This Curry Lentil Soup with Spinach recipe uses simple, plant-based ingredients to make a delicious and nourishing lunch or dinner. It’s an easy to make recipe that you’ll want to add to your meal prep rotation, especially during cooler months.
Looking for more hearty and warming recipes? Try my Carrot Cauliflower Coconut Ginger Soup or Sweet Potato Noodle Glow Bowls.
This curry lentil soup is like a blanket for your body
I did not think I would be making curry lentil soup this time of year. It’s March in Atlanta. Where is the sunshine, 75 degree temps and cloudless skies? I wish I knew. For now, this glowing bowl of curry lentil soup will have to be the ray of sun illuminating my dreary sky.
In lieu of turning the thermostat to 78 degrees and overheating my hubby, I opted to get warm with this curry lentil soup instead. Warming turmeric, protein from lentils and iron from spinach make this soup like a nice blanket for your insides. Ladling this piping hot soup into bowls and enjoying it right away makes it the perfect meal to carry you through the final stretch of winter.
And if it’s any consolation for having to eat soup in March, long sunny days of green smoothies, watermelon jerky and iced matchas are right around the corner.
Thirty Minutes from Start to Soup
This curry lentil soup is incredibly easy to make. It’s a one pot wonder, and takes just thirty minutes from start to finish. There is 10 minutes of prep time and 20-30 minutes waiting for the lentils to cook.
- Start by sautéing garlic, onion, and celery in olive oil
- Next, add cumin and curry to the pot and toast until fragrant
- Add in the vegetable broth, coconut milk, tomatoes, carrots, and lentils.
- Then, cover the pot and cook until the lentils are tender
- Finally, add in the spinach or other leafy greens of your choice until cooked. Then, that’s it!
The Inspiration
Whole Foods is my happy place. On uneventful Saturday nights, I’m known to roam the aisles and I promise you it takes my happy level from a 4 to a 8.5 in an instant. The lights. The colors. The hot bar. It’s magic. When I’m hungry and don’t want to pay $12 for hot bar green beans, pulled chicken and sweet potatoes I could make at home, I go for a cup of their Lentil Dal soup. It’s got coconut milk, spinach, lentils and warming spices perfect for warming me up.
The Goodness Inside
Now that I’m trying to save money and cook more at home, I realized I could easily make this myself and even add a few more greens to the mix. This recipe contains about 10 cups of spinach, which gets you plenty of iron, plant protein, and anti-inflammatory properties. Plus, it’s practically tasteless and shrivels down to nothing. What’s not to love?
How to Make Curry Lentil Soup
As usual, easy is the name of the game around here. Onion, celery and carrots are sauteed in olive oil until tender. Then you add vegetable broth, lentils, coconut milk, spices and an extra hit of green veggies to the pot and simmer until the lentils are fully cooked. About 30 minutes. Then, spoon the soup into bowls and there you go. Lunch. Dinner. Linner. Whatever.
Substitution Ideas
I used spinach as my greens here, but kale, chard, collard greens and cabbage would all be lovely substitutions to this recipe. I love that greens can be added in handfuls without taking away from the flavor of a recipe. It also eliminates having to make a green vegetable on the side, which was customary in my home growing up.
I went with fresh spinach. Frozen spinach can be used as well. Be mindful of the extra water content in frozen vegetables. You will need less vegetable broth if you go with this route.
Lastly, full-fat coconut milk will make this soup more rich and flavorful. If you are watching your cholesterol or limiting saturated fats, you can substitute with light coconut milk, or use less than a full can.
Storage
The nice thing about this curry lentil soup is that you can make a ton at one time and easily save it for later. I scoop 1-2 cups into my favorite glass containers prevent freezer burn. Then, you can simply thaw out one or two bags at a time for a quick lunch or dinner.
Vegan, One Pot Curry Lentil Soup with Spinach
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tsp garlic minced
- 1 medium onion
- 2 stalks celery
- 1 tbsp curry powder
- 1 tsp cumin
- 32 oz vegetable broth
- 8 oz spinach
- 14.5 oz diced tomatoes
- 2 cups carrots diced
- 1 c red lentils
- 14.5 oz coconut milk
- salt to taste
- pepper to taste
Instructions
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Chop onion, carrots and celery into 1/4 inch pieces
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Heat olive oil in large pot on medium low.
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Sautée garlic for one minute. Add onion and sautée until translucent. About one minute
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Add celery and spices. Sautée until fragrant. About two minutes.
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Add vegetable broth, diced tomatoes, coconut milk, lentils, and carrots. Close the lid to the pot and turn heat to medium low. Cook until lentils are tender. About 30 minutes.
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Add spinach, salt and pepper to taste. Close lid for 1-3 more minutes until spinach is cooked. Serve.
For more warming, nourishing meals, check out my:
Carrot Cauliflower Coconut Ginger Soup