Healing Moroccan Lentil Soup
Healing Moroccan Lentil Soup- made with a blend of Moroccan-inspired spices, this lentil soup is packed full of flavor and nourishing nutrition. (vegan + gluten-free)
I always thought it would be nice to have a winter baby but now I’m realizing that means spending even more time holed up at home than it would if I had him any other time of year. Right now the weather is gloomy and everyone is sick. I’m itching for sunshine and human interaction!
While most of us might be dreaming of spring, there are still plenty of cozy soups and stews to help hold us over. This is one of my absolute favorites because it has such a unique blend of ingredients that feel extra nourishing to the body. It’s the perfect cure when you’re feeling under the weather.
Healing Moroccan Soup Ingredients
- Fennel and Carrots- fresh fennel and carrots add texture and flavor. We really enjoy the fresh fennel in this soup but you can always make it without if you’re unable to find it.
- Onion and Garlic- these two make up the base of the soup and add flavor to the broth.
- Lentils- I typically go for brown lentils in this soup but have also used green and it was still delicious. You can also use red lentils but they tend to absorb less broth so you might want to reduce the liquid in that case. They also take less time to cook so you’ll need to adjust the cooking time. To help with digestion, I prefer to soak the lentils in water for at least a few hours or up to overnight.
- Sweet Potato- paired with the lentils, sweet potato makes for a heartier soup. So long as it’s properly cleaned you can leave the skin on to save time.
- Cumin, Turmeric, Coriander, Cayenne and Cinnamon- the savory blend of spices paired with just a touch of cinnamon adds delicious and healing vibes to the broth. It makes the ingredient list look lengthy but most of them are easy to find at major grocery stores.
- Vegetable Broth- Using a flavorful broth is key to making this soup delicious. My favorite is Better Than Bouillon.
- Lemon Juice- I love adding lemon juice to almost all of my soups and stews because it gives it that extra flair. It’s especially good in this recipe as the sour helps balance out the sweet from the potatoes, carrots, and cinnamon. Please don’t skip it!
How to Make Healing Moroccan Lentil Soup
What’s great about this soup is that it’s makes for easy clean up in just one pot!
- First we sauté the vegetables in olive oil.
- Next we add the spices with 1 cup broth and bring to a boil then let them infuse the broth with their flavorful goodness.
- Then we add the potato and lentils with the remaining broth and cook until tender.
- Lastly, we squeeze in fresh lemon juice, garnish with cilantro and it’s ready to eat!
Please don’t be deterred by the long ingredient list! If you have a well stocked spice rack then you really only need to pick up the produce and you’re good to go.
Just make sure not to leave out the squeeze of fresh lemon juice. It pairs really well with the spices and gives it a nice pop of flavor at the end. I’m telling you, winter soup doesn’t get much better than this!
Looking for more soup recipes? Check these out:
- Dairy-free Potato Soup
- Easy Vegetable Minestrone Soup
- The Best Lentil Soup
- Roasted Acorn Squash and Apple Soup
- 15-Minute Tomato Soup
- Creamy Wild Rice Mushroom Soup
- Tofu ‘Chicken’ Noodle Soup
- Lemony Lentil and Greens Soup
Healing Moroccan Lentil Soup
Ingredients
- 1 cup lentils, brown or green, soaked*
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 yellow onion, finely chopped
- 1 fennel bulb, finely chopped
- 2 large carrots, finely chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
- 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne, optional
- 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 6 cups vegetable broth
- 1 medium-size sweet potato, peeled and diced into 1-inch cubes
- juice of 1 lemon
- fresh cilantro, chopped, for garnish
Instructions
- In large pot, warm the oil over medium heat. Add the onion,fennel, carrot and garlic. Cook for about 3 minutes, until onion is translucent and garlic is fragrant.
- To the pot, add 1 cup of the vegetable broth along with the spices (cumin to cinnamon). Bring to a low boil and cook for 10 minutes so that the liquid reduces by approximately 1/3.
- Pour in the remaining broth along with the sweet potato and rinsed lentils then bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes, or until the lentils and potato are tender.
- Remove the pot from the heat then squeeze in the lemon juice and stir together. Ladle into individual bowls for serving and garnish with chopped cilantro. Serve warm and enjoy!
