Instant Pot Red Lentil Soup
Creamy and delicious, this Red Lentil Soup recipe is perfect when you're looking for a soup that's full of rich and hearty creaminess but good for you too! Red lentils cook up quickly, plus we're using the Instant Pot to save even more time. All you need are a handful of pantry staples and fresh veggies to make it!
Why This Red Lentil Soup Instant Pot Version Rocks!
If you love soup instant pot recipes, you've got to try this Navy Bean Soup next!
Ingredients
- Coconut oil: Used for cooking the vegetables, which makes them a bit sweeter and more tender. Feel free to swap it for another variety of neutral oil if you prefer. I prefer to use a coconut oil that doesn't have any flavor.
- Veggies and Aromatics: Like most tasty soups, it gets its flavor from onions, carrots, celery, and fresh garlic. These deepen the soup base and boost the natural flavors in the broth you're using.
- Tomato paste: Lends a more robust and savory flavor to the broth.
- Red lentils: These lentils are actually pink before cooking. The are the quickest cooking lentil and tend to fall apart in the soup creating a natural creaminess. Yellow lentils will work similarly.
- Broth: You can use any type of broth you prefer, but vegetable stock keeps the vegetarian and vegan.
- Flavor boosters: A bay leaf adds herb-y flavor and fragrance to the soup while a small amount of red pepper flakes give it a little kick.
- Greens: These add a nice splash of color but also more nutrients to the soup. I love to add veggies, especially greens. They pretty much disappear into the background while making it healthier. You can use baby spinach, kale or arugula. Each has a slightly different flavor and texture but they all work great.
- Lemon zest and juice: Adds lemon flavor and a bit of acidity to the soup. It really brightens it up and I don't recommend skipping it. As an added bonus, it contains vitamin C which helps the body absorb the iron in your greens.
Be sure to check the recipe card further down the page for the full list of ingredients and quantities you need of each one.
How to Make Red Lentil Soup in the Instant Pot
Step 1: Get things started. Prep up all your veggies and gather the rest of the ingredients.
Step 2: Saute the veggies. Cook the onion, carrot and celery with the coconut oil using the saute setting on your Instant pot until softened. Add the garlic and cook one minute more.
Step 3: Add and cook. Add the red lentils, broth, tomato paste, and bay leaf to the cooked veggies. Cover with lid and cook on high pressure for 8 minutes.
Step 4: Release steam and add. Allow the heat to release naturally for about 5 minutes and then open the lid. Remove the bay leaf from the cooked soup. Then add the red pepper flakes and fresh greens, stirring them into the soup to wilt.
Step 5: Season. Add the lemon zest and juice to the pot. Taste and adjust the salt and pepper if desired.
Step 6: Serve and enjoy! Serve the soup in bowls and add your favorite toppings!
Handy Tip: Want It Smoother!
Red lentils do breakdown during cooking and add some creaminess to the soup but they do still have some texture. If you prefer a smoother soup, you can blend all or a portion of the soup to reach a consistency you enjoy. Use an immersion blender to do it right in the pot or transfer it carefully to a regular blender. Personally, I recommend doing this at the end of cooking just before adding the spinach. Once it's blended, add the spinach, lemon juice, zest, and red pepper flakes. Then give it a taste and adjust the seasonings.
Alternate Cooking Methods
- Stove Top: Saute the vegetables in the oil in a large soup pot or Dutch oven. Then add all the ingredients to the pot as directed and cook for 20 minutes or until the red lentils and vegetables are tender. It's important to slice the vegetables into small or thin pieces so they cook in the same amount of time as the lentils. When the soup is ready you can continue with the recipe as written.
- Slow Cooker: Saute the ingredients in a skillet or pan on the stove. Then add everything up through the bay leaf to a slow cooker. Cook on high for 2-3 hours or low for 4-5 hours. Once the lentils and vegetables are tender, finish the soup as directed in the recipe.
Dietary Modifications & Variations
- Creamier Texture: Besides blending the soup, you can also make it creamier by adding a can of coconut milk or one cup of heavy cream in place of some of the broth.
- Spicy: Even with the red pepper flakes added, the soup isn't that spicy. If you prefer it on the spicier side of things, I suggest adding some chilies to the soup as it cooks. You can remove them before serving or leave them in. Some favorites include slices of habanero or dried birds eye chilies.
- Different Seasonings and Herbs: Feel free to experiment with different seasoning blends. Turmeric and curry powder work great with red lentils. Add some lime juice and zest instead of the lemon. Sometimes I simply like to stir in some fresh herbs for a bit more flavor such as thyme and rosemary.
