Good, thick soup.
This soup is perfect for fall! I used fresh local celery, carrots and spinach. I substituted 4 cups of the water for veggie broth. I used Italian crushed tomatoes in place of the canned tomatoes because they have more flavor and are sweeter. This soup was so good and so cheap. It made a lot, which is great for the freezer. The most expensive ingredient I used was my 15 year old balsamic vinegar (so worth it as it complimented the soup fabulously).
The best lentil soup I ever had! I added 2 peeled, diced potatoes to the recipe. Definitely a keeper.
My husband discovered this recipe and enjoys making this for us. It is the best soup I've ever had and so healthy! Doesn't get any better than that! Definately need to cut the oil to about a tablespoon. Don't worry! It won't cut down the flavor drastically and it will make it a heck of a lot better for you.
Simply awesome...I added a potato, 2 beef bouillon cubes. This was the first time I made lentil soup, and I can assure, it won't be the last time I use this recipe.
I have been making this lentil soup for yearsand it's always a favorite! I have a hard time finding a 14 oz can of crushed tomatoes. I substitute a can of petite diced and add it in with its liquid. I also double or triple the spinach, depending on how much I have on hand. Using 4 C veg broth and 4 C water gives it a little added flavor.
This was a great soup! I adapted it a bit; I omitted the basil & oregano, but added thyme and an extra bay leaf. Also, since I was making it the crockpot, I increased the liquid to 10 cups of veggie broth. I used frozen spinach (half of a bag) and since I'm pregnant and still have some weird food aversions, I didn't even saute the veggies. I just added it all to the crockpot, except for the spinach, and cooked it on low all day. When I got home, I turned it to high, and added the spinach. Yummy!
I made this soup as written, except that I omitted the spinach and added four diced potatoes. Also, you should know that the type of vinegar you use is crucial. USE BALSAMIC. It makes the soup phenomenal. I know it sounds silly to think that two tablespoons of vinegar could make or break an entire pot of soup, but its true. Taste the soup right before you add the balsamic and you'll see what I mean. It takes the soup from standard to extraordinary.
This was very good hearty soup. However, I did some major adjustments, thanks to the help of other reviewers, particularly Leigh from Virginia. I used vegetable broth instead of water to give it more flavor (next time I will use more broth, as even with 12 cups of broth it still tasted more like a stew than a soup). Also I sauteed the onions and garlic together in about 2 tbsp. of olive oil (1/4 cup seemed excessive). Then I doubled the amount of oregano and basil, added 2 more bay leaves, as well as cumin and crushed red pepper flakes. I also added 1/2 lb of macaroni pasta. I omitted the tomatoes (because I didn't have any) and I didn't add the spinach and vinegar when I served it (I don't like wilted spinach and I think the vinegar would have made it taste too tart). So like the other reviewers said, once you "doctor it up" with more flavor this soup is a keeper!
I loved this soup. I used 1 Tablespoon of oil to cut down on the fat. It was very tasty, and has become a regular at our house.
Soup was very good. My husband loved it. I did not use vinegar and added a little red pepper. I used a can of tomato sauce and beef broth instead of water. I would definately make this soup again it's a winner.
A very good lentil soup! After eating the canned kind, this tastes 100x better and fresher. Like other reviewers, I used balsamic vinegar, which is unexpected but pleasant. Next time I would definitely cut down to 1 cup lentils - 2 cups soaked up almost all the broth. Delicious!
This is a fairly good recipe:) I would say that it makes 10-12 servings rather than just 6. I did not add spinach as I don't like it, but felt that it was missing cumin, so I added about 2 tsp of cumin and that did the trick. It's a really nice easy recipe.
This is one of my favorite recipes, by far. I personally like the consistency of pureed lentil soups, so that's how I prefer to eat this. If you don't mind adding in a little more fat, using bacon and its own grease for frying the vegetables at the beginning is great, as is going half/half with water and chicken stock. Worcestershire sauce is also a good substitute for vinegar if you prefer. Lots of options to modify to your own personal tastes, but this recipe is also great just as it is. Thank you so much for posting it!
I really enjoyed this, I had so much left over and it only got better each time I had it! Thanks again!
Big hit with the family. Did not add the spinach or the vinegar. Still a big hit and the great news is that I have leftovers!
My husband and I enjoyed it but we added an extra can of chicken broth, more fresh garlic, a cup of diced ham for even greater flavor. Don't forget some parmesan cheese on top when serving. Good soup for a cold winter day.
