Name: Spiced Carrot and Lentil Soup
Prep time: 7 min
Cook time: 23 min
Total time: 30 min
Ingredients: 1 tbsp olive oil; 5 medium carrots (sliced); 1 onion (coarsely diced); 3 cloves garlic (roughly chopped); 2 tsp ginger (grated); 1 cup red lentils; 5 cups vegetable stock; 1 tsp lemon zest; 1 tsp turmeric (ground); 1 tsp cumin (ground); 1 tsp coriander (ground); ½ tsp cayenne pepper (or chili powder); 1 tbsp lemon juice; vegan yogurt or vegan creme fraiche (unsweetened); fresh parsley or coriander / cilantro (chopped)

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This carrot and red lentil soup is simple and nourishing. It's warmly spiced with ginger, turmeric, cumin, coriander and cayenne. A versatile and easy soup recipe that's ready in just 30 minutes!

A bowl of blended carrot and red lentil soup topped with a spoonful of vegan creme fraiche, chopped parsley, sesame seeds and a slice of lemon.

Table of Contents

Ingredient tips
Step by step pictures
Substitutions
Variations
Serving
Storage
More tasty soup recipes
📖 Recipe

We're big fans of easy soup recipes. This spiced carrot and red lentil soup is so good because it's low effort and requires just carrots and pantry staples that you probably already have!

This soup is:

Earthy, subtly sweet and warmly spiced
Quick to make (under 30 mins)
Protein rich from the red lentils (10g per bowl)
Naturally vegan, dairy-free and gluten-free

Ingredient tips

Here's what you need to make this spiced lentil and carrot soup:

Ingredients on a white surface: corainder, cumin, turmeric, cayenne peper, vegetable stock, fresh ginger, lemon, garlic, carrots, red lentils, olive oil and onion.

Carrots - There's no need to peel your carrots for this recipe, just give them a quick scrub, remove the top and then roughly chop.

Red lentils - you'll want to use red split lentils for this recipe. There's no need to soak red lentils, as they are quick to cook! Other types of lentils, such as green lentils or brown lentils taste and cook differently and work better in this yummy Vegan Lentil Soup.

Spices - for that delicious warmth and aroma we use a combination of turmeric, ground cumin and ground coriander. Cayenne powder adds heat, which you can easily adjust to suit the level of hot spiciness you would like!

Step by step pictures

Here's a visual guide on how to make carrot and lentil soup. For the full, adjustable and printable recipe, see the recipe card at the end of the post.

Chopped onion and carrots in a saucepan.

Step 1 - Saute the carrot and onion in olive oil for 5 minutes.

Onion, carrots and garlic sauteing in saucepan.

Step 2 - Add the garlic and ginger and saute for 1 more minute.

Red lentils, ground spices, lemon zest and vegetable broth are added to a saucepan containing chopped carrots and lentils.

Step 3 - Add the red lentils, vegetable stock, lemon zest, and all the spices.

The soup is simmered until the lentils are soft and falling apart.

Step 4 - Simmer with the lid on for 15 minutes until the lentils are cooked soft.

An immersion blender liquidizing a smooth orange coloured soup in a saucepan.

Step 5 - Add lemon juice and puree with an immersion blender.

Substitutions

Sweet potatoes are a great alternative to carrots. You can also use half carrots and half sweet potato.

Red pepper flakes / chilli flakes or a fresh red chili are a good alternatives to cayenne powder. You can add them at the same time as the garlic and ginger.

Variations

Soup is very forgiving, so it's easy to tweak this spiced carrot and lentil soup recipe to your tastes and the ingredients you have to hand! Here's some ideas for you:

For extra fieriness, up the amount of fresh ginger to 1 tablespoon.
For more spice, add 1 tsp curry powder for a curried soup, or 1 tsp smoked paprika for a smoky twist.
For an oil-free soup, saute the onion and carrot in a small amount of veg stock.
For a more creamy soup, use coconut milk in place of some of the vegetable stock and increase the seasoning to taste.

Two bowls of blended carrot and lentil soup served with bread.

Serving

Serve this carrot and lentil soup with salt and black pepper to taste.

For a herby garnish, use some fresh cilantro / coriander leaves or fresh parsley.

A swirl of coconut milk or vegan greek yogurt is a nice addition.

We always like to add a crunchy topping to blended soups for some texture variety. Sesame seeds, nigella seeds, or toasted nuts are all welcome additions!

We like to serve it with crusty bread and vegan butter, homemade sourdough crackers, or gluten-free red lentil flatbreads.

A bowl of orange coloured soup garnished with vegan creme fraiche, fresh herbs, sesame seeds and a slice of lemon.

Storage

Store leftovers in the fridge in a covered container for up to 3 days.

Reheat soup in a pan on the stovetop, stirring frequently until thoroughly hot.

Because this soup contains red lentils, it will naturally become thicker when stored. You can add a splash of water or veggie broth if it seems too thick.

You can freeze this soup in an airtight container for up to 3 months.