Vegan Greek Lentil Soup is easy to make with pantry staples. Top it with a drizzle of olive oil and vinegar for a dish the whole family will love.

I make it a habit to keep dry lentils in my pantry. They are inexpensive, high in protein and fiber, and extremely versatile. I use them to make everything from vegan meatloaf muffins to cold lentil salad to hearty soups like this one.
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Ingredients and substitutions
- Dry lentils: For this recipe, choose green or brown lentils. Red lentils cook much quicker, are softer, and don't hold their texture. Save them for recipes such as Red Lentil Potato Soup.
- Red onion: I prefer red onion in this recipe, but sweeter white onion works well, too.
- Carrots and celery: Don't have them? Or don't care for them? Simply leave them out.
- Tomato paste: A little concentrated tomato gives this soup a complex depth of flavor. Learn more about this magic ingredient by reading 15 Vegan Recipes with Tomato Paste.
- Red wine vinegar: I recommend drizzling a little red wine vinegar over each bowl of soup when serving. But you can use a squeeze of fresh lemon juice instead.
For the complete list of ingredients with measurements plus recipe instructions, please see the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
Instructions
- In a large pot or Dutch oven, heat a little olive oil over medium heat. Add the diced onion and saute until soft and slightly translucent.
- Add the garlic, carrot, and celery and saute for a couple of more minutes.
- Stir in the lentils, vegetable broth, water, tomato paste, and bay leaf. Bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat.
- Simmer until the lentils are soft, stirring occasionally, at least 20 minutes, or up to 30-40 minutes, depending on your texture preference. Remove the bay leaf, taste, and add salt and pepper, as needed.
Amy's tips
- Be sure to wait to season with salt until after the soup is finished cooking. Otherwise, the lentils may become tough or take longer to become tender.
- Lentils to do not require soaking. But rinse them well in cold water to remove any dust or debris.
- This soup is very thick like a stew. If you prefer a thinner soup, add an additional 1-2 cups of liquid.
Instant Pot directions
Use the Saute function to saute the onion, garlic, carrot and celery. Then add the lentils, broth, water, tomato paste, and bay leaf and lock the lid. Pressure Cook on high for 7 minutes. Allow the pressure to release naturally, then season to taste with salt and pepper.
Serving suggestions
While it's delicious straight from the pot, my favorite way to serve Greek Lentil Soup is to top each bowl a drizzle of olive oil and red wine vinegar. It's filling on its own or with some crusty bread.
Or try it along with other Greek-inspired dishes like Mediterranean Tofu Tacos, Lemony Greek Potato Salad, or Vegan Greek Salad.
Growing up, I had several friends whose parents were originally from Greece. One of the dads owned a Greek restaurant and cooked my friend and me delicious meals after he picked us up from school on the days he was in charge of carpool. This simple dish is one of the recipes he passed along to my mom since I enjoyed it so much.
Storing and freezing
Leftover soup can be covered and refrigerated for 3-4 days or frozen for up to 3 months. I like to freeze servings in individual portions in mason jars or small glass containers with lids. Be sure to allow a little room at the top since the liquid will expand when frozen.
To reheat, first defrost the frozen container of soup in the refrigerator overnight. It will be thicker, so you may want to add a little water before reheating it in a pot on the stove or in a microwave-safe bowl.
Refer to the FDA Food Storage Guidelines for more information.
More vegan lentil recipes
And for even more recipes, join the Vegan Mediterranean Diet Recipes Facebook group for support, inspiration, and fun.
If you love this recipe, please give it 5 stars! ★★★★★
📋 Recipe
Greek Lentil Soup
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 1 red onion, (or any color) chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 carrot, chopped
- 1 stalk celery, chopped
- 1 pound dry green or brown lentils, (16 ounces) well rinsed and drained
- 4 cups vegetable broth
- 2 cups water
- 2 Tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 bay leaf
- salt and pepper, to taste
- extra olive oil, for serving (optional)
- red wine vinegar, for serving (optional)
Instructions
- In a large pot or Dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the diced onion and saute until soft and slightly translucent.
- Add the garlic, carrot, and celery and saute for a couple of more minutes.
- Stir in the lentils, vegetable broth, water, tomato paste, and bay leaf. Bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat to low.
- Simmer until the lentils are soft, stirring occasionally, at least 20 minutes, or up to 30 to 40 minutes, depending on your texture preference. Remove the bay leaf, taste the soup, and add salt and pepper, as needed.
- To serve, top each bowl with a drizzle of olive oil and red wine vinegar, if desired.
Notes
- Be sure to wait to season with salt until after the soup is finished cooking. Otherwise, the lentils may become tough or take longer to become tender.
- Lentils to do not require soaking. But rinse them well in cold water to remove any dust or debris.
- This soup is very thick like a stew. If you prefer a thinner soup, add an additional 1 to 2 cups of liquid.
- Dry lentils: For this recipe, choose green or brown lentils. Red lentils cook much quicker, are softer, and don't hold their texture. Save them for recipes such as Red Lentil Potato Soup.
- Red onion: I prefer red onion in this recipe, but sweeter white onion works well, too.
- Carrots and celery: Don't have them? Or don't care for them? Simply leave them out.
- Red wine vinegar: I recommend drizzling a little red wine vinegar over each bowl of soup when serving. But you can use a squeeze of fresh lemon juice instead.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is an estimation only.
Freddi
Love the mix of flavors especially adding Red wine vinegar at the end. Yum !
Amy Katz
Thanks Freddi! That's my favorite part, too. 🙂
Dina
This was sooo good! My husband had 2 servings! We are having a cold spell so this hit the spot! We live in S. TX and we like pico de gallo and avocado, so we added that after serving and it was delicious! I also added about 2-3 extra cups of veggie broth because my husband likes it more soupy. Thank you for this great recipe!
Amy Katz
I love that you made it your own, Dina. Great additions!
Kaytee Smith
This soup was very delicious. I have made is several times. Thank you
Amy Katz
Glad you enjoyed it, Kaytee!