Lentil soup day is a good day. This is kind of lentil soup that makes you think you've just had a warm hug from a soup bowl. This particular lentil soup is more along the lines of the traditional style than a new fancy style. This soup is made with green lentils, bacon, carrots and some spinach because it's February and we all need our greens. Also... all these simple ingredients are available from your local Aldi!
Okay. Let's get straight into the soup chat. This soup is made for everyday living in that it is quick and easy to make. It delivers on the healthy factor but it also brings it's A game on the bacon factor as well. Because as much as we love healthy, we also really love bacon!
Easy Lentil Soup
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Ingredients Needed for Lentil Soup with Bacon
- green lentils
- carrots
- celery
- mini potatoes
- onion
- dried herbs (thyme & oregano)
- pancetta
- baby spinach (already washed)
- parsley
- lemon (for juicing)
- fresh rosemary
Lentil Soup Step By Step
- First, let's start with the pancetta. Or bacon. Whatever you've got going on. If you're veggie or vegan, then yes. You can skip this step. But you'll need some extra olive oil.
- Okay. So brown and crisp the bacon in a splash of olive oil. While the bacon is cooking, use that time to chop your vegetables. You know, the usual soffrito ingredients. The holy trinity of carrots, celery and onion. Once the bacon is brown and crispy, use a slotted spoon to remove the lardons to a small bowl. Keep about 2 tablespoons of the bacon fat and pour the rest away. We're using this rich and salty bacon fat to soften the vegetables.
- Once the vegetables are beginning to soften add in some fresh rosemary and the dried herbs. Give them all a good stir.
- You can use a mixture of whatever herbs you've got or use your favourites. This soup could really benefit from a bay leaf, but because Aldi doesn't stock them, we're not using them. The mission of this website to make everyday recipes that are foremost delicious, and secondly, completely convenient and affordable. That means ingredient lists that are as short as possible while delivering the most amount of flavour. So for this website, no bay leaves. But if you shop elsewhere or have a bay tree, then, by all means, use them.
Do you need to soak the lentils?
Nope. It's all about easy recipes over here. No soaking required. Just a quick rinse.
- Next up add in the lentils and the sliced mini potatoes. Give them a stir to coat them in the bacon fat and mix in with the vegetables.
- Add in the vegetable stock or you can use water. Bring this up to a boil, then turn down to a gentle simmer. Simmer for about 20 minutes, until the lentils are tender.
- This is the best part of this soup! Place about â…“ of the soup in a blender and blend until creamy and smooth. Add this back into the soup pot and give it a good stir. This brings the soup to the next level! It makes it thick and creamy without adding in anything extra.
- At this point, you can add in the lemon juice or even a little splash of red wine vinegar. Don't skip this. The soup is thick and full of vegetables. It needs that little burst of acid to tie it all together! Trust me!
Which lentils to use for lentil soup?
You can use green (that's what I've used here) or you can use red, brown or yellow. It will have an effect on the colour of the soup, but they will all be absolutely delicious. There's no need to soak any of the above lentils, just give them a quick rinse under cold running water.
How long does lentil soup keep for?
This soup keeps really well in the fridge for up to 3 days. If you've skipped the bacon, then it will even keep up to 5 days. Just be sure to keep it in an airtight container and label it. No mystery foods in our fridge!
Can lentil soup be frozen?
Actually, lentil soup begs to be frozen! It is such a hearty soup that it takes to freezing and defrosting without any issues. In fact, I think that the flavour of this soup improves as it sits in the fridge and freezer. See the recipes notes for proper freezing instructions. You can double this recipe easily and freeze ½ for a quick weeknight dinner.
The easiest soup ever
And that's it. This soup is a super simple (and traditional) recipe that requires a little upfront chopping of vegetables, but in return, you will be gifted with about 8 gorgeous steaming bowls of healthy and hearty lentil soup that will have you reaching for aggressive amounts of crusty bread for dunking! Or make these cheese straws or maybe even some quick and easy 2 ingredient flatbreads.
More soup recipes from Savvy Bites!
Tools used to make this Lentil Soup
The Best One Pot Easy Lentil Soup (With Bacon)
Ingredients
- 250 g (1 cups) pancetta, chopped
- 1 tablespoon (1 tablespoon) olive oil
- 175 g (6 ⅙ oz) green lentils
- 1 (1) onion
- 2 (2) medium carrots
- 4 (4) ribs celery
- 2 cloves (2 cloves) garlic
- 1 tablespoon (1 tablespoon) chopped fresh rosemary
- 2 teaspoons (2 teaspoons) dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon (1 teaspoon) dried thyme
- 6 (6) mini potatoes, quartered
- 1 (1) litre vegetable stock, made with a stock cube
- 100 g (3 ⅐ cups) baby spinach
- juice of 1 lemon
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a cast iron or soup pot over a medium heat. Once it’s hot add the pancetta or bacon and start to brown and crisp the bacon in a splash of olive oil. While the bacon is cooking, use that time to chop your vegetables.
- Dice the carrots, celery and onion into bite size pieces. Once the bacon is brown and crispy, use a slotted spoon to remove the lardons to a small bowl. Keep about 2 tablespoons of the bacon fat and pour the rest away. We're using this rich and salty bacon fat to soften the vegetables. Add the vegetables to the pot and start to soften.
- Once the vegetables are beginning to soften add in some fresh rosemary and the dried herbs. Give them all a good stir.
- Next up add in the lentils and the sliced mini potatoes. Give them a stir to coat them in the bacon fat and mix in with the vegetables.
- Add in the vegetable stock or you can use water. Bring this up to a boil, then turn down to a gentle simmer. Simmer for about 20 minutes, until the lentils are tender.
- Place about â…“ of the soup in a blender and blend until creamy and smooth. Add this back into the soup pot and give it a good stir. This brings the soup to the next level! It makes it thick and creamy without adding in anything extra.
- Add in the lemon juice and spinach and stir well. Add the bacon lardons back the pot. The heat from the soup will wilt the spinach. Don't skip this. The soup is thick and full of vegetables. It needs that little burst of acid to tie it all together! Trust me!
Notes
- To freeze the soup, let it cool completely then place it into freezer safe airtight containers and be sure to label them.
- To defrost the soup, remove it from the freezer and place it on the bottom shelf of the fridge to defrost over night. Or defrost at room temperature for about 2 hours.
- Reheat in a soup pot gently over a low heat.
Nutrition
THANKS SO MUCH FOR READING AND COOKING ALONG WITH ME! IF YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE OR HAVE A QUESTION, I’D LOVE IT IF YOU LEFT A COMMENT AND A RATING. YOU CAN ALSO FOLLOW ALONG ON PINTEREST, FACEBOOK AND INSTAGRAM TO SEE WHAT WE’RE EATING, PINNING AND A LITTLE BEHIND THE SCENES TOO!
Laura
Luck you to have an Aldi that carries Parsley! And Pancetta! Not things you find at our Aldi's here.
Deborah Rainford
Sorry to hear that. If you're US based that may be why. Both items are very common in our shops. You can always substitute smoked bacon and use any soft herb. But rest assured the items I've seen in US Aldi stores are so inventive and fun. Most of our items here are very basic.
Shannon
When do you add the lardon bits? Presume at the end with the spinach? Super recipe, can't wait to taste it, it's simmering now.
Deborah Rainford
Hi Shannon. So sorry I missed that. Yes. Add them back to the pan at the end. I like to save a couple to add to the top of the bowls right before serving, but you can just add them all back in too. The recipe has been updated to reflect that. Enjoy! 🙂