This Italian Lentil Soup is your everyday Lentil Soup. A hearty nutritious bowl of plant based powerhouse made with lots of veggies, lentils, herbs and seasonings. Super easy to make & ready in 15 minutes. Vegan, Gluten-Free, Oil-Free. Meal-Prep and Freezer Meal Option. Instant Pot and Stove top recipe included. Video Recipe.
Italian Lentil Soup
This Italian Lentil Soup is the easiest soup to make on the planet. It definitely qualifies for a highly nutritious soup as it’s loaded with veggies, lentils, herbs and seasonings. Lots of flavors that will make you want more servings. Comfort food at it’s best.
Vegetarian/Vegan or not, this soup is a great source of protein and dietary fiber. It’s light yet filling and perfect for any palate.
It can be the perfect main or side dish that requires 10 easily available ingredients, 15 minutes and an Instant Pot.I have also shared the stove top recipe in the recipe card below. It is by far one of the easiest lentil soups I’ve ever had and also the most flavorful.
All you need to do is toss in all the ingredients in the Instant Pot, set it for 15 minutes and go finish some chores. When the timer beeps, come back to enjoy a delicious comforting bowl of soup.
What goes into this Italian Lentil Soup, Lentil Soup Ingredients
Nothing fancy, honestly. Inspired by the classic Minestrone Soup, all I do is toss in everyday ingredients readily available at home and replace the pasta with lentils. You can use whatever veggies you have. I typically use, onions, tomatoes, squash or zucchini & celery. You could even throw in some greens like spinach or kale if you’d like.
The Italian herbs and seasonings go very well in this soup. If you’d like to experiment different flavors and variations of this soup, you can tweak the flavors with some curry powder, or some abodo seasoning, or even some zataar spice mix. I also like to add a little garlic as it just takes the soup to the next level.
For the soup base you can either add water or vegetable broth. If you don’t mind the extra nutrition go for the vegetable broth. Adding the broth will make the soup towards a brownish color. If you like a bright red color soup, then just stick to the tomatoes and water instead of the broth.
Which Lentil to use for lentil soup
You can add any dried lentils to this soup like red, green or brown. I’ve used dried green lentils for this recipe. You can see the picture below. The only lentils that you don’t want to use for this soup are the Black Beluga lentils or the French Puy lentils. These black variety of lentils will not soften like other lentils.
What’s awesome is that you don’t even need to soak the dried lentils. Just a couple or rinses and the lentils can be used directly. Dried lentils also give a great texture to the soup from the starch released when cooked.
How to make the best Italian Lentil Soup : Recipe
This is the easy part. Just throw in all the ingredients into the Instant Pot and set the timer on High Pressure for 15 minutes. No sauteing of the onions or soaking of lentils required.
What makes this Instant Pot Italian Lentil Soup so good
Trust me when I say this, you are going to want seconds and thirds of the lentil soup. Try it yourself. The secret ingredient to make this lentil soup yum, is adding a dash of freshness, freshly squeezed lemon juice just before serving. Sure to tantalize your tastebuds and retains the nice vibrant color of the soup.
Here is why you should try this Instant Pot Italian Lentil Soup
- Love at first sip, because its seriously delicious
- Full of flavors
- Plant based
- Heart healthy
- Lots of fiber and protein
- Super easy to make, ready in 15 minutes.
- Soon will become your family favorite
- Vegan + Gluten Free + Oil Free
- Versatile
- Budget friendly
- Meal Prep + Freezer Meal + Make ahead + Lunchbox
Can you Meal Prep or make a Freezer Meal
Honestly prepping the ingredients for this soup isn’t time consuming. However if you’d still like to meal prep this soup then I’d recommend storing all the chopped veggies, herbs and seasonings in a freezer safe container. When you want to make the soup just toss in the ingredients in the Instant Pot and add the broth or water.
For a freezer meal, I would make a large batch of this soup and store it in single serve freezer safe mason jars or freezer containers, filling it 3/4th. Freeze it with the lid off for the first 24 hours so the glass doesn’t break and then cover with the lip after the first 24 hours. Thaw it by removing it from the freezer the night before consumption. If it’s thick for you, water it down with a couple tablespoons of water, heat it and enjoy it warm.
Longevity of this Instant Pot Italian Lentil Soup
This soup will keep in the freezer for 3 months. In the fridge, this soup will keep for 3-4 days depending on the freshness of the ingredients.
So I hope you do consider trying this soup as Lentils are good for you. Make it for lunch / dinner or for your next potluck. When you try it and fall in love with this soup, don’t forget to come back and leave us a comment, sharing your feedback. We love hearing from you. Or tag us on Instagram @dbellyrulesdmind.
