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You are here: Home » Kosher (All)

Red Lentil Soup with Lemon and Cilantro

Nov 1, 2020 -May contain affiliate links

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Jump to Recipe·Print Recipe·5 from 8 reviews
Side view of two bowls of red lentil soup with vase with daisies on the background

This bright and tasty Red Lentil Soup with Lemon and Cilantro will become a quick favorite in your kitchen. It comes together in very little time, and with just a few ingredients, it couldn’t be easier to make.

Side view of two black ceramic bowls filled with red lentil soup and topped with some cilantro leaves

One of the best things about cooking with lentils is that they really absorb the flavor of whatever you cook them in! For this recipe, we used bright lemon and cilantro for a vibrant, flavorful Red Lentil Soup. It’s absolutely delicious year-round and a recipe we come back to again and again.

Ingredients for red lentil soup labeled. Lemon, fresh cilantro, red lentils and garlic

Are Lentils Good For You?

Let’s start with the basics! Lentils are a wonderfully nutritious addition to your diet. They taste amazing, they’re filling, and they are high in protein. They cook quickly and are versatile enough to be used in so many dishes.

Do You Need to Soak Red Lentils For Soup?

One of the things that makes red lentils so incredible for weeknight dinners or even lunches is that they don’t need to soak overnight like other legumes. Just give other lentils a good rinse and they’re ready for the stockpot! They’ll only need 20-30 minutes of cooking time to become tender and ready to enjoy.

Red lentils
Red Lentil are easily found next to the legumes in most supermarkets, you can also find them in Indian food store where they are also called Masoor Dal

Our Vegan Red Lentil Soup recipe is naturally vegan and gluten-free. No fancy ingredients needed, just red lentils, garlic, cilantro, lemon, olive oil, and done! We love a simple, affordable vegan meal option.

What Do You Eat With Red Lentil Soup?

This soup truly is delicious by itself! It’s a hearty, warm meal with vibrant flavors. For delicious sides, though, we would recommend a crusty bread or a nutritious salad. We think Vegan Kale Caesar Salad with Mushroom Bacon Bits or Black Bean, Quinoa, & Delicata Squash Salad would be great pairings.

  • Rinse red lentil until water runs clear
  • Cooking red lentils in a soup pot until tender
    Red lentils will become yellow once cooked
  • Sautéing Garlic and cilantro in olive oil
    Saute garlic and cilantro in olive oil
  • Adding cooked garlic and cilantro to the cooked red lentils
    Add cooked garlic and cilantro to cooked lentils

How to Make Red Lentil Soup From Scratch

You may be surprised to learn that it’s only a couple of steps. In fact, most of the time is just letting the soup simmer on the stovetop, which makes it really easy to prepare sides!

  1. First, pick through the lentils and remove any small stones or debris
  2. Rinse the red lentils well and place them in a pot of boiling, salted water.
  3. While the lentils cook, saute the cilantro and garlic in olive oil. Add them to the pot with the red lentils.
  4. Add lemon to taste and let it simmer for about 20 minutes. That’s it!
Bird's eye view of two soup bowls filled with red lentil soup with lemon and cilantro

More Lentil Recipes

  • Easy Rigatoni with Lentil Bolognese
  • Spiced Coconut Dal
  • Lentil and Sweet Potato Vegan Chili
  • Rice and Lentils (Mjadra)
  • Freekeh & Lentil Stuffed Peppers
  • Avocado & Tomato Lentil Salad
  • Turmeric Coconut Lentil Quinoa Bowl
  • Red Lentil Soup with Lemon and Cilantro

Did you like our Red Lentil Soup Recipe?

If you enjoyed this recipe, it would help us tremendously if you left us a star rating in the comments below or on the recipe card. Do you have any questions about the recipe? Do you need a swap for any of the ingredients? We are here to help, just leave us a question in the comments below.

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Overhead view of two soup bowls filled with red lentil soup

Red Lentil Soup with Lemon and Cilantro


5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

5 from 8 reviews

  • Author: Vicky and Ruth
  • Total Time: 40 mins
  • Yield: 8 cups
  • Diet: Vegan
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Description

This bright and tasty Red Lentil Soup with Lemon and Cilantro will become a quick favorite in your kitchen. It comes together in very little time, and with just a couple of ingredients, it couldn’t be easier to make


Ingredients

  • 1 lb of red lentils about 2 ½ cups
  • 2 teaspoon salt 
  • 2 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 large bunch of cilantro, chopped
  • 4 cloves of garlic, chopped
  • ⅓ cup freshly squeezed lemon


Instructions

  1. Spread the lentils on a large plate and remove any small stones and other debris
  2. Rinse lentils in a fine-mesh colander and rinse well until the water runs clear
  3. In a large soup pot, boil lentils in 8 cups of water with the salt until tender, about 20 minutes.  The lentils will turn yellow. Skim and discard any white from the surface, if any.
  4. While the red lentils are cooking, heat olive oil in a medium-size skillet sauté cilantro and garlic for 3-4 minutes or until the cilantro turns dark green.  Set aside
  5. When lentils are tender and cooked garlic and cilantro, lemon juice and stir well.
  6.  Simmer for an additional 20 minutes.
  • Prep Time: 10
  • Cook Time: 40 mins
  • Category: Soup
  • Method: Stovetop
  • Cuisine: Middle Eastern

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 1 cup
  • Calories: 250
  • Sugar: .3
  • Sodium: 586
  • Fat: 4.8
  • Saturated Fat: .7
  • Unsaturated Fat: 3.9
  • Trans Fat: 0
  • Carbohydrates: 39
  • Fiber: 6.6
  • Protein: 14.5
  • Cholesterol: 0

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Tag @mayihavethatrecipe on Instagram and hashtag it #mayihavethatrecipe #tahiniandturmeric

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. rebeca

    February 05, 2012 at 1:56 pm

    Hi girls!!!!!!!!!!!!! I've tried the lentils soup and it is great!
    Thanks a lot 4 the recipe.

