At least, in my world. Spicy, herby, curries — kapow, kapow, kapow! But you know what? Lentils are nutritious , rich in minerals, protein, low in fat, high in fibre digestive health. Studies also suggest that lentils are good for heart health.

The added benefit is that they are low in calories with calories in 1 cup of cooked lentils which is roughly the amount per serving of this lentil soup. It tastes savoury and has a flavour boost from a hint of spices. My favourite part is the texture!

Yes really. Little tip I picked up from Ina Garten. Just a bit of zest and squeeze of fresh lemon makes all the difference which takes it from really good to great! Dried lentils are best for lentil soup. You can use most types of lentils for this recipe — brown, green, red or yellow, though it will affect the colour of the soup.

Yes you sure can, and directions are provided in the recipe notes. Sauté your onion, garlic, carrots and celery over over low heat for almost 10 minutes.

Take your time here — the lower the heat, the longer you take, the more these will transform to create an incredible flavour base for the soup! A hint of lemon earthiness from the zest and touch of freshness from the juice just jazzes up the soup and takes it to that next level!

But what I like to do to get a really luscious creamy texture is to give the soup a quick whizz with a blender stick or transfer a couple of cups to the blender to puree SOME but not all the lentils. Lentil Soup will easily keep for 5 days in the fridge, making it ideal for cooking on the weekend and serving throughout the week.

Serving this with some sort of warm crusty bread for dunking is not optional. But it is optional whether you slather said bread with butter, or grill it with cheese!

Here are a few options — including making your own ultra easy homemade bread with NO YEAST :. Hungry for more? Subscribe to my newsletter and follow along on Facebook , Pinterest and Instagram for all of the latest updates.

Recipe originally published March , spruced up with new pics, new video and fresh new writing. Dal — Indian lentil curry. The highest and best use of lentils, full stop! Mejadra Middle Eastern Spiced Lentil Rice — so good you can eat it plain, seriously! Browse all Beans and Lentil recipes.

He contributes less than nothing to this household, he actually contributes negative. Giant 💩 all over the backyard. Barks furiously at tree branches swaying in the breeze but I swear, he would happily show a robber where my jewellery box is in exchange for a pat.

PS Another example of his uselessness — he spends 22 hours a day doing this. The other 2 hours are spent a eating b hoping to eat c playing. Save Save. You just need to cook clever and get creative! Your email address will not be published.

Notify me via e-mail if anyone answers my comment. but this lentil soup is awesome! I only had French lentils on hand so used those.

I was out of carrot and celery so substituted organic sweet potato and mushrooms. It was delicious. Threw some in the blender for 10 month old, but the rest of us including 3 year old ate it unblended.

Sweet potato gave it a creamy texture similar to what blending half would have done and the lentils did hold their shape. This lentil soup was amazing! I ended up making a few different versions that were more or less blended for different consistencies.

The blended Lentils actually ended up creamy and comforting, and the flavours were so rich and cozy. Thank you for sharing this recipe! I will definitely be making it over and over! I always hear that lentil is good but never made anything with it. We had the Middle Eastern chicken and it filled us.

So, this is our lunch today while we WFH. Even my husband who is not a fan of lentil agreed and he had a bowl. I found this recipe about a year ago and it has become my favorite soup recipe. The flavor combinations are perfect, and I also love to add sausage in it which kicks it up another notch!

Thank you for this amazing recipe. I made the lentils today for dinner. So good. I will freeze the leftovers for another time. There are only the two of us. I added some sweet potatoes to this as well, so yummy! After reheat of leftovers add a little Parmesan or feta…yum! This recipe was deelish!

I did a few tweaks and worked with what I had. I used a bit of smoked paprika, instead of buying. The smokiness of the paprika and chicken got along famously! I also wanted additional protein. I used less chicken broth, and made more of a stew.

It stays with me longer. Measure advertising performance. Measure content performance. Understand audiences through statistics or combinations of data from different sources. Develop and improve services. Use limited data to select content. List of Partners vendors. Healthy Recipes Soup Bean Soup Lentil Soup.