More Lentil Recipes
- Instant Pot Dal Tadka (Restaurant style Yellow Dal)
- Instant Pot Dal Makhani (Restaurant style Black Dal)
- Might Mung Breakfast Salad
Italian Lentil Soup
This Italian Lentil Soup is your everyday Lentil Soup. A hearty nutritious bowl of plant based powerhouse made with lots of veggies, lentils, herbs and seasonings. Super easy to make & ready in 15 minutes. Vegan, Gluten-Free, Oil-Free. Meal-Prep and Freezer Meal Option. Instant Pot and Stove top recipe included.
Ingredients
- 1 onion, diced
- 1 carrot, diced
- 2 tomatoes, diced
- 2 celery stalks, diced
- 1 zucchini, diced
- 1 tsp garlic minced
- 1 tbsp tomato sauce
- 3 cups low sodium vegetable broth
- 1 cup dried green lentils, rinsed
- 1 tbsp Italian herb mix
- salt to taste
- Garnishing
- 1 tbsp cilantro / parsley for garnish
- 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
Instructions
Instant Pot Instructions
- Toss all ingredients in the Instant Pot, except for the garnish
- Pressure Cook the Soup on 'High' for 15 mins.
- Quick Release Pressure when the timer goes off.
- Garnish with lemon juice and your choice of herb.
- Serve it warm.
Stove Top Instructions
- Toss all ingredients in a large pot, except for the garnish
- Bring to boil and then reduce heat to medium-low, cover and simmer for 40 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Garnish with lemon juice and your choice of herb.
- Serve it warm
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
4Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 110Total Fat: 1gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 425mgCarbohydrates: 21gFiber: 7gSugar: 7gProtein: 7g
All information and tools presented and written within this site are intended for informational purposes only. We are not a certified nutritionist and any nutritional information on TheBellyRulesTheMind.net should only be used as a general guideline. This information is provided as a courtesy and there is no guarantee that the information will be completely accurate. Even though we try to provide accurate nutritional information to the best of our ability, these figures should still be considered estimates.
Tom the Guitar Guy says
Can you add canned hominy?
Sher says
Hi! This sounds and looks delicious and I plan to try making it today! Do you add lemon to instant pot and then additional lemon juice when serving? Or only add the lemon juice once just before serving? Thank you!
Anvita says
Hi sher, would suggest to add the lemon as needed after it is ready…just before serving .Do share your feedback with us.
Jen says
Very easy to prepare and oh so delicious! Will be making this weekly! Thank you for sharing your recipe.
Anvita says
Hi Jen, so glad to hear that! Thanks for sharing your experience with us.
Lisa Saf says
I recently started using my IP. I’d like to add spinach to the recipe. Should I add prior to pressure cooking or after? Also, should I add a bit more broth if using additional vegetables? Thank you so much for the recipe.
Bev says
Thanks so much for sharing this recipe. Tried it and we both loved it. So easy. We also add a small swirl of olive oil with squeeze of lemon on top. Thanks again!
Anvita says
Oh this sounds yum. Thank you for your feedback. Appreciate it.
Michelle says
This recipe is so easy, delicious and satisfying! Next time I may add spinach.
Kathy Pellatt says
This recipe is a keeper and will be in my regular rotation! I loved that I had all the ingredients at home, so I whipped it up quickly one morning and had it for lunch. I followed the recipe exactly, adding the lemon and cilantro at serving time. I loved the cilantro but thought I would substitute basil when I served it to my daughters the next day. The basil added a nice touch, but personally I prefer the cilantro!
Ruth Foran says
This was very easy! – I used the whole 32oz container of vegetable broth. Yum! Will be taking to work tomorrow with some lemons and parsley, and sharing with a co-worker that does Vegetarian.
Anvita says
Thanks Ruth for sharing your experience with us😍 enjoy it with your co-workers ❤️
Brooklyn says
Soup is really good. It’s actually my first time eating lentils. I did the recipe exactly as written and it was perfect to me. The lemon is a must.
Janice Fjerstad says
Can you use already cooked lentils in it and can you substitute tomato paste for the tomato sauce?
Anvita says
Yea Janice you could use already cooked lentils. There is a chance that the lentils could be mushy depending on how cooked are your lentils. If you are using tomato paste dilute it with half a cup of water and then use it. Let me know if you try this recipe. Hope you like it.
Colleen says
It was wonderful, just as the recipe was. I didn’t have tomatoes so I used a bit more pasta spice. My hubby love it as well.
TheBellyRulesTheMind says
Thank you for your feedback Colleen. Appreciate it. Glad your hubby liked your tweak. Spices is the key in soups, they add so much flavor.
Mindy says
Absolutely delicious! Mine was fairly thick, too, but I know I can thin with a little more stock on reheat. I made the recipe as written and would maybe only add a little more liquid. But otherwise, I loved the flavors. Also loved dumping all the ingredients in and letting the IP do it’s thing. Didn’t miss sautéing any of the veggie first! Wasn’t needed. This is a great recipe and will go in my permeant file.