    Reply
    • mayihavethatrecipe

      February 05, 2012 at 7:08 pm

      Glad you enjoyed it!!!! Please keep trying our recipes and sending us feedback!!

      Reply
    • Mark

      January 11, 2024 at 3:47 pm

      Boil and simmer uncovered?

      Reply
      • Vicky and Ruth

        January 15, 2024 at 11:51 am

        Uncovered. We will edit the recipe.

        Reply
  2. Taly

    February 05, 2012 at 6:16 pm

    Vicky and Ruth! I used to make a different kind of lentil soup, now YOURS looks definitely tasty because of the lemon, garlic and cilantro, thanks so much for the recipe, I can't wait to let my family try it!

    Reply
    • mayihavethatrecipe

      February 05, 2012 at 6:46 pm

      Thank you so much. I hope you enjoy it!

      Reply
  3. Robin

    January 08, 2014 at 2:21 pm

    This soup is simple to make and simply delicious to eat. Thank you for sharing !

    Reply
  4. marta

    April 24, 2016 at 8:32 pm

    I am excited to have the lentil soup today! it is simmering now.. This is exactly what I wanted, and I believed it must be possible to make a great red/yellow lentil soup with just the garlic lemon and cilantro...but all the other recipes out there were cumin heavy and canned broths and so on... simplicity is the best...I cant wait to share this with my vegan friends. thank you

    Reply
    • Vicky & Ruth

      May 31, 2016 at 4:11 pm

      We love to keep our soups simple and delicious! We hope you and your vegan friends enjoy it! Let us know how it goes!

      Reply
      • Mary

        January 03, 2025 at 11:40 am

        I have no appetite due to Covid, but this looks so simple and delicious I am making it afternoon. ♥️ These are favorite ingredients and so healthy! Thank you.

        Reply
        • Vicky and Ruth

          February 11, 2025 at 5:45 pm

          I hope you have recovered and that the soup was healing for you.

          Reply
  5. Laura

    December 31, 2020 at 8:17 pm

    I made this New Years Eve 2020. It was awesome. The cilantro was a pleasant surprise. Added that special burst of flavor!
    Happy New Year girls!

    Reply
    • Vicky & Ruth

      January 01, 2021 at 1:52 pm

      Happy Healtyhy New Year Laura! Thank you so much!

      Reply
  6. Rebeca

    January 04, 2021 at 11:06 am

    Thank you for sharing! This soup is really good and excellent for this time of the year.!

    Reply
  7. Lexi

    April 28, 2021 at 1:07 am

    Just made this and it was so simple and delicious! Had some low sodium broth in my pantry, so I used that to boil the lentils instead of water- so good!

    Reply
    • Vicky and Ruth

      May 10, 2021 at 12:39 pm

      Thank you so much!

      Reply
  8. juleezee

    February 11, 2022 at 9:22 am

    OMG, how did I not know about this version of red lentil soup until now? I've been making red lentil soup for years, but sautéing the garlic AND cilantro, then adding it to the pot of simmering soup is genius. Switching to this recipe pronto.

    Reply
    • Vicky and Ruth

      February 15, 2022 at 11:58 am

      Ha,ha,ha. We're glad you found it! Enjoy!

      Reply
  9. susan g

    February 11, 2022 at 7:27 pm

    Just right!
    You didn't mention the salt in the directions -- I put it in the skillet with the garlic and cilantro, since I read somewhere that it controls spattering (is that true?).4

    Reply
    • Vicky and Ruth

      February 15, 2022 at 11:57 am

      Hi Susan, thank you for letting us know that we missed the salt in the directions. We usually add salt to the lentils. We never heard of salt controlling spattering, we will have to test that out. Thank you for the tip!

      Reply
  10. alfonso none cabral

    February 11, 2022 at 8:05 pm

    very good! i used brown lentils

    Reply
  11. edgar tipton

    August 06, 2024 at 1:30 pm

    Best lentil soup I have ever fixed. Thanks

    Reply
    • Vicky and Ruth

      September 22, 2024 at 12:18 am

      Awesome! So happy to hear that you loved it!

      Reply

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We are Vicky & Ruth, authors of the vegan cookbook Tahini and Turmeric. Born and raised in a multicultural Jewish-Lebanese-Spanish household our culinary journey began in Barcelona, Spain where we learned from our family the rich flavors of Lebanon, Turkey, Israel, Morocco, and Spain. From our mother's fragrant Lebanese dishes to our grandmother's secret Sephardic Turkish specialties, our Moroccan friend's fragrant recipes, our sister's vibrant Israeli creations, and our neighbor's authentic Spanish fare, each dish was a key that unlocked new exciting yumminess.

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