Red Lentil Soup with Saffron. By Bill Millholland. Tested by The EatingWell Test Kitchen is comprised of a group of culinary professionals who develop and test our recipes. Tested by EatingWell Test Kitchen.

Meet the EatingWell Test Kitchen. Trending Videos. Active Time:. Nutrition Profile:. Nut-Free Dairy-Free Soy-Free High-Fiber Heart-Healthy Vegan Vegetarian High-Protein Egg-Free Gluten-Free Low-Calorie.

Jump to Nutrition Facts. Directions Heat oil in a large heavy pot over medium heat. Rate It Print. Nutrition Facts per serving Calories 7g Fat 42g Carbs 15g Protein. Related Articles. Newsletter Sign Up. You may accept or manage your choices by clicking below, including your right to object where legitimate interest is used, or at any time in the privacy policy page.

These choices will be signaled to our partners and will not affect browsing data. Accept All Reject All Show Purposes. Total Carbohydrate 42g. Dietary Fiber 8g. Total Sugars 2g. Protein 15g. Total Fat 7g.

Learn more about our food philosophy and nutrition parameters. Heat oil in a large heavy pot over medium heat. Add carrots, celery and onion and cook until starting to soften, 7 to 10 minutes.

Do not brown. Stir in garlic, tomato paste, cumin, saffron and turmeric and cook for 1 minute. Add broth, water, lentils, spinach, salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer. Adjust heat to maintain a simmer, cover and cook, stirring as needed to prevent sticking, until the lentils and vegetables are tender, 15 to 20 minutes.

Add more water if desired. Garnish with yogurt and mint, if desired. Refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months. Nutrition information is calculated by a registered dietitian using an ingredient database but should be considered an estimate.

Per the Food and Drug Administration FDA , the daily value is based on a standard 2, calorie diet. Depending on your calorie needs or if you have a health condition, you may need more or less of particular nutrients. If you are following a special diet for medical reasons, be sure to consult with your primary care provider or a registered dietitian to better understand your personal nutrition needs.

Powered by the ESHA Research Database © , ESHA Research, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Use limited data to select advertising. Create profiles for personalised advertising. Use profiles to select personalised advertising. Create profiles to personalise content. Use profiles to select personalised content.

Measure advertising performance. Measure content performance. Understand audiences through statistics or combinations of data from different sources.

Develop and improve services. Use limited data to select content. List of Partners vendors. Healthy Recipes Soup Bean Soup Lentil Soup. Red Lentil Soup with Saffron. This is daal, minus a few essential seasonings. Best made by sautéing the onions, then adding ginger and garlic paste to taste; sautéing fresh chopped tomatoes no paste ; adding spices turmeric, coriander powder, chili powder, a touch of cinnamon if you like once the oil has taken on the red color from the tomatoes and the vegetables have a glazed appearance.

Not enough salt in this recipe. Make a simple chutney with yogurt, green chilies and cilantro. Was looking forward to this making this, and after seeing the comments, made a few changes used chicken stock, and, instead of water, one 14oz. can of diced tomatoes and more stock. I used 3 carrots instead of 1, and didn't bother to blend and added a bag of spinach, finished with grated parm, and it was fabulous.

This is a very tasty recipe but I have two suggestions: 1. There is too much liquid for the amount of lentils; therefore add one or two small potatoes, diced, to give the soup more body. Step 4 - No need for more mess of moving half the soup into another pot; get the same rougher consistency by pureeing in one pot but in short bursts until somewhat, but not entirely smooth.

Absolutely delicious! I will never buy lentil soup again. This soup is better than any I've had at any Persian, Arabic or other mediterranian restaurant.

I followed the suggestion to use 2 carrots, 3 garlic cloves, and 5 cups of chicken broth, 1. I grated my carrots and sauteed it with the garlic and onion.

