Vibrant Tomato Lentil Soup (Printer Friendly)

Tangy tomato broth with hearty lentils, carrots, and aromatic spices. Vegan, gluten-free, protein-packed comfort.

# What You Need:

→ Vegetables

01 - 1 medium onion, finely chopped
02 - 2 medium carrots, diced
03 - 2 celery stalks, diced
04 - 3 garlic cloves, minced
05 - 1 (14 oz) can diced tomatoes
06 - 1 tablespoon tomato paste

→ Lentils

07 - 1 cup dried brown or green lentils, rinsed

→ Liquids

08 - 5 cups vegetable broth
09 - 1 tablespoon olive oil

→ Spices & Seasonings

10 - 1 teaspoon ground cumin
11 - 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
12 - ½ teaspoon dried thyme
13 - ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
14 - 1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
15 - 1 bay leaf

→ Finishing Touches

16 - 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley, optional
17 - Juice of ½ lemon

# Directions:

01 - Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add onion, carrots, and celery. Sauté for 5 minutes until softened.
02 - Stir in minced garlic and cook for 1 minute until fragrant.
03 - Add tomato paste, cumin, smoked paprika, thyme, and black pepper. Stir constantly for 1 minute to release spice aromatics.
04 - Add diced tomatoes with juice, rinsed lentils, vegetable broth, bay leaf, and salt. Stir thoroughly and bring to a boil.
05 - Reduce heat to low, cover pot, and simmer for 30 minutes or until lentils are tender.
06 - Remove bay leaf. Stir in lemon juice and adjust seasoning to taste.
07 - Ladle into bowls and garnish with fresh parsley if desired.

# Pro Advice:

01 -
  • It comes together in less than an hour, which means you can go from empty pot to steaming bowl before hunger wins.
  • The lentils make it filling and protein-packed without any meat, so you feel genuinely satisfied afterward.
  • Those spices—cumin, smoked paprika, thyme—transform simple ingredients into something that tastes like you spent all day on it.
02 -
  • Don't skip rinsing the lentils—they're dusty from the package, and rinsing gets rid of that chalky feeling that can throw off the texture.
  • If you want a creamier soup without adding cream, an immersion blender is your secret weapon; you can blend just half the soup to keep some chunks for texture.
03 -
  • Toast your spices in the pan for that minute—it's the difference between a good soup and one that tastes like you actually know what you're doing.
  • Always taste and adjust seasoning at the end, because salt levels vary in broths and canned tomatoes, and your perfect might be different from mine.
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