Delicious tasty and comforting. I used 4 cloves of garlic instead of 2 and 6c chicken broth and 2c water instead of all water. It makes a lot of soup! The vinegar and spinach really set this one apart. Thank you for such an easy and healthy recipe!
This wasn't very good to me. I made it exactly as written and I am a big fan of lentils, but I wasn't impressed with this version of lentil soup.
I like to try a posters recipe first, no additions. I mean, their creation, they're sharing it for a reason, so try it. When it says salt and pepper to taste, you usually think, a tsp here, a dab there, you'll find the right flavor. I had to pour salt and pepper in, then went for the strongly flavored adobo to save the soup. There's a reason so many people here put several changes on this recipe, it's really just a bland base. That dissapointed me since I really like to try what the poster wants to share. If I do this one again I'm definitely going with the chickstock WITH salt instead of water. I wish there was no water listed in the recipe, definitely a problem that'll result in you trying to make up for it later.
This recipe is simple and delicious. It's tastier than any lentil soup I've had in a restaurant. I added 3 large carrots and 3 celery stalks, 4 garlic cloves and a little more oregano and basil. I used 8 cups of chicken broth instead of water which eliminated the need to salt. I also added much more spinach and smoked turkey sausage. This is definitely a keeper.
Great savory, easy, and healthy recipe! And room to customize! I went with several other recommendations to double the spices, and double the carrots. I had some fresh tomatoes that I chopped into medium pieces instead of using canned. You might find you like it more "soupy" and want to add a couple cups of water during the cooking process. And finally, instead of using balsamic vinegar, I used about half a can (about 3 oz) of tomato paste (not a huge fan of vinegar). Be sure to add salt after the beans have cooked! Followed another reviewer's lead and put some cut up spicy sausage in my BF's bowl. Served with some garlic bread to dunk with, delicious and healthy!!!
This was great, however, it needs to be made with broth rather than water. I used diced tomatoes instead of crushed. I also used only 1 T of oil to saute the veggies and added 1 tsp of cumin. Next time I'd like to add a little curry as well. My kids all ate it and some friends loved it too!
VERY DELISH! I used a 28oz can of crushed tomatoes and cut back on the water and I didn't have any spinach. I blended the soup to make it more cream-like and froze some for lunches. Very easy, healthy and delicious! Even my picky husband likes it so that says a lot right there!
I made the Northern India version by adding 1 TBS of the seasoning, Masala in place of oregano, bay leaf and basil. As suggested by others, i used less oil and more carrot, celery and garlic. It came out like a thick stew rather than a soup. This is such a delicious and heartwarming food for a rainy night. i served it over white rice but brown rice would probably have been good as well.
The soup itself was very tasty, but there are FAAAR too many lentils in it. IF I ever made it again (doubtful), I would at least halve the lentils. My kids did not care for it, though they are kids, and it is more of a grown-up taste (unless they eat lots of lentils).
I made this recipe EXACTLY as written and it was excellent. It was a very "lentily" lentil soup. Next time I think I will add a full can of tomatoes. Other than that it is perfect. I tried both vinegar and lemon at the end with a small amount of the soup and preferred the lemon. I have made this twice and used green lentils once and black the next. Prefer green.
Very Good - I am home on this rainy cold day with my son who has the flu. I made this recipe with what I had on hand and it was great. I think with the addition of the spinach and celery that the recipe calls for it would be nearly perfect!! My changes.... Home-made tomato sauce to replace diced. Left out the spinach/celery because I didn't have any. I did add some celery seed. I also took some other reviewers advice and used veg broth in place of the water. Thanks for the recipe!!
Great, healthy soup! I made a few changes based on the other reviews which is why I gave this 4 stars. I doubled the recipe so I would have a lot left over for the week. Based on that, I added an extra tsp each of basil and oregano. Even though I doubled the recipe, I still only used 2 cups of lentils because I like it brothy. I actually used 20 cups of water in all. I added 4 vegetable bouillon cubes, some crushed red pepper, and a little lemon juice. Fabulous!
this is a very good soup but i added sweet italian sausage to it and it makes it very good. thank you for another great recipe!
In all honesty, I had never made soup or anything from a recipe until I followed these simple directions. I was married for 10 years and my wife did all the cooking. We divorced and in bachelorhood, most of my meals were either pan fried, or came out of the microwave. I have always loved lentil soup, but even that was canned; I never had it home made. All I can say is wow! Not only did making the soup from this recipe give me a sense of accomplishment, it was delicious! I substituted a small splash of Tabasco sauce for the ground black pepper and it really enhanced the flavor. I can’t believe that I made it ( with this great recipe of course). There is nothing like a hot bowl of soup on a cold winter day. I would definitely recommend it.
