Anti-Inflammatory Vegan Lentil Carrot Soup (One-Pot)

There’s nothing better than a pot of hot, fragrant and cozy plant-based goodness on a cold day! Especially when it’s as easy to make and nutritious as our anti-inflammatory vegan lentil and carrot soup.

All the nourishing ingredients you could imagine are found in this one-pot recipe from grounding root veggies to protein-packed legumes, fresh greens and anti-inflammatory compounds like ginger and turmeric.

Move over, chicken breast, the new protein in town are quick-cooking red lentils. They come with heaps of benefits — at a much cheaper price per pound, they offer a lot of fiber and virtually no saturated fat.

If you’ve been thinking of classic chicken soup to boost your immune system, you may want to change your focus from now on!

This anti-inflammatory soup gives your body everything it needs to be strong, healthy and balanced.

It’s packed with nutrients and flavor, easy on your digestion and perfect for batch cooking! Practically the ultimate healing comfort food for a lazy evening and remedy when you’re down with the sniffles.

If you cannot tolerate legumes so well (right now), feel free to blend this soup so that it’s already kind of pre-digested and your mouth doesn’t have to do much chewing anymore. Plus, it’ll be easier to absorb all this goodness!

Especially around the holidays when we’re all busy and cannot stop snacking on freshly baked cookies (guilty!), this simple anti-inflammatory soup can work wonders.

Let’s quickly go over some of the ingredients and why they are so awesome before we share our top tips around this simple carrot lentil soup recipe!

What Are Anti-Inflammatory Foods?

While we like to steer away from unproven or shady health claims, there is some truth behind this whole anti-inflammatory diet thing! Although we personally haven’t heard about it for the longest time, we found that we’ve already eaten mostly anti-inflammatory foods on a daily basis. 

Inflammation is a natural and necessary process in our bodies but when it persists, major diseases can begin to plague us — from heart disease to cancer, arthritis and even depression, all of which have been linked to chronic inflammation.

says Dr. Frank Hu, professor of nutrition and epidemiology in the Department of Nutrition at the Harvard School of Public Health.

And what are those anti-inflammatory foods, you ask? We’ve collected a few for you to include in your diet on a regular basis.

Anti-Inflammatory Foods List

• Green leafy vegetables
• Fruits, especially berries and oranges
• Tomatoes
• Nuts & seeds
• Turmeric & ginger
• Mushrooms
• Peppers
• Broccoli
• Avocado
• Legumes 
• Tea
• Herbs & spices like black pepper, cinnamon, clove or cayenne

At the same time, you also want to reduce as much as possible foods that increase inflammation in the body, such as added sugar, oils high in omega-6 fatty acids, processed foods, excess alcohol and soda.

Research from 2014 suggests that lower inflammation levels could be a key benefit of a vegan diet, by the way!

If you’re new to plant-based eating, you can check out our full transition guide (including downloads) here or go to our whole food plant-based diet guide here.

The Ultimate Anti-Inflammatory Vegan Lentil Soup

• Nourishing, cozy and so good for you
• Perfect for meal prep
• One-pot beginner recipe
• Hearty, budget-friendly family dinner
• Easily customizable
• Healthier than canned soup
• Perfect fall & winter recipe
• Packed with protein & fiber
• Ready in about 30 minutes
• Everyday worknight recipe

We love creating nourishing recipes from pantry staples that can be found at pretty much any supermarket! This is just another great example of how you can feed your whole family on a budget while improving everyone’s health.

Our easy anti-inflammatory soup is loaded with fiber and plant-strong protein while being really weight loss-friendly and filling — a great way to start eating more legumes and veggies. Let’s see how to make this vegan lentil soup!

How to Make Vegan Lentil Carrot Soup

Do you know that moment when you recognize that it’s gotten surprisingly cold outside? That’s when you need to grab your largest pot and start making this hearty anti-inflammatory soup.

Once you’ve gathered all of the ingredients you want to use (ingredient swap suggestions below!), wash and chop your veggies. Start by sautéing your onion, garlic, carrot, celery, potato and spices in a splash of water for a few minutes, stirring constantly.

Then add the vegetable broth, tomato paste and diced tomatoes and bring to a boil before adding the red lentils. Turn the heat to low, cover the pot and let your soup simmer for 15 minutes until the lentils are cooked and the potatoes are tender, but not overcooked.

Finally, season your carrot lentil soup with some salt and pepper, then add the spinach and let it simmer for five more minutes.

Turn off the heat, add the chopped parsley and serve your homemade anti-inflammatory soup warm! Easy done.

Simple Anti-Inflammatory Soup Ingredients

• Red Lentils — protein-packed, low in fat, quick-cooking and wonderfully textured.
• Potato — our favorite soup ingredient which may be swapped for sweet potato or pumpkin.
• Carrots — yup, this is going to be a very orange-y carrot lentil soup!
• Celery — typical winter soup ingredient for added texture and savory flavor.
• Onion, Garlic, Ginger, Lemon Juice — both for the delicious flavor and health-boosting properties of our anti-inflammatory soup!
• Baby Spinach & Parsley — let’s add some healthy wilted greens to this easy one-pot dish.
• Vegetable Broth & Diced Tomatoes — that’s what is used for the flavorful liquid in our soup.
• Spices — you can go as crazy as you like here, our recipe suggests some cumin, turmeric (plus black pepper, always go for that combo!), coriander seeds, paprika and salt.

