Instant Pot Lentil Soup with Potatoes is bursting with flavors, tender potatoes & buttery tender green lentils. Made with pantry staple ingredients under 30 mins. This green lentil soup instant pot recipe is vegan, gluten free & budget friendly.
Instant Pot Green Lentil Soup
Instant pot lentil recipes are so versatile and todays green lentil soup instant pot recipe is no different. It's big on flavors, stores well, budget friendly and feeds an army.
Green lentils are a best source of plant protein, nutrient dense, they cook fast, and they lend the soup a buttery thick consistency.
You don't need to soak the green lentils, and you don't need any fancy ingredients to make this recipe. The blend of seasonings pack a punch. You can make it spicy or tangy, thick like a stew or soupy according to your own liking. You can even add some chopped spinach or kale at the end to give this best instant pot lentil soup a healthy boost.
Ingredients & Substitutions
Find the Ingredients with actual measurements at the bottom of the post. The list below is just a reference.
- Green Lentils: Unsoaked green lentils. Do pick them and rinse them well. You can also use brown lentils. The cook time and the recipe would remain the same.
- Potatoes: We prefer using peeled Yukon Gold Potatoes. You can also use red potatoes peeled or unpeeled.
- Veggies: Carrots and celery.
- Tomatoes: Crushed tomatoes from the can.
- Aromatics: Yellow onion & minced garlic. Do not use red onion, it'll make the soup pungent and over powering.
- Seasonings: Curry powder, ground cumin, sweet paprika, oregano, thyme, crushed or ground black pepper, red pepper flakes. If you are making this instant pot vegan lentil soup for kids skip the red pepper flakes. They proved the soup with a subtle kick, so good!
- Bay Leaf.
- Lemon Juice: Freshly squeezed lemon juice.
- Vegetable stock: Check out our homemade vegetable stock. It's so good, you can make it with veggie scraps & it stores well.
- Cooking fat: Extra light or light olive oil is our favorite pick.
Top Tips
- For al dente green/brown lentils: Cook them on high pressure for 8 mins followed by quick pressure release.
- For well cooked tender green/brown lentils: Cook them on high pressure for 10 mins followed by quick pressure release.
- For mushy overcooked green/brown lentils: Cook them on high pressure for 15 mins followed by quick pressure release.
- Spicy lentil potato soup instant pot: You can add a bit more red pepper flakes & ½ teaspoon cayenne for a spicy lentil soup.
- Peeled or unpeeled potatoes: You can use either. We prefer using peeled potatoes.
- Vegetable stock: Use our homemade veggie stock for the best flavor profile. It stores well and you can also make it from vegetable scraps.
- Adding greens: If you love spinach or kale you can add about 2 cups chopped baby spinach or baby kale at the end. The greens will cook down perfectly with the help of the residual heat.
How to make Instant pot lentil soup with potatoes?
Find the detailed step by step recipe along with measurements + Video at the bottom of the post.
Step #1 Sauté aromatics, veggies
- Sauté aromatics Veggies: Set instant pot sauté mode on NORMAL heat settings. Add oil & sauté the aromatics and veggies until the onion begins to turn soft. Add salt to quicken the process. Than, add the seasonings and sauté for 30 secs.
Step #2 Deglaze pot
- Sauté Potatoes: Add the diced potatoes and sauté for another minute or two. Cancel the sauté mode.
- Deglaze pot: Add the veggie stock and deglaze the pot very well by scraping the sides and the bottom of the pot with the help of a spatula. This will help loosen any stuck food particles and prevent the BURN error.
Step #3 Pressure cook and serve
- Add lentils, tomatoes: Pick the green lentils, rinse them well and drained them. Add the rinsed and drained green lentils, give everything a good stir. Now add the crushed tomatoes and stir well to mix everything well. Throw in the bay leaves.
- Pressure cook & serve: Secure the lid, seal the valve and pressure cook on HIGH for just 10 mins followed by a quick pressure release. Discard the bay leaves. Add lemon juice and give the soup a good stir to mix everything well. You can add a few splashes water to veggie stock if you prefer thinner consistency soup. Serve the green lentil soup with potatoes immediately and enjoy!
Serving Ideas
You can serve this vegan lentil potato soup instant pot recipe with the following:
- Crusty whole wheat bread.
- Whole wheat Sourdough bread.
- A light salad.
How to store
Fridge
You can store this pressure cooker lentil soup for upto 4 days in the fridge. Use air tight containers to store this healthy soup. The soup will thicken further as it rests in the fridge.
Freezer
Freeze the instant pot green lentil soup in air tight portion control freezer safe bags or containers for upto 3 months. Thaw them over night in the fridge and than follow the reheating directions shared below, consume the soup immediately.
Reheating directions
Reheat the fridge cold or thawed soup in the microwave oven until warm or hot. You can add a few splashes of water or veggies stock to thin out the soup.
You can also reheat the green lentil soup on the stove top in a heavy bottomed pot or saucepan over medium heat. Stir from time to time to prevent the soup from sticking at the bottom of the cooking vessel. Serve it immediately garnished with fresh chopped parsley.
FAQs
Yes, green lentils can be used in soups. They are the best source of plant protein, nutrient dense, they cook fast, no pre-soaking needed & they lend the soup a buttery thick consistency. Green lentils are absolutely perfect for soups.