I have also been timid to pick up a bulb of fennel. Definitely going to be making this soup as I love this combination of spices!
MMM…I just made my vegetarian lentil soup last Friday for dinner on a rainy night, it was perfection. I love lentils and I agree, soaking them is the way to go! I’m pinning this recipe right now! By the way, I’m making your amaranth stew recipe this week and it’ll be my first time using amaranth!
I’m happy to hear you’re eating beans and grains again! I think soaking them really helps to prevent the stomach problems but if all else fails, there’s always Beano, haha. ;)
I hope you like the stew!!
I’ve had salads with fennel in them and I really like it! Definitely a different flavor, but in a good way. I remember never knowing what fennel was until I saw it on every cooking competition show and wondered what the big deal was!
This looks delicious! I’ve been wanting to try some Moroccan dishes lately, so I’m adding this to the list of things to make!
Yyyup! This will be happening soon! I LOVE lentils in soup :)
I JUST bought lentils the other day and was trying to think of something to make with them and I think this is it! Love the spices you used :)
Thanks, Kristen! I hope you get a chance to try it. :)
Of course it picks the worse time to rain! Ugh. And you should definitely give fennel a try. I was pleasantly surprised!
I love cooking with fennel, I just adore the way it gets sweet after it has softened up a little bit. This soup looks so comforting, and definitely perfect for a dreary rainy day.
It rained all day here … a bowl of this would have been perfect! It really does look so warming and comforting. I rarely use fennel … it’s not my favorite but I really should branch out and try it out more often!
I adore fennel, but I can’t honestly say I’ve ever had it in a soup — sounds delicious! My mom used to make me a tea from fennel seeds whenever my stomach was acting up, and it always seemed to help. Lots of healing magic indeed :) Pinned!
I love lentil soups, this looks so lovely too! I have never used cinnamon in a soup, but it sounds like an absolutely genius idea! It must be so warming :)
Thank you, Evi! The cinnamon is really subtle but it does give it a nice warming touch. :)
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Made this last night and it was just what our bodies needed! So delicious ~~~ and I enjoyed making it. Thank you, Sarah.
Yay! I’m so glad you tried it! It’s one of my favorites. Thank you for the feedback, Jackie! :)
Oh goodness… Thursday is traditional soup day in Sweden (not many people still hold to that though) and I think this soup would be perfect for this week. Looks fantastic and I can almost feel that scent filling up the apartment… Yum!
That should work the same. I hope you enjoy it!
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Just made it and it smells divine!! I havent put lentils in yet because I only noticed the soaking part now, guess we will soak them for 6 hours.and eat it tomorrow.
Hi Karen! You can do a quick soak in very hot water for 30 mins. You could also add more broth at the end to make up for the liquid that absorbs as they cook. Sorry for the confusion! I do this to help lessen the amount of phytic acid so that the lentils are easier to digest.
YUM YUM YUM!! So easy to put together. I followed the recipe except I used frozen lentils because we had some. I cannot wait to make this again. So warm and satisfying. The flavors of the spices marry so well with the carrots and sweet potatoes. There was not a drop left after dinner tonight – and I was so looking forward to leftovers!
I’m so happy to hear that you enjoyed it, Jenny! I haven’t made this one in a while but I need to soon. Thanks for the reminder! :)
I made this for the first time a few years ago. It is a annual soup and a favorite for my family and anyone I make it for. It’s really a fantastic recipe. Thanks for
Sharing your creativity!
Aw I’m glad it’s a favorite of yours and you family! That makes me so happy to hear. Thanks for sharing, Amy! :)
We made this for dinner tonight. Since we did not soak the lentils, we added the extra 2 cups of broth. We also doubled the spices. It turned out very good, but the fennel taste was lost. I think we will double that as well next time. The lemon and the cilantro is an important component to the flavour of the soup. Thanks for the recipe!
Thanks for the review, Suzanne! It’s possible that the extra broth diluted the fennel but I’m glad you liked it otherwise!
This soup is delicious!! Found this recipe while searching for ways to use up my CSA vegetables, which included fennel and sweet potato. You are right – the lemon juice at the end is key. I also loved it with some plain whole milk yogurt on top and eating it with Paratha bread. YUM. Thanks for this one!
