MOROCCAN RED LENTIL SOUP
Vegan Moroccan red lentil soup is a hearty, protein-rich soup made in the Instant Pot.
Why should you try this Instant Pot Moroccan Lentil Soup?
✔ Minimal hands-on cooking recipe.
✔ Vegan and gluten-free.
✔ Easy to make in large batches. Double the recipe in a pinch!
✔ Freezer-friendly and a meal planners’ delight.
Ingredients
This vegan and gluten-free soup calls for minimal ingredients and yet packs a punch in terms of nutrition and flavors.
✔ Red Lentils- Also called pink lentils, we call this Masoor dal in Hindi. These are the basic building blocks of this recipe. Pink lentils are not only protein-rich but keep you full too.
✔Aromatics- We are going to be using smoked paprika, garlic, parsley, and cinnamon as our primary aromatics. I won’t recommend replacing or substituting any of these. This combination is so good and strikes the perfect balance in our recipe.
✔ Olive Oil- Our red lentil soup recipe calls for olive oil but you can also use cold-pressed coconut oil in its place. You can try any neutral-flavored oil like canola or rice bran too. Please remember that using coconut oil is not the original Moroccan way of doing things.
✔ Water or broth? I didn’t have broth with me. So I just used water. You can use any vegan-friendly broth in place of water in this soup. If you are going to use broth in place of water, then make sure to cut down on the salt.
✔ Carrots and Potatoes- We will be adding these to give more body to our soup. Not only does this thicken the soup but the sweetness of the carrots and the starchy potatoes round out the flavors really well. Besides, it is a great way to sneak in veggies.
Meal Planning and Prep
Freezer-friendly red lentil soup
This lentil soup is a meal planners’ delight. While you cannot do much in terms of prepping ingredients beforehand, this soup freezes really well. So you can make it in bulk, transfer it to portion-sized containers and freeze it. Do this and you have lunch ready for at least 3 days.
To use later, all you need to do is thaw the soup in the fridge the previous night. You can also use the microwave to defrost this soup. Once thawed, add it to a pot and bring to a gentle simmer. When hot, serve with dinner rolls.
If you are going to use a microwave to defrost the soup, make sure to freeze the soup in food-safe glass containers like Pyrex.
Prep Work
Begin prepping for the soup by washing and soaking the lentils first.While the lentils soak, you can get started on chopping the herbs and veggies. Once done, you can start off with cooking the soup. Soaking any kind of lentils before cooking them is crucial as it cuts off cooking time to a great extent.
This is especially true if you are going to cook lentils in an open pan.
Instant Pot Vegan Moroccan Carrot Red Lentil Soup
While this soup here calls for using an Instant Pot, you can easily make this in a regular pressure cooker or even the Mealthy multipot.
If you are using the Mealthy, you can follow the same timings and settings used for the Instant Pot version.
Instructions for making this soup in a regular pressure cooker are included in the recipe card.
Moroccan Red Lentil Soup- FAQs
Can I make this red lentil soup with any other lentils?
You can make the same soup with green lentils too. I recommend soaking the lentils for 40 mins if you are using green lentils.
How to blend Moroccan red lentil soup without a stick blender?
I love my stick blender and believe me when I say this is the most versatile gadget you can have in your kitchen. In the event that you do not have one, blend this soup after letting it cool down a bit in a regular blender.
You can also use a potato masher to mash the lentils and veggies. Using a potato masher to mash the soup will give you a chunkier soup.
Serving Suggestions
Soups make a complete meal when served with breads. Here are some bread recipes that you can serve.
Method- Vegan Moroccan Red Lentil Soup
Prepping the lentils
Wash the red lentils under running water. Once done, add 2 c water to this and soak the lentils for 20 mins.
While the lentils are soaking, prep the veggies and herbs.
Making the soup
Turn on your Instant pot, switch on Saute mode for 10 mins. Add olive oil to the inner pot. Allow it to heat up.
When hot, add the onions and garlic and saute till onions become pink and soft. We are not looking at browning our onions because they are going to be pressure-cooked anyway. Once done, add the finely chopped parsley and celery. When the herbs wilt, add the spice powders and mix well.
Drain the soaked red lentils and add this along with the onions and herbs. Add water and salt. Mix well. Tip in the carrots and potato. Allow the soup to begin boiling. This takes 2 to 3 mins. No need to simmer it. It is enough if you see a few bubbles along the edges. Doing this speeds up the cooking inside the IP.
Cooking in Instant Pot
Turn off the saute mode. Close the IP and turn the valve to sealing. Now, turn on pressure cook mode and set the timer to 14 mins on high pressure. Allow the cooking cycle to complete.
As soon as the cooking cycle is complete, allow natural pressure release for 10 mins. After 10 mins, turn the valve to venting and do a quick pressure release. When done, open the lid.
