I went to this smoky red lentil stew on another day of unexpected snowfall. The base of onions, carrots, celery, garlic, and spices is super classic, but also smoky with an ample helping of smoked paprika. The red split lentils make for a good hit of satiation that simmers to soft completion quickly. Perfect with crusty bread, a nice salad, or over a heap of warm and fluffy rice.
I can’t believe I’m sharing a pantry-friendly stew recipe here with you in April, but springtime in Ontario is a bit of a cruel joke, so here we are. Cozy and smoky red lentil stew is still necessary with these single digit temps. This quick pot is from a new cookbook by Sonja and Alex Overhiser, the power duo behind A Couple Cooks!
This smoky red lentil stew hits the right note of comforting, easy, casual, and wholesome. It’s truly quick, and easy to throw together on a whim. Only 30 minutes for the cooking time! I know I’ll be making versions of it all year with different herbs and greens that I have on hand.
Fans of this kind of vegan soup/stew (sitting at the intersection of comfort and ease) might also like this creamy white bean soup with kale, rosemary & lemon.
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Smoky Red Lentil Stew
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 large carrots, small dice
- 1 medium yellow onion, small dice
- 2 stalks celery, small dice
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- 2 tablespoons smoked paprika
- ¼ teaspoon ground cumin
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 ¼ cups red lentils, rinsed
- 4 cups vegetable stock
- sea salt and ground black pepper, to taste
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (from ½ a large lemon)
- chopped fresh herbs for serving (see notes)
Notes
- From: Pretty Simply Cooking: 100 Delicious Vegetarian Recipes to make You Fall in Love with Real Food by Sonja & Alex Overhiser
- Sonja and Alex suggest topping this stew with some plain Greek-style yogurt, chopped cilantro or parsley, and a squeeze of lemon.
- I went completely by the book for this recipe! Just added one packed cup of chopped kale at the end, and then let it wilt into the stew.
Instructions
- In a large pot or deep braiser, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the carrots, onion, and celery. Stir and saute until the onion is translucent, about 5-6 minutes.
- Add the garlic to the pot and stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Then, add the balsamic vinegar, smoked paprika, cumin, cayenne, and lentils. Give everything a big stir.
- Add the vegetable stock, salt, and pepper to the pot. Stir and bring the stew up to a simmer. Cover the pot halfway with a lid and let the stew simmer for about 7-10 minutes, depending on your preferred done-ness of the lentils. I went the full 10 minutes because I was aiming for a creamier texture. Stir in the lemon juice.
- Serve the stew hot with chopped fresh herbs and extra lemon.
Really awesome – added some oyster mushrooms in the beginning and can see being extra amazing and umami with a variety of mushrooms. Used a bit of nutritional yeast and vegan Worcestershire sauce and added a bit of coriander,Thyme, msg, mystery potato spices mix, and because I didn’t have stock used a stock cube in hot water and also threw in some of the veggie leftovers and some dried porccini mushrooms to help it saturate slowly while I finish the other steps. Amazing and feels both healthy to eat but tastes like something that maybe isn’t (in a good way)
I saw this recipe and thought I’d give it a try because I do love red lentils and I’m glad I did because it’s delicious.
I only made a 1/2 recipe because I cook for one. I want concerned about it being vegetarian so I used chicken broth because that’s what I have on hand. I held back a bit on the smoked paprika and cayenne and added some baby spinach at the end of the cooking time.
There isn’t any plain Greek yogurt in the house at the moment, but a couple dollop of your cream did the trick.
This will be an excellent side to my salmon dinner tonight.
Really good. I had a bunch of red lentils that I needed to cook and was looking for something that was a little different.
I think I used up all the paprika in my cabinet for this.
I made a couple substitutions based on what I had. Chopped in a green pepper instead of the celery.
Ran out of balsamic vinegar halfway through the tablespoon so squirted in some reduction.
I also pre-boiled about five baby potatoes to al dente and chopped them up and added them at the last end of the open lid cycle.
Also added in a bowl of baby spinach for color.
I know that’s part wouldn’t be vegan but I could see mixing in some chopped andouille sausage for some additional protein.
This tastes amazing and I cannot wait to eat it for the next 5 days at work.
so delicious and I will 100 percent make it again!! I added spinach to mine to get some more color and it was perfect
This soup is very delicious! My daughter made it twice this month and gave me a portion each time…I will now buy the ingredients and do it myself at age 89!
How many weeks in a row can I eat this soup? Asking for a friend :)
This is FANTASTIC! It is so cozy, so easy to whip up on a cold night, and it reheats like a dream. 10/5 stars!
can’t eat onions or garlic sadly. What can I substitute? CAn I use chicken stock if can’t eat tomatoes (veg stock)?
Hi there,
Can you eat leeks by chance? Or is the entire allium family a problem? If you can eat leeks, I would go in with 2 of them diced up in place of the onion and garlic. If leeks are NOT an option, I would replace the onion with another excellent aromatic vegetable: fennel. Then, I would increase the cumin and cayenne (if you can handle spice) to make up for some of the flavor. Chicken stock is also a totally fine substitute!
