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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If you haven't tried lentil soup with bacon yet, you are in for a special treat. Mr. Fearless Dining and I had a date night, and we both went crazy over the restaurant's lentil bacon soup.
The flavors in this bacon lentil soup just explode in your mouth, this soup was so good! I knew I needed to try to recreate this recipe at home. Note, I did cheat and use turkey bacon to make the dish a little healthier, but it is also delicious with regular bacon. This is a kid-friendly soup recipe that will become popular in your house.
It took a few tries, but I think I have matched the flavors pretty closely, so you can enjoy it as much as we did!
If you love soup as much as we do, you will want to check out all of my delicious gluten free soup recipes!
Why this soup is great:
This homemade lentil bacon soup recipe is gluten free and dairy free. It is easy to make and is packed full of flavor. It takes about 30 minutes to make, and you can freeze the extras.
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 also love these bacon roses!
Lentil soup is comfort food in our house because this soup is hot, thick, and creamy. (My kids think the bacon makes it comfort-like; I haven't told them this soup is healthy!)
Ingredients that go into this soup:
- 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 - You can use regular or turkey bacon.
- Parsnips - Sometimes, parsnips are hard to find. If you can't find any, add more carrots.
- Chicken broth - I recommend low-sodium.
Lentils are not always easy to cook with, but these handy tips will help you make lentils perfect every time.
How to clean lentils:
Lentils need to be rinsed before adding them 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.)
Recipe step by step directions:
Step 1: In a soup pot, add the chopped bacon, parsnips, onion, oil, and garlic. Cook on medium heat until the onions become clear.
Step 2: Pour in the chicken broth, cleaned lentils, and the rest of the ingredients. 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 3: Serve this soup with a dollop of sour cream and a little chopped fresh cilantro on top.
Expert Tips and Recipe FAQ:
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 by using turkey bacon instead of regular bacon.
This soup will keep up to 4 days in an air-tight container or up to 4 months in the freezer.
Update, readers have written in to tell me that this lentil and bacon soup recipe freezes really well!"
More Delicious Soup Recipes to Try:
You will love this broccoli soup with bacon and these other easy soup recipes.
📖 Recipe
Hearty Lentil Soup with Bacon
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 medium onion diced
- 6 carrots diced
- 2 parsnips diced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 ¼ cup black lentils * see note
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 quart low sodium chicken broth I used Trader Joe's
- 2 cups water
- 2 teaspoons thyme
- 6 pieces cooked bacon * see note
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a large soup pot, heat olive oil on medium heat.
- Add onion, carrot, and parsnip and cook for 5 minutes until softened.
- Add chopped turkey bacon and cook another 3-4 minutes.
- Add lentils, broth, water, thyme, salt and pepper.
- Cover and bring to a boil.
- Boil for 5 minutes then turn heat to low and simmer.
- Cook until lentils are soft and most of the liquid is absorbed.
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 air-tight container, or up to 4 months 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, you may need to adjust your moisture levels in your baked goods.
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.
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Jhoei
I love bacon and I will definitely try this one. This is perfect for rainy days to keep us warm.
Sandi Gaertner
Thank you so much.
Bianca
I love that it's healthy and warm at the same time. Great recipes, I will definitely try this.
Sandi Gaertner
Thank you so much Bianca 🙂
Dana DeVolk
LOVE lentil soup, trying this recipe immediately!
Sandi Gaertner
Thank you Dana 🙂
Anne
Hi Sandi, how long does it usually take cook brown lentils?
Sandi Gaertner
Hi Anne, I would go by the package directions.
Helene
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. 🙂
Sandi Gaertner
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!
Cindy @ Hun... What's for Dinner?
I LOVE lentil soup and don't make it enough, because I'm the only one that eats it. This recipe is making me want to make a pot ASAP!
Sandi Gaertner
The bacon makes this pretty stellar 🙂
Tiffany
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 ?
Sandi Gaertner
That is wonderful news Tiffany. Thank you so, so much for writing so that other readers know it can be frozen.
Healing Tomato
January is the perfect time for lentils. I eat so many lentils in the fall, so, I am always looking for great recipes. Your picture is amazing and your recipe is very creative.
Sandi Gaertner
Thank you Rini, I would love to know if this recipe works with vegan bacon.