Great tasting! I made this during a snowstorm. so I substituted VERY freely, using whatever vegetables I had on hand but keeping the seasoning the same. (Fortunately, I did have lentils!) Instead of onion, carrots, celery, & spinach, I used two leeks and the bok choy I found in the fridge; the canned tomatoes were diced, not crushed, & contained mild chili peppers. Since I had an open container of chicken broth that needed to be used up, I substituted that (minus the container) for some of the water. My only change that was not dictated by circumstances was my substitution of lemon juice for vinegar. The soup I ended up with was delicious. We tried adding shredded cheese on top & liked it even better. If I had had access to a grocery store, I still couldn't have used carrots & celery because my husband is allergic to them. But if I had no limitations imposed by snow or allergies, I think I'd keep the diced tomatoes with chili peppers and the lemon juice, just to add a little more character.
Very good. We never have celery around so I just added more onion/carrot and it was still great. Balsamic vinegar makes ALL the difference in the world. This recipe makes a TON - we kind of got sick of leftovers (there are just 2 of us)! Next time I'll plan on freezing half so we don't get lentil burnout.
This Lentil Soup recipe is about as good as it gets, use vegatable or chicken both as a base (6-7 cups maximum if you like a thicker soup)...add 1 tsp ground cumin, 3/4 tsp curry powder, 1 extra carrot, 4-5 cloves of garlic, no salt, stewed tomatoes, basalmic vinegar, 2 bay leaves, if you like meat add 1/4 lb of pre-cooked chicken 15 minutes into cooking for more flavor. Serve with a crusty bread & salad and you have a satisfying meal...enjoy!
This was pretty good. I used water because I didn't have broth on hand, so I doubled the spices and vinegar. I used half balsamic and half red wine vinegars. I also added a dash of crushed red pepper and generous amounts of black pepper. I went easy on the salt. The lentils cooked through in about 45 minutes. It was good right away, but the leftovers are better now that the flavors have had a chance to blend.
Very easy to make. I read a few things about lentils after trying to make this soup. I read that using salt or acidic ingredients with the lentils before they are cooked can make them tough or mealy. So what I did was used 8 cups of no salt beef broth and I omitted the tomatoes and I used sun dried tomatoes diced up and put them in at the same time as the garlic. I added two small sweet potatoes diced with the onions and carrots. I made up some mini meatballs of beef and spicy Italian sausage(casing removed)..The best spices I found to pair up for making the meatballs was cumin seed, dried thyme, oregano and basil...dried chilies are a great add in too and chili powder is good added to the soup itself before the broth goes in also just a tsp is enough to change it up. This is a great base recipe so there is lots of ways you can flavour it to your liking adding curry or Thai flavours like lemon grass would be fun too instead of the Italian tomatoey flavour. This is my favourite soup recipe on this site, thanks for sharing it.
This was fabulous! I added alittle more spice,veggie broth & 2 potatoes as suggested by another review, also used fresh plum tomatoes instead of canned. Even better the next day! An absolute winner, thanks Marie!
this is the best! Use Mexican stewed tomatoes for a really nice taste. I added about a T. of Tuscan balsamic vinegar at the end of cooking time.
Wow, This is a great recipe! I did make a few adjustments. Doubled the carrots & celery, Doubled the garlic, used half chicken stock and half water & added diced sweet potatoes in the last 15 mins. Also instead of adding the spinach to the soup I placed the spinach in the serving bowl and let the heat of the soup wilt the spinach. Served with toasted garlic bread. Even my husband who is a meat eater loved it!
This is a comforting healthy soup for a winter day! I made a few changes to the recipe. I increased the ratio to 5 carrots, 3 celery stalks and 5 cloves of garlic. I used 4 cups of chicken broth and 4 cups of water. I also added 1/4 tsp of cumin. Right before the hour of simmering was complete I added 1 9oz bag of spinach chopped. The added veggies really helped to balance the amount of lentils. Advice: make sure to use balsamic vinegar as it gives the soup tang!
Made as written. Pretty good, very "Italian" tasting (not necessarily a bad thing!) I think would be five stars with beef.
Excellent recipe! I used balsamic vinegar, as recommended, as well as added some zucchini. I've never made lentil soup before and I dare say, it's the best I've ever had.