Cook green lentils in the instant pot on high pressure for 8 mins for al dente lentils,10 mins for tender lentils & 15 mins for well cooked mushy lentils. Do quick pressure release always.
For a thick soup use 1:3 green lentils to water ratio. For a soupy soup use 1:4 green lentils to water ratio.
No, you do not have to soak green lentils before cooking. You need to just pick the lentils and rinse them well.
French lentils are a variety of green lentils. French green lentils are much smaller in size than regular green lentils and they also have a darker hue.
No you cannot substitute green lentils for red lentils in this soup recipe because red lentils would cook way faster (3 mins on high pressure) and turn mushy. You can substitute green lentils with same amount of brown lentils. They both share the same cook time and lentils to water ratio.
No green lentils and green split peas are not the same. They both are a part of the legume family but they come from different varieties of legumes. Split peas are a type of field pea, which is a pea grown specifically for drying, while lentils harvested as the seed of the plant and dried.
Recommended
I LOVE HEARING FROM YOU! If you try this Instant pot lentil soup with potatoes recipe, please let me know! Leave a comment and rate it below. I would love to hear how it turned out for you, or any changes you make.
Instant Pot Lentil Soup with Potatoes
Equipment
- 6 quart instant pot
Recipe Video
Ingredients
- 1.25 cups green lentils - **you can also use brown lentils.
- 2 cups potatoes - **Yukon gold potatoes peeled & diced into 1 inch cubes. About 4 small potatoes.
- 1 cup onion - **yellow onion roughly chopped.
- 1 tablespoon garlic - **minced.
- ½ cup carrots - **diced into small cubes.
- ½ cup celery - **roughly chopped into small pieces.
- 15 ounce crushed tomatoes - **from the can. 425 g.
- 2 tablespoon lemon juice - **freshly squeezed lemon juice.
- 2 Bay Leaves
- salt to taste - **add according to your own personal taste preference.
- 2 tablespoon olive oil - **use extra light or light olive oil.
Seasonings
- 2.5 teaspoon paprika - **sweet paprika.
- 1.5 teaspoon curry powder
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- ½ teaspoon thyme
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes - **skip if making it for kids. Use 1 teaspoon if you prefer a spicy lentil soup.
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper - **or freshly crushed black pepper.
Liquid
- 4 cups vegetable stock - **our homemade veggie stock is the best. You can make it with scraps & it stores well too.
Instructions
Saute Aromatics, veggies
- Set the instant pot on Saute on NORMAL heat setting. You can adjust the heat by pressing the SAUTE button more than once. Add oil, when the oil becomes moderately hot add the chopped onion, garlic, carrots & celery. Saute until the onion begins to turn soft. Add salt according to your personal taste preference. Salt will help to quicken the sauteing process.
- Now, add all the seasonings mentioned above in the "Seasonings" section in the ingredients. Saute for 30 seconds. This will help release flavors. Add the peeled diced potatoes and saute for 1 min. Cancel the SAUTE function.
Deglaze pot
- Add the vegetable stock and deglaze the pot very well by scraping the sides and the bottom of the pot with the help of a spatula. This will help loosen any stuck food particles and help prevent the BURN error. DO NOT rush this step.
- Pick the green lentils, rinse them well under running tap water & drain them with the help of a colander or strainer. Transfer the rinsed green lentils into the instant pot & give everything a good stir. Add the crushed tomatoes and stir to mix well. Throw in the bay leaves.
Pressure cook & serve
- Secure the lid of the instant pot, seal the valve and PRESSURE COOK on HIGH for 10 mins. Once the cooking cycle is over the instant pot will begin to beep. Perform a quick pressure release immediately by manually moving the valve from the seasling to the venting position. Once the floating metal pin on top of the lid drops open the lid carefully. Discard the bay leaves, add lemon juice and stir the soup gently to mix everything well. You can add a few splashes water to adjust the consistency of the soup as per your liking. Todays recipe will reward you with a thicker soup. Serve the green lentils soup immediately garnished with fresh chopped parsley and enjoy!
Notes
- Lentils: Use either green or brown lentils. I have not tested this recipe using French green lentils.
- Potatoes: Use either Yukon gold or red potatoes peeled or unpeeled.
- Soup consistency: Todays recipe will reward you with a thick soup. You can thin it out easily by adding a few extra splashes of water or veggie stock.
- Spicy lentil soup: Todays recipe is not spicy, it has a slight kick. If you love spicy lentil soup do add 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes or about ½ teaspoon cayenne.
Mike says
Great recipe, spot on flavors and so easy to make. Thanks so much!
mtr_admin says
Thanks so much Mike for the amazing feedback 🙂 We are so glad you loved this recipe.
Natalie says
The best lentil soup I ever made! Family and friends loved it. I even passed your recipe to my colleagues who recently joined the plant based bandwagon! Thanks much 🙂
mtr_admin says
Thanks so much Natalie for the wonderful feedback 🙂 We are so glad that you enjoyed this recipe so much.
Mia says
Guys this is the best vegan lentil soup you will ever make in your instant pot. Perfect consistency, amazing blend of flavors and super delicious. Don't change anything in this recipe.
mtr_admin says
Thanks so much, Mia. Appreciate your amazing feedback. 🙂