As you can see, this one-pot soup recipe is packed with high-nutrient and healing foods. Adding lemon juice, garlic, ginger and turmeric really is the winning combination to help your body fight off a running nose or fever.

Tips for the Best Vegan Lentil Soup

You can enjoy this carrot lentil soup all on its own or serve it alongside rice, quinoa or vegan dinner rolls! It tastes great with any vegan bread of your choice, like some healthy cornbread or nutty buckwheat bread.

For some added calories, you can sauté the onion and garlic with some olive oil before adding the rest of the ingredients but we like to keep our recipes oil-free. Similarly, add some coconut milk for a richer soup with a slightly different taste.

Here is some more information about our anti-inflammatory soup!

Suggested Food Swaps

So, this vegan lentil carrot soup has quite a long list of ingredients for a humble dinner, right? If you want to, you can strip it way down and go easier on the spices or skip the spinach and celery entirely.

Here’s what else we like to add to our one-pot vegan soup!

• Chickpeas
• Sweet potato
• Peas
• Bell pepper
• Fresh rosemary or thyme
• Butternut squash
• Black beans 
• Green beans
• Cauliflower
• Shredded cabbage
• Beets
• Coconut milk

You can swap the red lentils for green or brown ones, just keep in mind that the cooking time will increase in this case.

Storage & Reheating

This anti-inflammatory soup is perfect for batch cooking as it can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days and easily be reheated on the stove or in the microwave for a quick weeknight dinner.

You can also freeze it for up to 3 months and reheat it on the stove, adding more vegetable broth if needed.

More Cozy Vegan Dinner Recipes

If you’re into this vegan lentil soup and scrumptious plant-based dinners in general, we have some great recipes you can try next!

• One-Pot Pasta Marinara
• Easy Vegan Bean Chili
• Spicy Potato Chickpea Curry
• Creamy Vegan Lasagna
• White Sauce Pasa

Continue to Content

Anti-Inflammatory Vegan Lentil Carrot Soup

Yield: 3 servings

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 35 minutes

Easy one-pot vegan lentil carrot soup with wilted greens and all the cozy spices! This is a budget-friendly anti-inflammatory soup perfect for fall or winter, great for meal prep and lazy weeknight dinners to feed your whole family. Endlessly customizable and so delicious!

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Ingredients

• 1 cup red lentils, dry (190 g)
• 1 Russet potato, peeled and cut into cubes
• 2 carrots, cut into slices
• 3 celery stalks, diced
• 1 large yellow onion, finely diced
• 3 garlic cloves, diced
• 4 cups low sodium vegetable broth (950 ml)
• 1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 large bunch parsley, finely chopped
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 1 cup canned diced tomatoes (240 ml)
• 2 cups baby spinach (60 g)
• 2 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 2 tsp sweet paprika
• ½ tsp coriander seeds
• 1-inch ginger piece, peeled and grated
• 1 tsp salt
• Freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

1. Place a large pot over medium heat and add the onion, garlic, carrot, celery, potato and spices. Sauté everything in a splash of water for 5 minutes, stirring frequently.
2. Add the vegetable broth, tomato paste and diced tomatoes. Stir and bring to a boil before adding the dry lentils and mixing everything well.
3. Turn the heat to low, cover the pot and let your soup simmer for 15 minutes until the lentils are cooked and the potatoes are tender, but not overcooked.
4. Season your carrot lentil soup with salt and pepper, then add the spinach and let it simmer for five more minutes.
5. Turn off the heat, add the chopped parsley and serve your homemade anti-inflammatory soup warm.

Notes

• Instead of fresh spinach, you can also use sturdy greens like kale.
• Any leftovers can be stored covered in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or frozen for up to 3 months.
• Popular swaps include sweet potatoes, winter squash, green lentils and green beans! Find more ideas in the article above.
• Make sure to always add black pepper when using turmeric powder in your recipe to increase the health benefits.
• Serve this vegan lentil soup on its own, with a side of rice, bread or salad.

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 3
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 260Total Fat: 2gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 1152mgCarbohydrates: 54gFiber: 15gSugar: 13gProtein: 12g

Nutrition information is a rough estimate calculated automatically, their accuracy is not guaranteed. Just focus on whole plant-based foods and eat until satiety!

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Alena Schowalter is a Certified Vegan Nutritionist who has been a vegetarian since childhood and vegan since 2012. Together with her husband, she founded nutriciously in 2015 and has been guiding thousands of people through different transition stages towards a healthy plant-based diet. She’s received training in the fields of nutrition, music therapy and social work. Alena enjoys discussions around vegan ethics, walks through nature and creating new recipes.