Thanks for the inspiration! I’m not really one for meticulous measurements, but I took your suggested spices in approximate ratios and made a wonderful soup! I loved the cinnamon in there. Subbed out cabbage for fennel as that’s what I had on hand, but fennel would have made it that much more spectacular. Comforting soup on a cold Idaho evening
Thank you for the review, Brandon! I’m so glad you enjoyed it.
This is the most amazing soup I’ve tasted in a long time! My husband agrees! The blend of spices is perfect and the fennel bulb adds the final finishing touch. It truly tastes healing when you eat it – and so comforting. You have a beautiful gift of creating plant-based recipes. How can anyone think that plant-based eating is boring?!
Amazing. Simple, Healthy, and delicious!
Excellent twist on lentil soup! I didn’t have fennel on hand, so I made it without – actually, I added sliced mushrooms… – but the warm spices were so good, and the lemon juice was a nice pop of flavor! This is definitely going into my soup rotation.
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This looks really good. Would you change the amount of liquid if making it in an instant pot pressure cooker.
Another fantastic soup recipe! This was my first time cooking with fennel and I really enjoyed it. I added a few handfuls of fresh spinach at the end and it went perfectly with the soup. Thank you!
Glad you enjoyed it, Rachel! Love the idea to add some green too. :)
I made this soup this week. Followed the recipe as is. Delicious! Thankyou.
Hi, I just moved to France and the only “coriander” I can find is a jar of what looks to be dried cilantro leaves, but no ground spice. Is there something else I can use for coriander in this recipe? Thank you!
You can just leave it out and garnish it with fresh cilantro! It will alter the flavor slightly but still be delicious. :)
Thank you so much! I’m really looking forward to trying this and your other recipes. Merci Beaucoup!
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yum! this recipe reminded me of the lentil soup my mom would make growing up :)
it was hearty, warm, filling, fragrant (ohh the house smelled really nice) and perfect for a cool fall day.
I didn’t add fennel, cumin or cayenne (not in the pantry) or soak the lentils, and it probably took about 30-40 more minutes for them to cook through- everything being slightly mushy due to the added time, but in a comforting kind of way.
my housemate had a bite and gave a MASSIVE stamp of approval, so I definitely recommend and will likely make this soup again!
No fennel or sweet potato and it was still delicious! I will definitely be making this regularly. Thank you.
Has anyone tried the recipe with a crockpot?
Hi Mo! I haven’t cooked this in a crockpot but my suspicion is that the sweet potato would be mushy if it sits in there for too long. Also, the high heat on the stovetop allows the spices to meld and infuse better than the slow and low heat of a crockpot. But I’m sure it would still be edible if you want to try and experiment with the crockpot method. :)
I added leeks and some ginger and threw it all in the instant pot… waiting now :)
One of the best soup/stews I have ever tasted. it is delicious and so filling . I have started doubling the quantities and freezing so I always have some to hand
There does seem a lot of ingredients but as the recipe says just spices you have in your cupboards – it is so easy to make and the results amazing
I did not have a fennel bulbs so i just crushed a few seeds
I made this and now I am hooked! I double the quantity then freeze some so I can pull it out o the freezer when I want something tasty wholesome nutritious and comforting .
It is such a simple but lovely tasting recipe . Thank you
This is without a doubt the most delicious soup I’ve ever made. I’ve made it three weeks in a row now. Hubby loves it too. This soup is food for the soul and a hug for your tummy. Thanks so much for sharing it with the world.
Now this is one delicious soup. Even though I messed up and mistakenly used a yam instead of a sweet potato. The spices, better than bouillon suggestion, fennel bulb and lemon juice ingredients gave it an extraordinary, complex aroma and taste. My variations included adding chopped celery, Italian parsley instead of cilantro, 14 oz can of crushed Italian tomato and a squirt of tubed tomato paste. Wonderful!
Hi there,
I’d love to make your lentil soup!
The recipe says it makes 4 servings.
How big is a serving?
Thank you!
A serving is about 8-12 ounces (the size of an average soup bowl). I hope that helps!
Hi there!
Terrific soup! My whole family loves it and, in fact, I eat it daily for lunch.
I can see the calorie count, however, what is the measure? Is that for a cup?
Thank you,
B:)
It is for 1/4th of the recipe. So if you get 4 servings then it is for 1 of the 4 servings. :)
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