My Lentil Bone Broth Soup is a creamy bean soup full of deep rich flavor with background notes from Chinese spices, and a beautiful texture from firm green lentils. It’s unlike any lentil soup I’ve had before, and it’s good!
My husband loves lentils and he’s always begging me to cook with them. I like them, but I’ve never really loved them. Most of the time I feel like they don’t carry enough flavor or texture to be worth it. But this soup has convinced me to give them another try. I think it’s the bone broth that brings it all together. It has so much more flavor than regular cooking broth that even a simple bean soup like this becomes really special.
Did you know lentils are the first of all the beans to be cultivated, the fastest cooking, and one of the easiest to digest? That makes them a really good choice if you’re trying to get more healthy beans into your diet.
How are French lentils (aka green, or Puy lentils) different from regular lentils?
- French lentils are green, and smaller in size than regular brown or red lentils you find in bags at the grocery store.
- French lentils stay firmer and don’t turn to mush like regular lentils do. I prefer them, and you can see them in action in my Salmon Bowl with Kale and Lentils or my Crushed Lentils with Tahini and Cumin.
- Black lentils are another variety I love. They’re small and firm, like the green ones, but they’re a glossy jet black. They’re the ones in my Black Lentil and Ham Soup.
- Yes, you can use any type of lentil in a recipe. Just remember that the green and black ones take a little longer to cook and have the bet texture.
What exactly is bone broth?
- Bone broth is nothing more than broth that is made from an extra long cooking of bones, which extracts more of the gelatin (collagen) from the bones. Bone broth is more flavorful and more nutritious than regular broth.
- The bones are often roasted in a hot oven first to brown them and develop flavor before boiling.
- Bone broth is extra rich in vitamins and minerals, and the collagen in bone broth is thought to help protect our joints, prevent osteoarthritis, and reduce inflammation.
- Bone broth can be sipped straight, or made into soups.
What bone broth is best?
- Unless you’ve got hours to devote to making your own, your best bet it to buy it ready made.
- I’m often contacted by brands with offers to try their products, and if I sense that something might be good, I’ll accept and give it a try. This post isn’t sponsored by Osso Good, but they did send me their bone broths to try and both my husband and I tried them and loved them. I created this soup using their Chinese Herb Infused Chicken Bone Broth, and we just flipped over it. The flavor is amazing and different from any other broth I’ve had. (Can you say cinnamon bark, fleeceflower, Chinese yam, angelica root, rhemannia roots, schisandra root, and polygonatum root?)
- Not surprisingly, the best bone broths are not shelf stable, look for them in the refrigerated or frozen section of your market.
- I’ve also tried Swanson bone broths, which don’t need refrigeration, you’ll find them right in the canned soup section of the supermarket, and they’re good too, I used them in my Easy Bone Broth Noodle Bowl with Herbs.
The combination of beans (legumes) and bone broth is a winning one, both in terms of flavor, and nutrition. This soup is a great option if you’re trying to cut back on meat. The bone broth still gets you that meaty flavor, and the fiber filled beans keep you feeling satisfied.
The key to the texture of a perfect lentil soup is to puree only half of it, leaving the rest to contribute texture.
Want to take it a step further? We added some grilled and sliced chicken apple sausage to our soup for dinner and boy was it tasty!
Lentil Bone Broth Soup
Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 shallot, peeled and finely diced
- 1 clove garlic, peeled and minced
- 1 medium carrot, peeled and diced
- 1 heaped cup French style green lentils
- 16 ounces chicken bone broth, I used 1 pouch Osso Good Chicken Bone Broth with Chinese Herbs
- juice of half lemon, or more to taste
- salt and fresh cracked black pepper
garnish
- full fat yogurt, yes, full fat!
- fresh cilantro
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a soup pot and sauté the shallot, garlic, and carrot for several minutes, stirring often. Add the lentils and bone broth to the pot, give it a good stir, and bring up to a boil.
- Turn down the heat so the soup gently simmers, cover, and cook for about 15 minutes, or until the lentils are just tender.
- Puree half the soup in a blender or food processor until smooth, then return that to the pot, along with about a cup of water (or more bone broth) to thin it out. Season with salt and fresh cracked black pepper to taste, and add the squeeze of fresh lemon juice, to taste as well.
- Bring the soup back up to a simmer, check the seasonings, and serve, topped with a dollop of yogurt, some fresh cilantro, and a few grindings of black pepper.
Thanks for pinning!
Could this recipe be completely puréed? I’m being put in a liquid diet and was wondering if this soup would be a good option.
yes, absolutely.
Hi – when the recipe calls for 1 shallot, does that mean one small bulb or a larger sized shallot? They seem to come in different sizes.
Thanks.
It’s flexible, I use one large shallot because I love the flavor. If you’ve got tiny ones, feel free to use a couple of them.
You’ve just touched the very heart of me!!!! I really love lentil soup!!!!
Very nice recipe , Sue, with bone broth! I will do try it ! Also will convert to lemon from vinegar I have been using all along. Thank you!
Thanks, I always love to get your vote of confidence on recipes Alexandra! I sometimes use vinegar, sometimes lemon, as long as there’s a little kick of acid to wake up the flavor.
I had several partial bottles of good wine following the Holidays and used some good red in my lentil soup! It was awesome! Had to share with you, Sue, since you’re all about the flavor and using what’s on hand!
Hmmmmmm, that sounds right up my husband’s alley, I’ll have to try. We’re both red wine drinkers 🙂
Yummy and so comforting too! I drink bone broth almost daily and definitely will love this!
I haven’t gotten around to drinking it, but I’m sold on cooking with it.
Thanks for the recommendation for good bone broth. Can you believe I’ve never bought it before? This lentil soup is a must try for me – love it! Pinned 🙂
Someone just mentioned ossogood to me the other day and was raving about it, I can’t wait to try your soup.
It’s interesting because I’ve been using bone broth in my soups now, I just made a Shepherd’s pie with it, too, and it makes such a big difference in flavor. I’m now stocking my freezer with it and I think it makes a great middle ground between canned stock and broth, and homemade, which I never seem to have time to make.