Very nice and versatile. Even my kids love this one. I add 2 cans of tomatoes instead of 1 and no vinegar. I also use chicken broth in place of water. You could really do anything to this and it would be yummy. I add cut up low fat turkey keilbasa and that works great.
I added cumin and curry powder like some ppl suggested...I would definitely not recommend doing it...the flavours were all messed up...I don't know how much I would like this soup even without the extra spices, though.
I subbed more crushed tomatoes + chicken broth instead of the water and I also added some bacon for taste....all in all it was a decent recipe that I'm sure I'll use again. It's very versatile and easy to make your own depending on your personal tastes. I did add the vinegar but I'm not sure why...what does it do?
I love lentil soup and I love this recipe. Everyone who tried this soup could not stop talking about it. Thank you for a great lentil soup recipe.
Excellent healthy soup!! I added cooked turkey sausage otherwise followed the recipe exact and it turned out very good! Served it with a crusty whole grain bread and sprinkles of parmesan cheese.
This was really good! I made a batch for my family and even my dad[the vegetable hater] liked it! I used ~7 cups of water, two bay leaves, and more celery and carrots. Mmmmm!!
This recipe made as written is pretty bland. Only after using chicken broth, doubling the spices, and adding cumin and red pepper flakes did it seem to come together. The vinegar at the end is a great touch that I never would have thought of though.
This turned out great. I made this as written except used 1 cup less water and it was good. I plan on making this one again.
Here is a very yummy lentil soup recipe (see below for my modifications). I was worried it would be heavy and not nice with this hot weather, but it is *great* chilled and very tasty. The vinegar adds a nice "coolness" to the soup... My modifications: removed celery, removed bay leaf; subbed 29 oz can of stewed tomatoes for crushed tomatoes; subbed veggie stock for water; subbed canned lentils for dry lentils (so only cooked soup for 30 minutes, and added lentils in before spinach); added 2 potatoes. Simply divine!! It has been feeding me for a week - lots of soup.
Great recipe. I slightly modified and made it for my boyfriend and I. I used a pound of Italian sausage uncased and browned, a can of stewed tomatoes which I chopped up and omitted the spinach. I also added extra garlic, a couple beef bullion cubes and 3 Tbs balsamic vinegar for extra flavor.
This is my first attempt at making lentil soup, and I'm quite happy with it. I did alter the recipe as suggested by so many of the other reviews. I more than doubled the spices, garlic, and spinach. I even added a teaspoon of curry. I used 6 cups of chicken broth and 2 cups of water. I pureed half the soup amount to add texture. I used little olive oil. I enjoyed it greatly...made a lot more than 6 servings...but I froze half (didn't add the spinach to that portion), so no prob. Great, simple and healthy recipe.
This was a great base for lentil soup. I did use chicken stock instead of water, and added a tad of cumin and one large potato cut in chunks. I also cut the other veggies into chunks as well. If you cut them too small they practically disappear by the time the lentils are finished cooking which was one and a half hours. Used balsamic vinegar because that's all I had. Served with cornbread---very hearty meal on a cold, rainy night.
This recipe is so easy and tasty. I have made this several times. Makes a large amount. My son takes it to work in a thermos.
I have had this recipe for 8 years now and have been a fan of it ever since.I had never reviewed it and since I made it tonight I wanted to add my stars worth. I always get floods of compliments and never a drop is spared. While I have done several of the variations indicated by other reviewers, I think what I really appreciate about this recipe is that it is easy, tastes delicious as listed, and the varied suggestions are really good and just add different dimensions depending on your audience. Excellent!!!
I love lentil soup and this recipe is one of my favorites. I double the vegetables and garlic. Also, I blend a couple of cups of the soup at the end. That binds the broth and the rest of the ingredients together and gives the soup a smoother consistency.
Great recipe! Although I changed a couple of things around. I added a bit more of the spices than listed. Replaced plain vinegar with balsamic vinegar, added in squash, half vegetable stock half water, didn't add the bay leaf . Served with a side of white rice and added mozzarella and Parmesan cheese to my bowl. Wish I would've added another small can of tomato chunks though, or tomato sauce but the recipe was still great !
good flavor, it gets better after overnught refrigeration, but we just we not that crazy about it
I used a lg can of crushed tomatoes and a box of frozen spinach. Added about a tablespoon and a half of vegetable soup base, and probably 1 1/2 tsp of basil and oregano. Also, 3 or 4 cloves garlic and a generous 3 T of Balsamic Vinegar. Salt and pepper to taste. Delicious!