-L
we cant do the hot spices but can use tomato paste and a bit of ginger root. so…. without veg stock , had to use water. mum loves it.
Can you add coconut milk instead of water ? Thaanks
Hi Andy,
If you wanted to incorporate coconut milk, I would use one 13.5 oz can and make up the rest of the liquid with vegetable stock. I think all coconut milk might be too thick and rich here.
-L
This was delicious! Didn’t have smoked paprika or celery, but still really awesome recipe. Added kale. Will make again.
Searching for a red lentil recipe and found your wonderful red lentil stew. The addition of kale was a masterful touch.
Skipped the carrots, added sautéed kielbasa and this stew was amazing. Best lentils ever!
So good! Even husband and 7 month old son loved it. Did half of the paprika and cayenne for the kids. Topped with plain Greek yogurt and lemon – amazing.
Very good. I didn’t have cayenne so used ground chipotle which also has a smoky quality. Next time I’ll at least double the cumin and pepper. I think adding some tomato paste would improve the texture, which wasn’t really stew-like. Tasty though, especially topped with fresh parsley & basil from my garden.
I am just making this tonight for the first time. I was looking for something different. I’m so glad I tried it. Even though my husband hates all my different vinegars , he can’t tell balsamic is in here and it tastes amazing. So smokey and savory. I threw in a hand of spinach at the end just because.
This was delicious!! My entire family, including three teens, loved it. I’ve always made red lentils with curry or tomatoes and wanted something different, and this was perfect.
WOW this is a new favorite recipe!! I’m not the biggest fan of smoked paprika, so I did about 1.5 tbsp rather than 2 tbsp, but I was delighted by how the smokiness blends into the recipe and really elevates it. Happy to have found a use for smoked paprika at last! This stew is so comforting, delicious, and really easy to make. Is it freezeable?
Hi Yuki! Glad you enjoyed this stew. It does freeze very well. You may want to add a few splashes of water/stock to it once you’re reheating it though.
-L
I’m obsessed with this meal! The only thing I would hangs is maybe adding a bit of brightness to it besides the lemon juice
What a wonderful recipe! I am not a huge fan of lentil soup but the smoked paprika makes it very palatable for me. Thank you for posting.
This is absolutely delicious!. I increased the cumin to 1 teaspoon and the cayenne pepper to 1/2 a teaspoon because I love the taste and enjoy those spices in my food. I also simmered the stew for about 30 mins to get the creamier texture. Definitely a 5 star recipe.
Lovely meal. I added slightly more balsamic vinegar 2 tbs. But wow what a meal.
This was sooo fricken delicious! I also doubled the balsamic and added more carrots but both because I’m a rebel Lol. All I had were baby so I had no idea how much 2 carrots would produce. And the smoked paprika!
This stew was refreshingly different from most lentils recipes. While I love curries, this departure was welcomed with open arms and it gives me back.
I added extra balsamic, prob double or more because I liked the depth it added, and the smell of it mixing with the paprika was HEAVEN! I also love vinegars, so it wasn’t a stretch for me. I also added ground coriander, a bay leaf, and potatoes that I needed to use (per someone’s suggestion below.) I finished it off with some fresh spinach that I let wilt. I hate curry with a passion and this was the first recipe I found that wasn’t curry. I freeze dried this run to preserve it since I had to eat other things up, but need to make it again just to eat it up. I am not even vegan. I will make this forever. It is simply amazing. Hearty, beautiful in color, and delicious. Thank for this gem! Can I give 10 stars??
Flavorful! Got rave reviews from our guests.
Love this stew! I’ve been trying over and over to get the flavor right of various lentil stews, and this one was perfect. I did add an extra cup of broth because of the thickness, but that’s it! Thank you!!
Awesome recipe! Definitely a keeper.
I also added a bag of spinach at the very end for more nutrition and colour.
Spinach addition is genius for more nutrition! Will definitely do that next time.
Sooooo delicious. Great fall comfort food. I added Kale at the end.
Currently the best red lentil recipe I have to date. It’s quick, easy, inexpensive, simple, and so so so flavourful – it’s absolutely delicious! It’s an instant easy save for one of the best recipes to ever make when one has these ingredients stored and ready. Thank you for adding this into my life!! Incredibly flavourful, inexpensive, and very very simple. Well done!
I didn’t make your recipe yet but would LOVE to try it with some Beluga or French lentil…cause for me red lentil our used for making Dahl. What do you think?
It’s getting pretty hot right now so maybe I should wait to make this stew in a colder weather,
I will stick on lentil salads for a while during this warm weather.
Thank you so much for sharing your recipe with us f have a great day!
Amazing! (Added Kale)
Really quick and delicious dish added coriander, bay leaf, spinach and tomato puree. Think next time would try dicing some potato in there too to bind it more.
Love this stew, I wilted some baby spinach leaves in the stew, added chopped coriander and parsle and toped with yoghurt. Delicious, thank you.