This lentil bacon soup is a wonderful, filling soup that will warm you up on a cold day. I like to call this soup comfort food in a bowl. I could live on this soup…it is that good! Smokey flavors combine with lentils and fresh vegetables, all in under 30 minutes!
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The flavors in this bacon lentil soup explode in your mouth; this soup was so good! I knew I needed to try to recreate this recipe at home. This is a kid-friendly soup recipe that will become popular in your house. Bacon adds incredible flavor to this soup. It is possible to make this lentil soup without the bacon…but you will miss the smokiness of the bacon. If you are a bacon fanatic like me, you will love these bacon roses!
It took a few tries, but I have matched the flavors closely so you can enjoy it as much as we did! This homemade lentil bacon soup recipe is easy to make and full of delicious flavors. If you love soup as much as we do, you will want to check out all of my delicious gluten free soup recipes!
Allergen Information:
This lentil bacon soup is gluten-free, dairy-free, soy-free, egg-free, and nut-free.
Ingredient Notes:
For the full list of ingredients and amounts, please go to the recipe card below.
- Black Lentils – Any type of lentil would work in this recipe, but I highly recommend using black lentils because they hold their shape better than orange, brown, and green lentils.
- Bacon – Regular or turkey bacon is fine.
- Onions – Yellow onions are best.
- Bacon – You can use regular bacon or turkey bacon.
- Parsnips and Carrots – Sometimes, parsnips are hard to find. If you can’t find any, add more carrots.
- Chicken Broth – I recommend low sodium.
- Olive Oil – Any light cooking oil will be fine if you don’t have olive oil.
- Garlic – Minced
Lentils are not always easy to cook with, but these handy tips will help you make lentils perfect every time.
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Step-By-Step Photos and Directions:
👀 Sandi Says: Lentils must be rinsed before being added to the pot. I use a strainer to rinse the lentils. Look for any small rocks or debris! (It is funny I have never found a small pebble in my lentils, but every bag has this in the instructions, so it must happen occasionally.)
Step 1: Add the chopped bacon, parsnips, onion, oil, and garlic to a soup pot. Cook on medium heat until the onions become transparent.
Step 2: Pour in the chicken broth, cleaned lentils, and the rest of the ingredients.
Step 3: Cover and bring the soup to a boil. Allow the soup to boil for 10 minutes, then reduce the cooking temperature to low so it can simmer.
Step 4: Serve this soup with a dollop of sour cream and a little chopped fresh cilantro on top.
Store leftover soup in the freezer. I love using these Souper Cubes because they freeze the soup in single-serving portions.
Frequently Asked Questions:
I recommend using black or brown lentils for this soup. Orange lentils get very mushy, so do not use these.
You can make this soup low-fat with turkey bacon instead of regular bacon.
Store this soup in the refrigerator in an airtight container. It will keep fresh for up to 4 days. You can also freeze it. The soup will last in the freezer for up to 4 months. I use the Souper Cubes pictured above to freeze the soup in single-serving portions.
More Delicious Soup Recipes:
- Creamy New England Fish Chowder
- Broccoli Soup with Bacon
- My Grandma’s Homemade Chicken Soup
- Roasted Kuri Squash Soup
Love This Recipe?
If you made and enjoyed this recipe, I would be incredibly grateful if you could leave a comment below. This will help others know this recipe is delicious. Thank you!
Hearty Lentil Soup with Bacon
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup diced onion
- 1 cup diced carrots
- 2 diced parsnips
- 2 cloves minced garlic
- 1 ¼ cup black lentils * see note
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 quart low sodium chicken broth
- 2 cups water
- 2 teaspoons dried thyme
- 6 pieces cooked bacon * see note
- salt and pepper to taste
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Instructions
- In a large soup pot, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil on medium heat.
- Add 1/3 cup diced onion and 2 cloves minced garlic. Cook for 5 minutes until the onion becomes transparent
- Add in the chopped bacon, 1 cup diced carrots, and 2 diced parsnips and cook for another 3-4 minutes.
- Add 1 1/4 cup black lentils, 1 quart low sodium chicken broth, 2 cups water, 2 teaspoons dried thyme, salt and pepper to taste.
- Cover the soup pot and bring the mixture to a boil.
- Boil the soup for 5 minutes, then turn the heat to low and simmer. t
- Cook until lentils are soft, and most of the liquid is absorbed. Serve this soup hot, it will taste even better the next day!
Notes
- You can use any type of lentils, but I recommend using black lentils. They tend to hold their shape a lot better than green or brown lentils. Orange lentils will turn to mush, so I don’t recommend using this color.
- If you would like this soup to be low-fat, use turkey bacon.
- This soup will keep up to 4 days in an airtight container, or up to 4 months in the freezer. Use Souper Cubes to freeze individual portion size blocks to store in the freezer!
SPECIAL NOTE
Please know that every gluten free flour blend has a different starch to grain ratio. If you use a blend I didn’t test, my rule of thumb is to add more flour if your dough or batter is wet and add more liquid if the dough or batter is too dry!
Nutrition
Nutrition Disclaimer
Nutritional information is an estimate provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the actual nutritional information with the products and brands you are using with your preferred nutritional calculator.
Hi Sandi, how long does it usually take cook brown lentils?
Hi Anne, I would go by the package directions.
I love bacon and I will definitely try this one. This is perfect for rainy days to keep us warm.
I love that it’s healthy and warm at the same time. Great recipes, I will definitely try this.
I just made something similar yday, just that I didn’t have bacon in the house. However, my mum would always make a lentil pot on Saturdays with one big bacon but the bacon was a whole piece, cooked in the lentils to give flavor and was not crispy. I would never eat that bacon because it was one big piece and wobbly and I don’t like that. But I think I will try to cut it small and add it to the pot or maybe fry it crispy first to add to the lentils.
Your lentil soup will be part of the meal plan soon. 🙂
I love hearing how your mum made this Helene. If I didn’t cut the bacon, my kids would fight over the one piece LOL. Have a wonderful holiday!
You can freeze your lentil soup!! Its amazing!! I make a big batch of it and portion it and freeze it for later. Hope this helps you ?
That is wonderful news Tiffany. Thank you so, so much for writing so that other readers know it can be frozen.