My main comment is that this soup does NOT make 6 servings, more like 12. I made this for my roommate and I (using all of the suggestions listed, definitely add the sausage - yum!) and while it was a good soup, not our favorite, but definitely good, it made way too much for us. Maybe instead of increasing all of the spices etc, only use half of the water/broth if you want 6 servings.
I made this recipe twice in the last two weeks and will continue to make it. It is the best soup I ever tasted. My husband loved it also. It is vegetarian and gluten free and healthy. I did not have a bay leaf, so I omitted it. I used balsamic vinegar. I also subbed frozen spinach for fresh. When I first made this recipe, I thought what is vinegar doing in soup, but it made all the flavors come together. Delicious.
I made this in the crockpot and it turned out just great! I cooked it for 6 hrs. on low. I used 3 cups of water, 3 cups of chicken broth, and 2 cups of V-8 juice in place of the water, and substituted a can of diced tomatoes for the crushed tomatoes. As someone else suggested, I added a bit of smoked sausage ( which I thinly sliced and browned before I added the last hr.. the men in my family think they need meat) Not only was it good tasting, it was a gorgeous looking soup. I'll make it again.
Great base recipe. I doubled the spices, added chicken broth and potatoes.
I recently joined Weight Watchers. By lowering the amount of olive oil used from 1/4 cup to 1/8 cup, the point count was only 6 points for this delicious, rib-sticking main dish soup.
THis is lentil soup as it should be! Don't know why we have to cook it for at least one hour. The spinach is a healthy addition and adds good colour. I am trying to think of how to give it a bit of pazazz. Maybe a shot of chilli sauce? Great dish
I would reduce the amount of vinegar, it seemed to overpower the soup. Otherwise - very comforting soup.
This is a great starter recipe. I substituted chicken broth once and vegetable broth the other time. I felt there weren't enough spices added so I greatly increased the current measurements plus added some garam masala. When done cooking I pureed half of the soup in a blender then added back into pot. WONDERUL! Served with some fresh homemade bread this is perfect for a cold day.
Luscious Lentils! Cooked in the pressure cooker for 20 min at pressure, then a little pureeing. I added cumin, dash of curry, and increased all the spices and spinach for a more flavorful soup. It's hearty and very healthful!
I decided to try this recipe because it seemed like a lentil minestrone, and while my husband isn't fond of more typical lentil soups, I thought he might go for this one. I was right. He even promises to help eat the leftovers. I made the recipe almost as written, only substituting vegetable broth for water, increasing the quantities of garlic and spinach, and adding macaroni to increase the resemblance to minestrone. I will almost certainly make this again when I have my husband to feed and am in the mood for lentils.
Delish! This recipe was very cheap and easy to make! Based on the reviews I changed it up a bit. I used 4 carrots and replaced the celery with a drained can of green beans. I used 4 cloves of garlic, added a tsp of cumin and a tsp of curry powder,a 28oz can of crushed tomatoes, 4 cups of chicken broth and 4 cups of water, a full cup of finely diced spinach and a few dashes of red pepper flakes and paprika. My husband and I are trying to eat less meat andhe is also very picky, but he ate two big bowls of this soup. My 2 year old son also loved it. There were plenty of leftovers so I froze some and tossed the rest in the freezer. It makes about 3 meals for my family of 3. I will be making this at least once a week!
This is a wonderful lentil soup recipe. I made it exactly as directed (I am a garlic lover, so I added extra) and the only thing I will do differently next time is add just a bit more water, for a "soupier" soup. Lentil soup is not only delicious, but so low in fat and calories while chock full of protein. This recipe is just about perfect!
This is hands down the BEST lentil soup I've ever had and everyone who tastes it loves it too! I add 4 cloves of garlic to give it a bit more spice, then about a half hour before serving, I add cubed red potatoes. I usually serve it with corn bread and smoked sausage. Thanks for sharing Marie!
Very good! With the suggestions from others it came out with a lot of flavor. *I used 8 cups of low salt chicken broth instead of water. *1 Tablespoon of Balsamic vinegar was enough. *Added 4 slices of cooked, crumbled lower salt bacon.
Delicious! This reminded me of the lentil soup my mom made when I was growing up. I followed the recipe for the most part, but added fresh mushrooms, omitted the onions, used stewed tomatoes instead of crushed, and threw in more spinach than called for. I also added some crushed red pepper flakes for a little heat and used lemon juice instead of vinegar at the end. Really tasty and perfect on this cold, rainy day. I will make this again, thank you :)
This was great. I loved it and my husband loved it. I've tried other recipes that called for pototes and they were just too heavy - this was great. Oh and I have to add my husband wanted meat with his so I baked some sausages seperately and cut them up and put them in his bowl.
