it! A big bowl of lentil soup, and head out to go skiing. What a great way to enjoy a big snow day!