TheBellyRulesTheMind says
Mindy,
Glad to know you liked the soup and this recipe is going in your permanent files. Your absolutely right, lately i haven’t been missing sauteing too when I makes soups. Appreciate your feedback. Thank you.
Anvita
Amie says
This soup came out great! I doubled it and added a little siracha. I think I may need a little bit more stock next time, because it was thick. Then again I like the heartiness.
Anvita | The Belly Rules The Mind says
Amie,
Appreciate your feedback. Do glad that it gurned out great. Lentils do absorb liquid even after being cooked so the soup will tend to get thicker if not consumed immediately. You can always water it down by adding more broth.
Loved you idea of adding sriracha.
TLC says
I’m wondering if I can use a can of diced tomatoes instead of fresh? How much would it change things? Thanks.
TheBellyRulesTheMind says
TLC,
You can certainly used diced tomatoes instead of fresh. It wouldn’t change much. I always prefer using some fresh and some canned if I have to. So do not hesitate and go for it.
Christine says
Hello, it looks like there is chickpeas in the soup too. Would I have to cook it longer if I added some dried chickpeas? Thanks, looking forward to try the recipe later today.
TheBellyRulesTheMind says
Christine,
I didn’t add chickpeas to the soup. It’s purely lentils. However if you are using canned or soaked chickpeas then you need to pressure cook it for 10-15 minutes and if you are using dried chickpeas then 35-40 minutes. Hope that helps. Let us know when you try the recipe
Ancita.
Ashley Rhoades says
Yum! I love lentil soup but I’ve never made it. Definitely trying!!
TheBellyRulesTheMind says
Sure thing. When you try is Ashely, you won;t be disappointed. It’s tried and tested and the reviews across social media turned out to be yum
ZyraKuma says
I’m always making lentil soup from “quick” boxes. I should try making this from scratch! Looks and sounds much healthier.
TheBellyRulesTheMind says
Zyra,
Ohno!!! I hope you get around making this lentil soup using fresh ingredients. Honestly you will never go back to the boxed soups. Try it yourself.
Chelsea says
I’m always looking for fast, nutritious meals. This one certainly looks amazing and perfect for a chilly day!
TheBellyRulesTheMind says
Chelsea,
Chilly or not, this could be my everyday soup for sure.
Marlynn | UrbanBlissLife says
Yum! This looks so flavorful! I love instant pot recipes!
TheBellyRulesTheMind says
Marlynn,
Hope you consider trying it. It’s a bomb of nutrition and flavors for sure.
Neha kumar says
Looks delicious and healthy….. my tomorrows dinner for sure!!
TheBellyRulesTheMind says
Sure thing Neha. Hope you try it. You won’t be disappointed at all. Don;t forget to take a picture and send it our way.
Anvita
geekydaddydave says
This sounds so good! I love my instant pot, I can’t believe I wanted till my 40’s to get one
TheBellyRulesTheMind says
Yay for Instant Pot!!!
We love our Instant Pots too. It’s like our newest kitchen toy.
Stine Mari says
So many great flavors here, perfect for the cold winter weather.
TheBellyRulesTheMind says
Hi Stine,
Yup, you are right. It’s perfect for this time of the year.
Shannah Holt -Mastering Mom Chaos says
This looks like a win win recipe! I love that it is so easy and quick. I can literally have dinner ready in 30 minutes and 15 minutes I’m doing something else.
TheBellyRulesTheMind says
Hi Shannah,
This is perfect for those busy weeknight meals or quick weekend lunches.
Ginny McMeans says
What a beautiful and healthy dinner. Love that you can get it done so quickly too. Love the flavors!
TheBellyRulesTheMind says
Hi Ginny,
Yup, it’s a light yet filling soup full of flavors. No doubt about that.
Mary Bostow says
This is THE best lentil soup I have ever made. My husband loved it too and we agree that it tastes like a soup you would get in a restaurant. I didn’t change a thing. Thank you
TheBellyRulesTheMind says
Mary,
So glad to hear you and your husband loved the soup. It’s a very straight forward recipe and one can’t go wrong with it. Appreciate you sharing your feedback.
Thanks,
Anvita.
Snappy Gourmet says
Loving all the veggies in this soup! So good and healthy!
TheBellyRulesTheMind says
It’s a versatile soup. You can add whatever veggies you have handy. A meal full of goodness.
cookingontheweekends says
So awesome in only 15 minutes you can create that hearty, super delicious looking bowl. YUM! Perfect for the rainy day here in LA. :-)
TheBellyRulesTheMind says
Yup Valentina, it’s been cold here too, so Lentil Soup to the rescue.
Tawnie Kroll says
I love anything in the Instant Pot, this looks amazing!
TheBellyRulesTheMind says
Thanks Tawnie.
This soup tastes even better than it looks. Hope you consider trying it.