Soup-er Toppings
Toppings are a great way to add a splash of color, pop of flavor, or a bit of texture to soups. They go a long way to enhance the soup and turn it from something ordinary to something truly spectacular!
- My Favorite: A simple drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, a sprinkle of sumac, and some fresh parsley sprinkled over the top. The sumac really enhances the lemon flavor in the soup and the parsley adds a nice bit of color.
- Crunchy: Since this soup is on the creamy side of things adding a crunchy topping works great for a bit of contrasting texture. Consider adding some croutons, crackers, or wonton crisps on the soup.
- Herbs and Garnishes: Chopped fresh herbs, a lemon slice, and freshly cracked peppercorns are a few more ideas for topping your soup.
Storage Tips
- Leftovers: Refrigerate the soup in an airtight container for up to four days. To store for longer, freeze the soup in bags, containers, or Souper Cubes to extend the shelf-life. I like to transfer the soup from the cubes to storage containers once they're frozen. When stored properly, most soups may be frozen for up to three months.
- Reheat: Transfer the soup to a pot or pan and heat over medium heat for 5-10 minutes until heated through. If frozen, thaw it out in the fridge overnight before reheating. Alternatively, you can reheat individual bowls of soup in the microwave.
Expert Tips
- Don't Skip the Lemon. It really adds a brightness to the soup that makes it taste amazing! Sprinkle with a bit of sumac when serving for a stronger burst of lemon.
- Blend the Soup. If you prefer a creamy consistency, you can blend the soup after it cooks and before adding the spinach.
- Don't Use Natural Pressure Release. You want to use quick release after five minutes so the soup doesn't continue to cook while the pot is depressurizing.
- Turn off the Maintain Heat Setting. This keeps the soup warm while it is depressurizing, but I find it continues to cook the soup so I prefer to disengage it when making this soup, so my lentils retain a bit of texture.
- Slice Rather Than Dice. I find slicing the carrots and celery works best as they cook a bit more evenly and quickly than small dices.
Recipe FAQs
No, not really. Green and brown lentils require a longer cooking time and don't have the same texture when cooked as red lentils.
Not at all! Red lentils work well cooked straight from dry to make soup no matter the cooking method.
Sure thing! Simpy use the button in the recipe card to change the ingredients to 2X. It will automatically make the calculations for doubling the recipe. Just make sure you don't exceed the fill line on your pressure cooker when doubling the recipe. It will cook in the same amount of time but it will take longer to pressurize.
More of the Best Soup Recipes
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Easy Red Lentil Soup
Equipment
- Instant Pot or other similar electric pressure cooker
- Souper Cubes for freezing
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil or other vegetable oil
- 1 medium onion diced
- 1 carrot sliced
- 2 stalks celery sliced
- 3-4 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 ½ cups red lentils
- 6 cups broth (chicken, vegetable, or beef)
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 pinch - ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 6 ounces fresh greens spinach, kale, or arugula, chopped
- 1 fresh lemon zest and juice
- ½ - 1 teaspoon salt amount needed will vary by broth used and to taste.
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- Olive oil sumac, and /or fresh parsley, chopped for garnish
Instructions
- Heat the oil using the saute setting of your Instant Pot. Add onion, carrot and celery to the Instant pot. Cook until softened, about 5-8 minutes. Add garlic and cook one minute more.
- Add lentils, broth, tomato paste and bay leaf. Cover with lid and cook on high pressure for 8 minutes. Deactivate the maintain heat setting.
- Allow the heat to release naturally for about 5 minutes and then open the lid.
- Remove bay leaf. Add red pepper flakes and fresh greens. Stir the greens into soup to wilt.
- Add the lemon zest and juice to the pot.
- Add salt and pepper to taste.
Recipe Tips
- The lemon really adds a brightness to the soup that makes it taste amazing so I really recommend not skipping it! Sprinkle with a bit of sumac when serving for a stronger burst of lemon.
- If you prefer a creamy consistency, you can blend the soup after it cooks and before adding the spinach.
- You want to use quick release after five minutes so the soup doesn't continue to cook while the pot is depressurizing.
- Turn off the maintain heat setting which keeps the soup warm while it is depressurizing, but I find it continues to cook the soup so I prefer to disengage it when making this soup, so my lentils retain a bit of texture.
- I find slicing the carrots and celery works best as they cook a bit more evenly and quickly than small dices.
Nutrition