This was an enormous hit with my family (including children ages 8, 5, and 2)! Of course, I added a bunch more spices, etc. because that's how I roll, but I believe this would stand as is just fine!
I took earlier reviewer's advice and substituted 1/4 of total water with burgandy and another 1/4 of water w/chicken stock. I also (apologies to vegans) added a ham hock. This was delicious. The flavor and smell of this soup is enough to send you into "ever-ever" land!
This is good if you play around with it to suite your tastes. I used veggie broth and a lot more than called for as I wanted it soupier. I doubled the spices like many have suggested and used balsamic vinegar (a little less than called for, it's a bit overpowering to my tastes). I added extra spinach as it really cooks down and the whole 28 oz can of crushed tomatoes. Much better than canned lentil soups, but I did feel it was missing something.
Wow- after all the good reviews, I thought this would be a shoe-in. Instead, it was a bland lentil soup. If we try this again, I will sub veggie broth for water. I was underimpressed. Adding some fat free sour cream on top at the end helped a little.
My husband loves lentils. That leaves me trying to find ways to use them quite often. I made this recipe for him and he LOVED it. My 3 kids loved it as well. I did use 2 bay leaves, but my husband said it was too powerful and to just use the one that the recipe calls for next time. This is a definite keeper in our house. We will be making this again and again.
We thought it was just okay. It didn't have as much flavor as I had expected. My husband didn't care for it...I think it is the texture of the lentils that he dislikes in particular. Most of the soup went to waste.
This is so good!!! I added sausage and a little more of the veggies. I cut the oil in half (probably don't even need it) and only used 6 cups of water cause I love thicker soups. Added a touch of cumin, rosemary, and dried parsley. I didn't have bay whole bay leaves, so I didn't add any.
Yum!!! I used chicken broth instead of water, added pepper flakes, extra garlic, and liberally used italian seasoning instead of oregano & basil. I also skipped the vinegar & spinach at the end because it was already so good. Thank you!
Very delicious! As other commenter mentioned, I used 4 cups water & 4 cups broth. I also used balsamic vinegar, which really did add something special. I doubled the carrots & celery as well as adding 1 chopped zucchini near the end of cooking. I used frozen spinach, which I just tossed in near the end and I pulsed the whole thing with my immersion blender, which made the consistency a little thicker, which was nice. A great success for my first attempt at making lentil soup!
I really wanted to be a fan of lentils, but this recipe was just ok. Its a nice healthy meal that is just lacking a little in the flavor department. I'll tinker with the leftovers so maybe my opinion will change soon...
I liked this more than my husband which is why I only gave it 3 stars. I think my husband would have liked less basil. Anyway, I added some vinegar to some of the soup when reheating it & I liked the batch without the vinegar better. The spinach is a nice touch. You need to be sure to add enough salt (& pepper) for flavoring. One other thing-I had to add more cups of water as the water evaporated during cooking. I added more water when I reheated portions too as it was just too thick.
I've made lentil soup many times and it has always been "good." This recipe is "amazing!" I did add spicy Italian sausage for additional protein and flavor, but this recipe would be excellent without it, too. The vinegar (I used Balsamic) at the end is the secret ingredient that makes good lentil soup into amazing lentil soup, so don't leave it out!
Fantastic soup. It's delicious just as it is or can be modified with more vegetables and/or additional spices. Just make sure you add enough salt!
Good soup. I used a lot of the earlier suggestions. I decreased the olive oil, added more carrots, 4 cloves of garlic, more spinach, chicken stock instead of water, added a potato, pureed 1/2 to 2/3 of the soup, added some parsley and used white basalmic vinegar. Still needed a bit more of something that I can't put my finger on. But it is good and does freeze well.
The spinach adds some much needed colour. Try topping with shredded swiss. An excellent recipe for leftovers.
I am eating this soup as I type this review. I have made a lot of lentil soup recipes, but this is the best basic recipe I've found. I tweaked it similar as others did, by tripling the herbs; I also cut the liquid by 2 cups using 2 cans chicken broth and 1 cup water, and I used 1 c red lentils and 1 c green lentils. When dished in the bowl, I added 1/4 tsp salt and a good squirt of sriracha to add my beloved heat. After these, it was excellent. I believe I would have found the recipe "as is" very bland. Hope this helps.
