Lentil Soup With Cilantro (Lots of It)
- Total Time
- About 1 hour
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
Yield:Serves four
- 1tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 2garlic cloves, minced
- 1¼teaspoons cumin seeds, lightly toasted and ground
- Pinch of cayenne
- ½pound brown lentils (about 1⅛ cups), picked over and rinsed
- 1small onion, cut in half
- 1bay leaf
- 1½quarts water
- Salt, preferably kosher salt, to taste
- Freshly ground pepper
- 1cup chopped cilantro (from 1 large bunch)
- Plain low-fat yogurt for garnish
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
236 calories; 4 grams fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 3 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 38 grams carbohydrates; 7 grams dietary fiber; 2 grams sugars; 14 grams protein; 1017 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Powered byPreparation
- Step 1
Heat the oil in a large, heavy soup pot over medium heat, and add the garlic. Stir until fragrant, about a minute, and stir in the cumin and cayenne. Add the lentils, onion, bay leaf, water and salt. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer 40 minutes, until the lentils are tender and the broth aromatic. Add pepper, taste and adjust salt. Remove the halved onion and the bay leaf.
- Step 2
Coarsely puree the soup in an immersion blender or food mill. Alternatively, puree half the soup in blender, 1½ cups at time, being careful to cover the top of the blender with a towel to avoid hot splashes, then stir back into the soup. Heat through.
- Step 3
Chop the cilantro, discarding the stems. Stir into the soup just before serving. Taste, adjust seasoning and serve, topping each bowl with a dollop of yogurt.
Tip
- Advance preparation: The soup can be made through step 2 up to a day ahead of time. You may need to thin it out with a little water. Martha Rose Shulman can be reached at martha-rose-shulman.com.
Private Notes
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Cooking Notes
Leslie
I love this soup. I always use a whole pound of lentils and just 2 quarts of water. I also chop my onion, instead of leaving it whole and removing. More salt and cumin. I use 2 whole cilantro bunches, stems and all, finely chopped. Immersion blender for finishing. Serve with whole milk plain yogurt - delish!
Rebecca
I doubled the recipe and used a dutch oven to cook. I used and kept chopped onion in the soup instead of a half onion. I also added two cinnamon sticks when adding the onion, bay leaves, etc. The cinnamon sticks give it a wonderful, unique flavor. I also added shredded carrot to the soup. I decided to go with the alternative of pureeing half of the soup giving it a nice mixed texture of puree and whole lentils. Delicious!!
Gabbie
Great recipe! I would advise to DOUBLE the amount of lentils, add more salt and add a few potatoes! Then it would become an EXCELLENT recipe.
Barbara
Following suggestions in some of the Notes, I used 1lb of lentils and 2 quarts of water, and sauteed a whole onion with the garlic and spices. After tasting, I added a cinnamon stick, and a few diced carrots, and that improved it greatly. After blending with a stick blender, I added more salt, as it was still fairly bland, and squeezed some lime after adding the cilantro. This recipe is certainly easy to make as written, but will add diced jalapenos if I make it again, to overcome blandness.
Monica
I made this exactly according to recipe. It’s the best lentil soup I’ve ever had.
Sandy
Love the ton of cilantro in this...makes for such a fresh twist!
Lund
We added 2 small carrots and finely chopped a quarter onion. Don’t scrimp on the yogurt as it is delicious with the rest of the ingredients adding a creaminess. So good!
k
So that’s what my lentil soup needed: a lot of cumin! Like some others, I aimed to add a bit more flavor and variation by dicing the onion, then adding a diced carrot and celery rib. A bit of smoked salt and roasted beef broth concentrate rounded things out. Pureed it with lemon juice and served it up with cilantro, yogurt, tomato, and brown basmati pilaf. A satisfying meal!
Kelsey
This soup was amazing. I added a sliced serano pepper, and a lot of salt, and it really hit. How is it so creamy?! A dream of a lentil soup.
CookingSherry
I haven't made this yet, but since I have a huge bunch of cilantro at the ready, I'm ready. Has anyone made this in the pressure cooker?
Marion Beram
Best lentil soup I ever ate. With that, I changed the recipe a bit. First, I halved the recipe, but added more cumin than the full recipe calls for. I also added a dash of cinnamon, a dash of ground coriander, dash of smoked paprika, extra onion (a whole onion), which I diced and sauteed with the garlic, and a smidge of veggie bullion. Added a diced potato to give it some richness.
dee
Added extra spices Cooked with 1quart chicken stock and 2 cups water Cut up cilantro including stems and cooked with it Left onion in Added fresh cilantro, lime, yogurt and avocado when served!
Kelsey
This soup was amazing. I added a sliced serano pepper, and a lot of salt, and it really hit. How is it so creamy?! A dream of a lentil soup.
Dallas
I really enjoyed this soup. I added some chicken broth to the water to give another element of flavor. The cayenne gives it the perfect kick just to be cooled down by the yogurt.
Stacey
I blended the cilantro with about two-thirds of the cooked lentil mixture, and per other's recommendations, I left in the onions and blended those too. Then I returned it to the pot with the remaining one-third un-blended lentils. Delicious flavor, but too thick, I'd use more water/broth next time. Also, the cilantro got a little stringy when blended, not sure quite why.
Stassa
This was so delicious! I made a couple of adjustments to the recipe- I added more cumin, cayenne and doubled the garlic and diced the onion. Rather than using just water I added 50/50 veggie stock and a parmesan rind for an additional layer of flavor. This is such an amazing soup I will be adding this into my winter soup rotation:).
great soup for a cold day
I love this recipe! I used more salt, garlic and cumin; I also chopped the onion. Instead of using just water I used some veggie stock 50/50, this added more flavor… then to add another layer I incorporated a parmesan rind and let everything simmer for 40 minutes! So delicious
k
So that’s what my lentil soup needed: a lot of cumin! Like some others, I aimed to add a bit more flavor and variation by dicing the onion, then adding a diced carrot and celery rib. A bit of smoked salt and roasted beef broth concentrate rounded things out. Pureed it with lemon juice and served it up with cilantro, yogurt, tomato, and brown basmati pilaf. A satisfying meal!
so good
Martha did it again. Yum.
Holly
I love this recipe--whether cooked as-written or in one of the many variants that it lends itself to. It doubles well and freezes well. For a different flavor profile, I sometimes leave out the cilantro, toss in a parmesan rind, and add some chopped parsley in the last minutes of cooking. Such a cozy meal for chilly days!
Judy Booty
Like many of the helpful notes, we also doubled the amount of lentils and and chopped the onion. One pound of lentils and 2 quarts of water (added a scoop of veggie bullion).
Lund
We added 2 small carrots and finely chopped a quarter onion. Don’t scrimp on the yogurt as it is delicious with the rest of the ingredients adding a creaminess. So good!
Brenda
Following others suggestions I added a bit of cinnamon and a potato chopped into small bites. It came out great. A handful of finely chopped cilantro and a dollop of sour cream at serving took it to another level.
Judy Booty
Double the lentils, extra salt, smoked paprika, added potatoes
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