Blending the soup
You can see that the lentils and veggies are perfectly cooked now. Mix well using a ladle. Using a stick blender, blend the soup into a smooth puree. You can choose to keep it a bit chunky too by blending lightly.
After blending, turn on saute mode for 2 mins and allow it to simmer. When the soup begins to simmer gently, switch off flame.
Serving
Scoop and serve in bowls. Garnish with finely chopped parsley and sprinkle some paprika on top before serving. Try sprinkling smoked paprika for an amazing flavor.
Follow me on Instagram or Facebook for regular cooking updates and short videos. Find us on Pinterest for delicious content. Tried Moroccan Red Lentil Soup? We value your thoughts and comments! Leave a comment and tell us how it worked for you. Email us your questions to anusapraj@gmail.com if you need any guidance in making this soup.
Instant Pot Moroccan Red Lentil Soup
Moroccan Red Lentil Soup
Equipment
- Instant Pot
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp Olive oil
- 1/4 c finely chopped onions
- 1.5 tbsp minced garlic
- 1 tbsp finely chopped parsley
- 2 tbsp finely chopped celery
- 1 tsp Smoked paprika
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp Sweet paprika
- 1/2 tsp ground turmeric
- 1/2 c husked red lentils
- 2 c water or vegan broth
- 70 g Potato peeled
- 80 g Carrot peeled and chopped into 3 or 4 pieces
- 1.5 tsp Salt or to taste
For garnish
- 1/2 tsp Smoked paprika
- 1 tbsp chopped parsley
Instructions
Soaking the lentils
- Wash the red lentils well under running water.
- Now, add 2 c water to this and let it soak for 10 mins. This speeds up the cooking process.
Sauteeing
- Turn on saute mode in the IP and set timer to 7 mins.
- To the inner pot of your IP, add olive oil.
- When hot, add onions and garlic.
- Fry till onions become soft and pink.
- Now add the parsley and the celery.
- Mix well and fry till herbs wilt. This takes 30 secs roughly.
- Add the spice powders next and mix well.
- Drain the water used for soaking the red lentils completely.
- Add the drained red lentils to the IP.
- Next, add 2 c water and mix well.
- Now, add potatoes and carrots.
- Add salt to taste. Mix well and allow the water to begin boiling.
- When done, turn off the IP.
Red lentil soup in Instant Pot
- Now, close the IP and turn the valve to sealing.
- Turn on the IP, set the pressure cook mode to high pressure on 14 mins.
- Allow the cooking cycle to complete.
- When the cooking cycle is done, allow natural release of pressure for 10 mins.
- After 10 mins, do a quick pressure release by turning the valve to venting.
Blending the soup
- When done, open the lid and mix well.
- Using a stick blender ( Immersion blender), blend the soup till smoothy and creamy.
- Now, turn on saute mode for 2 mins.
- Let it simmer for 2 mins.
Garnishing and serving
- Garnish with a sprinkle of smoked paprika and finely chopped parsley.
- When done, serve hot in bowls.
Moroccan Red Lentil Soup in Pressure Cooker
- Add the olive oil to a pressure cook and heat it up.
- When hot, add onions and garlic.
- Fry till onions become soft and pink.
- Now, add the spice powders along with the celery and parsley.
- Drain the water used for soaking the red lentils completely.
- Add the soaked red lentils and mix well.
- Now add 2 c water along with the carrots and potatoes.
- Allow this mixture to begin boiling.
- When it begins to boil, close the lid with the weight on.
- Cook for 3 whistles and allow pressure to release naturally.
- When done, open and blend to a smooth puree using a stick blender.
- Simmer for 3 to 4 mins.
- Garnish with smoked paprika and finely chopped parsely.
- Serve hot with dinner rolls.
For Instant Pot & Air Fryer Recipes
Instant Pot timings may vary based on your geographic location. Air fryer settings and timings may vary based on the capacity and the model of the Air fryer.
Disclaimer
Nutrition values are provided here as a courtesy and are only a rough guide. Please consult a health care provider if you have any concerns.
Some More Soup Recipes
If you are looking for more soup recipes, here are some easy recipes that you can explore.
Fantastic soup. Substituted potato for sweet potato and it worked amazingly. Loved this recipe, thank you for sharing!
So glad you enjoyed it. And I m going to include your suggestion as a replacement for potato in my recipe. Thank you so much for sharing. I would love to see your soup. Feel free to share it on Instagram with me by tagging me @tomatoblues. Happy Thanksgiving, Mar 🙂
Made this today and it was excellent. I used chicken broth and changed the amounts of some of the veggies due to what I had in the fridge. So good on a cold rainy day. Will make again.
Hey Anne thank you so much for your lovely feedback. So glad you enjoyed the soup.
Hi Anusha, tried this recipe yesterday. What a hit. I paired it with greek lemon rice and Greek chicken. Went down very well.
Hi Anu. Thats wonderful. I m so glad you relished the soup. ☺️
Thank you thank you for the recipe as well as the instructions! Love this help and idea!??