I normally don't like red lentils, but this was fantastic. The lemon really rounded the soup. Will make this again. Jules: for this quantity 1 cup lentils , a couple of plum tomatoes should do. Important to get nice juicy ripe tomatoes, and to sauté all the vegetables until the oil rises to the top and takes on the red tomato color, otherwise it will retain a somewhat raw taste no matter how long you simmer the soup.

That first step ensures the full release of flavor of the spices. Sumac is not hard to find in the US Whole Foods carries it , and adds a lovely tartness more mellow than lemon. The mint is also a nice touch. You'll get more color out of the carrot and the tomato paste than the lentils.

Red lentils fade rapidly to pale pink and then yellow as they are exposed to prolonged heat. But forget their color, it's the flavor and texture that makes them so desirable.

If you want more red bump up the tomato or add some sweet smoked Spanish paprika--the subtle smoke note is terrific with lentils of all hues.

We like to zest the lemon as well. The brightness of flavor this adds is incredible. The flavor just explodes in your mouth! I make this all the time. At the end I often add fish a pound of tilapia works nicely to make a rich one-pot dinner - like a thick chowder.

The fish cooks in the hot soup. I like things spicy so I then adjust the seasonings including the amount of lemon accordingly; and I let the volume reduce a bit by not covering the pot tightly when simmering.

Just made this for the first time, and it was delicious. I understand that some people do not like cilantro, but it really does benefit from that flavour, as well as the lemon juice. Keep those two ingredients in there, and you won't be sorry! I followed the recipe exactly, and didn't find it too thin.

I have leftovers, and keep going back to the pot for another spoonful. I will say that it gets thicker as it cools. Highly recommend, and will definitely make again.

After I used the immersion blender, I added a bunch of lacinato kale torn into small pieces and cooked for a few more minutes until wilted. I have made this soup at least 3 dozen times, always yielding the same delicious results. It freezes beautifully making it a great option for make-ahead menu item or impromtu dinner party.

In addition to the cilantro, I like to garnish with toasted pepitas. It's so good I've served it as light lunch item on Thanksgiving. This is such an easy, healthy, inexpensive soup.

I add two tablespoons of barley to give it a little silkiness. Also use ground chipotle pepper. I cook this in my pressure cooker for about 9 minutes, which results in no need for the immersion blender step. I made this last night subbing only a can of diced tomatoes for the paste.

I added this after the spices had bloomed. And omitted the water. It was absolutely delicious. Simple, warming fare for a snowy day. I thought the seasonings seemed a bit scant, but they were perfect. Used an immersion blender to smooth it out a bit but left enough texture for interest. We really enjoyed the recipe as written, and given how easy it is, I'll surely make it again.

But there are also many delicious sounding suggestions in the comments that I'll likely try too. I made this almost as directed. Very tasty. This is delicious, exactly as written. I do add more salt, but I love salt more than I should.

Have made this many times and even our picky tweens and teens love it. Making this soup now, after reading many of the comments. We had leftover mirepoix and chicken gravy from Monday night, and I used that along with two finely diced potatoes, onion and garlic.

Good squeeze of tomato puree, then added Ras el Hanout and sumac. Sauteed as directed. Added lentils and water, Better than Bouillon chicken base and salt and pepper. Chucked in half a lemon, zest and all.

Fishing that out at the end. So far it smells and tastes incredible! Today we served this over a bowl of roasted cauliflower florets and with a dollop of yoghurt on top — I would highly recommend the combo to add some interesting texture! Great simple lentil soup recipe that is very easy to adapt to personal taste - I can see why it's popular.

It is delicious made exactly as directed. My only deviation was to not use the immersion blender because it wasn't necessary. After 30 minutes, the carrots were soft and the lentils were melting into the broth. The lemon juice makes it sing. Made as written with addition of about a cup of packaged polenta, cut into little cubes and fried in olive oil, then added at the end.

It made a nice vegetarian meal. Why do people write notes like "this is a bad daal recipe"? no, it's just a different, and also good, thing.

It's red lentil soup. Quick and easy; very tasty and different.