Creamy Vegan Red Lentil Soup [Oil-Free]

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Warming and hearty yet fresh and bright creamy vegan red lentil soup. This soup is incredibly flavorful, so easy to make and it’s oil-free!

Don’t you love when something completely unassuming just blows you away? We went out to dinner recently and I was absolutely starving so we ordered multiple items off the menu. We may have ordered a pizza as an appetizer…maybe. Anyway.

One of the items we ordered was red lentil soup. It was totally unassuming and I just wanted it because I was cold and hungry but oh my gosh, the flavor was incredible! There were no thrills. It was just a classic red lentil soup but the flavors were unbelievable, it was truly seasoned perfectly. I could have eaten three bowls of it easily. Even Emery couldn’t stop eating it! I knew after eating that delicious soup that I wanted to get in the kitchen ASAP and create a classic red lentil soup recipe of my own! And, clearly, since you are reading this, I did!

Ingredients

This creamy vegan red lentil soup is incredibly easy to make, oil-free, filled with protein, vitamins and minerals and a total taste bud pleaser!

My favorite part about this soup is that it is so warming from the spices and hearty from the protein packed red lentils but also fresh and bright from the finishing touch of lemon and cilantro! So, you get that comforting delicious bowl of soup but a touch of zing. Seriously, so good! Here’s whats in it:

Onion

Carrots

Celery

Garlic

Red Lentils

Veggie Broth

Cumin

Ground Ginger

Smoked Paprika

Salt

Pepper

Lemon

Cilantro

All of these flavors come together to form a really delicious red lentil soup that is totally kid friendly, too!

How to Make Creamy Vegan Red Lentil Soup

Start by chopping your onion, carrots and celery. Add a couple splashes of veggie broth to a large pot over med heat. Add your chopped onion, carrots and celery and saute for about 5 or so minutes, stirring occasionally. Then, add your minced garlic and saute for another 2 minutes.

Next, add in your (rinsed and picked through to remove any debris) red lentils and veggie broth. Cover, turn the heat to high and bring to a boil. Once boiling, immediately reduce the head to med-low and simmer, stirring a few times, until the red lentils are cooked and soft, about 12-15 minutes.

Now, add your spices and seasonings (don’t add the lemon yet). Stir and taste test and adjust seasonings to your liking.

At this point, you can use an immersion blender to blend the soup up OR wait for the soup to cool a bit and add it to a high speed blender. Pulse only a few times until desired consistency is reached. Be aware though, you don’t want to add any piping hot liquid to a blender so let it cool a little.

I highly recommend using a veggie broth that you know and love. The veggie broth heavily flavors the soup so use a good store bought one, or a homemade stock! My favorites are the vegan veggie broth from Sprouts and this one is great, too! You can also use low-sodium and add additional salt to taste.

How to Serve

My favorite way to serve this creamy vegan red lentil soup is with a big handful of fresh cilantro, a little extra pepper and a fresh splash of lemon juice. Make sure to add your lemon right before serving, and not while the soup is cooking, as it can tend to get a little bitter if added too early.

If you aren’t a cilantro fan (apparently these people exist??? Hehe, totally kidding!) try adding some fresh parsley instead!

How to Store

You can store the leftovers covered in the fridge! It will thicken up as it sits so simply stir in a little broth or water before heating.

I haven’t froze this soup myself, but I am assuming it would freeze just fine!

For another delicious red lentil vegan soup recipe, try this vegan pumpkin and red lentil soup!

PIN IT for later!

If you make this recipe, I would love a rating and comment below! Don’t forget to take a photo and tag @wholesome.crumbs on Instagram!

Creamy Vegan Red Lentil Soup [Oil-Free]

Warming and hearty yet fresh and bright vegan creamy red lentil soup. This soup is incredibly flavorful, so easy to make and it's oil-free!

5 from 2 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Total Time 25 minutes mins

Course Lunch, Main Course, Soup

Equipment

• A high speed blender or immersion blender

Ingredients

  

• 3/4 cup chopped yellow onion about 1/2 a large onion
• 2 medium whole carrots, chopped
• 2 medium ribs of celery, chopped
• 3 tsp fresh minced garlic about 5-6 cloves
• 1 & 1/2 cups dry red lentils rinsed and picked through to remove any debris
• 5 cups veggie broth I use regular but you can use low sodium too
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1/4 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tsp ground ginger or fresh ginger to taste
• salt and pepper to taste I go light on the salt, heavy on the pepper
• a couple squeezes of lemon add the lemon just before serving
• cilantro for garnish

Instructions

 

• Start by chopping your onion, carrots and celery.

  Next, add a couple splashes of veggie broth to a large pot and turn the heat to medium. Add the chopped onion, carrots and celery. Saute for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add a little more broth if it dries out.

  Then, add your minced garlic and saute for another 2 minutes.
• Next, add your dry red lentils and veggie broth to the large pot. Stir well, cover, and turn the heat to high. Once boiling, immediately reduce the heat to med-low and simmer until lentils are cooked, around 12-15 minutes.
• Next, add in your seasonings: salt, pepper, ground ginger, cumin and smoked paprika. Stir, taste test and adjust seasonings to preference.
• For creamy soup, either use an immersion blender OR add the soup to a high speed blender and pulse a few times until desired consistency is reached. You will want to let the soup cool before adding it to the blender.
• Stir in the fresh lemon juice right before serving, and top with fresh cilantro and extra black pepper. Enjoy!

Notes

• I highly recommend using a veggie broth that you know and love. The veggie broth heavily flavors the soup so use a good store bought one, or a homemade stock!

Keyword Lentil Soup, lentils, soup