Smoky Chickpea, Red Lentil & Vegetable Soup
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This warming, satisfying lentil and vegetable soup comes together in just 30 minutes.
Photo by Johnny Miller (Clarkson Potter, 2021)
For a vegetarian recipe made almost entirely from pantry staples (and I mean true staples, not staples from some well-stocked dream kitchen), this vegetable soup is surprisingly delicious. It’s thickened by puréeing a portion of the soup and then stirring it back into the pot (a technique I also use in other veggie and bean soups like pasta e fagioli and mulligatawny). This method gives the soup a wonderfully rich and hearty texture without relying on heavy cream or flour. The soup takes just 30 minutes to come together, start to finish, yet tastes like you spent all day in the kitchen, and it’s good for you, too. For the cooked vegetables, feel free to use any quick-cooking, frozen, or leftover vegetables you have on hand. The recipe is extremely flexible and very hearty!
Table of Contents
“Super simple and delicicious. It’s a keeper.”
What You’ll Need To Make Chickpea, Lentil and Vegetable Soup
- Olive Oil: Used to sauté the onions, garlic, carrots, and spices, adding richness and helping to develop a deep flavor base for the soup.
- Onion and Garlic: Provide a savory foundation and depth, essential for building the soup’s overall flavor.
- Carrot: Adds a subtle sweetness and contributes to the hearty texture of the soup.
- Paprika and Cumin: Infuse the soup with smoky and earthy flavors, enhancing the overall warmth and complexity.
- Vegetable or Chicken Broth: Acts as the soup’s liquid base, balancing flavors and providing a rich, savory undertone. Opt for low-sodium broth here.
- Diced Tomatoes: Contribute acidity and a subtle sweetness, adding depth to the broth.
- Red Lentils: Thicken the soup and add protein, creating a hearty texture. It’s important to stick with red lentils here due to their quick cooking time. Use 1/3 cup as specified in the recipe, as using more can make the soup too thick.
- Dried Thyme: Adds an aromatic, earthy note that complements the soup’s savory elements.
- Bay Leaves: Infuse the soup with a mild herbal flavor, enhancing its overall complexity.
- Chickpeas: Add texture, protein, and a nutty flavor, making the soup more substantial.
- Cooked Vegetables: Provide additional texture and nutrients, rounding out the soup with a variety of flavors and colors. I like to use frozen peas and green beans but you can use any quick cooking, frozen, or leftover vegetables you have on hand. The recipe is very flexible!
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-by-Step Instructions
Begin by cooking the onions in olive oil until soft. Add the carrots, garlic, smoked paprika and cumin and cook until fragrant, a few minutes.
Add the broth, tomatoes, lentils, thyme, bay leaves, salt, and pepper.
Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Add the chickpeas and continue cooking 10 minutes more.
Remove a few cups of the soup and place in a blender or food processor.
Purée until smooth.
Pour the puréed soup back into the pot. Stir and taste; if you want the soup to be thicker, purée a bit more. Add the vegetables.
Bring the soup back to a simmer and serve.
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Smoky Chickpea, Red Lentil & Vegetable Soup
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 large carrot, diced
- Heaping ¼ teaspoon smoked paprika
- ¾ teaspoon ground cumin
- 4 cups low-sodium vegetable or chicken broth
- 1 14.5-ounce (411-g) can diced tomatoes
- ⅓ cup red lentils
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 15.5-ounce (439-g) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 1 cup cooked vegetables, such as frozen peas or chopped green beans
Instructions
- In a large pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, carrots, smoked paprika and cumin; cook, stirring frequently so the garlic doesn't brown, about 2 minutes more.
- Add the broth, diced tomatoes, red lentils, thyme, bay leaves, salt, and pepper and bring to a boil. Cover the pot and reduce the heat to a simmer; cook for ten minutes. Add the chickpeas, cover the pot and cook 10 minutes more. Fish out the bay leaves, then transfer 2 cups of the soup to a blender and purée until smooth (be sure to remove the center knob on the blender and cover with a dishtowel to avoid splatters). Add the puréed soup back to the pot and stir. Taste and adjust seasoning, if necessary; if you want the soup to be thicker, purée a bit more soup. Add the cooked vegetables and simmer until the soup is hot and the vegetables are warmed through. Ladle the soup into bowls and serve.
Notes
Pair with
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.
Comments
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Delicious and versatile! Thank you for sharing!
🤯🤯🤯 where has this recipe been all of my life?! And yes please, pass the naan. Thank you Jenn for a wonderful recipe. Please! Keep em coming.
Would using green lentils impact this recipe? I don’t have any red lentils.
Yes, it would, Corrine – for the best results, I’d stick with red lentils — sorry!
Winner! I added 1 zucchini diced and a cup of frozen peas. Thank you!
Excellent soup. Oops, I didn’t follow the instructions and my vegetables were pretty large and my canned tomatoes were whole. I decided to puree the soup (so didn’t add the chickpeas until at the end and did save some lentils from being pureed). As expected the chickpeas didn’t have time to absorb the flavor… still a great soup! I am sure it will be even better when it is reheated.
Great recipe, especially because I had everything on hand already. Used frozen peas and a handful of fresh spinach. This one is a keeper.
Made this tonight. Added 2 stalks celery and 1 cup water because I needed 5 servings and increased spices by 1/2 more. When I served it we squeezed about 1/2 tsp lemon juice into each bowl and added 1 tsp freshly grated Parmesan on top. If vegan, you could add nutritional yeast. Really sparked up the flavor. You have to try this soup.
Wow what a fabulous soup!! Another home run Jenn!! We are trying to follow a low fat plant based diet and I stumbled on this recipe looking at your green bean recipes and was so excited to try it!!!
I prepared it pretty close to your recipe but added a bit more black pepper and baby kale along with the green beans and peas.
It’s a lovely creamy, substantial soup!!! Certainly appropriate as a meal!! The hubby gave it two thumbs up!! It’s a keeper!
Loved this soup!! Definately making a double batch next time so I can add some to the freezer.
This was so, so good! And easy! And healthy!
I had friends to dinner with little notice and needed something quick that I could make with what I had on hand. Everybody absolutely loved this soup. It has such a unique and delicious flavor, and was hearty enough for the main course.
Jenn,
I made this last evening and it is yet another winner! So the only question I have, and I think it may have gotten the answer in other recipes, or somewhere else on your web page, releases to the salt. This particular recipe did not specify whether to use regular salt or kosher salt. I am aware that kosher salt or other large flake salt is preferred for most recipes, but I always wonder if I should sometimes use regular just for the iodine since my wife and I try not to use a lot of salt generally. Is there a general rule for your recipes? And thank you so much for all the great meals we have enjoyed because of you!
KF
Hi Kevin, So glad you enjoyed the soup! For my recipes, you should use regular table salt or fine sea salt unless otherwise specified. Hope that helps!