This Instant Pot Turmeric Lentil Soup is a vibrant vegan soup made with immunity-boosting turmeric that's ready in just 20 minutes.
How to make this recipe
- Add everything to the Instant Pot in order except the spinach and lemon juice.
- Cook on high pressure for 3 minutes.
- Do a quick release of the steam.
- Stir in the spinach and lemon juice.
- Serve and enjoy!
Ingredients and substitutions
- Olive oil – or any other neutral cooking oil like canola or avocado oil.
- Onions – you can use yellow or white onions.
- Carrots – parsnip has a similar texture but a slightly different taste.
- Celery – double up on the carrots or leave them out altogether.
- Garlic – jarred garlic or garlic powder would work in a pinch.
- Ginger – you can also try using ground ginger if you don't have any fresh ginger.
- Coconut milk – substitute for light coconut milk if you want to cut the calories or try soy milk (although it won't be as creamy).
- Can of diced tomatoes – you could also use freshly diced tomatoes, just make sure to add in the juices as well.
- Vegetable broth – for a non-vegan option, you can use chicken broth.
- Turmeric – saffron is an alternative, but is sweeter and doesn't have the same healing properties as turmeric.
- Cumin – ground coriander would also work here.
- Salt & pepper – to taste.
- Red lentils – French or green lentils are another option.
- Spinach – any other greens will work like Swiss chard or mustard greens.
- Lemon juice – if you don't have any lemon juice, you could also try lime juice.
How much turmeric to add to soup
You don't need to add much turmeric to this soup to get all the benefits. One tablespoon is plenty – anything more might have an over-powering taste, so make sure not to overdo it. You'll still get the same tablespoon from one tablespoon as you would from any more!
Is lentil soup good for you?
Yes! In addition to this soup being low in calories, the lentils are full of nutrients like calcium, iron and potassium. They're also a great source of protein. Plus, this recipe includes turmeric, which can boost your immune system and provide a range of other health benefits.
What to serve with lentil soup
The lentils in this soup make it super filling so you can serve it on its own or as a side dish with sandwiches, wraps and salads. I like having it on its own on a chilly day with a piece of crusty bread!
Storing and reheating
You can store this soup in individual portions in the fridge up to 5 days. To reheat, simply microwave for 2-3 minutes. I prefer to use glass meal prep bowls to store the leftovers in because you can immediately reheat individual servings right from the fridge instead of having to portion out the food after the fact, however you can also store the leftovers in a large bowl with a lid.
Freezing this soup
You can freeze this soup up to 3 months as well! Simply store in individual portions and let defrost in the fridge overnight, or you can reheat in the microwave from frozen for 6-8 minutes, stirring halfway through the reheat time.
Make healthy eating easy! Join our Dinner Prep Pro app.
- ZERO ADS on over 450 recipes
- Customizable weekly meal plans
- Grocery and meal prep checklists
- Bonus resource library and community
More Instant Pot soup recipes
Meal prep tools for this recipe
- The Instant Pot DUO Plus 60 is the version I use in this recipe
- You need to buy red lentils for this recipe; other varieties won't work
- Grab some glass meal prep bowls if you plan on turning this recipe into leftovers
- Stock up on coconut milk here
- Freeze this recipe in glass microwave-safe bowls up to 3 months
Instant Pot Turmeric Lentil Soup {Vegan}
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2 onions, chopped
- 2 carrots, chopped
- 3 stalks celery, chopped
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 tbsp ginger, minced
- 2 (400mL) cans full fat coconut milk
- 1 (796mL) can diced tomatoes (in their juices)
- 1 cup vegetable broth
- 1 tbsp turmeric
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1 1/2 cups red lentils
- 4 cups spinach, chopped
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
Instructions
- Add all ingredients to Instant Pot in the order in which they are listed, except for spinach and lemon juice, making sure you add lentils last. Cook on high pressure for 3 minutes. Instant Pot will take about 15 minutes to come to pressure. Do a quick release of steam then open lid when it's safe to do so.
- Stir in spinach and lemon juice, then serve and enjoy!
Comments & Reviews
Nura says
So so good! I used regular green lentils and just added two more mins to the cook time. It was perfect!
Tiffany says
I made this last night and it was so good! My husband is a huge meat eater and he loved it! He did not miss the meat! And, it was so easy to make!
Rehana says
Would it be ok to use fresh diced tomatoes instead of the canned ones? Not sure if this would make too much of a difference?
Taylor Stinson says
Hey Rehana – the taste and texture would definitely be different. I wouldn’t recommend it.
Rose says
Hi there! I made this last night however kept getting a burn notice on the instant pot. I followed the recipe however used only 1 onion. 3 burn notices in a row. Never reached full pressure. However it did seem to cook and turned out tasty in the end. However took much longer then 3 minutes. Any suggestions on how to prevent this from occurring? Thank you!
Taylor Stinson says
Hi Rose – that’s very strange as there’s loads of liquid in this soup. I’m wondering if you stirred the pot before cooking? Sometimes that can result in a burn notice. Or if you didn’t put the oil on the bottom.
Lee McNair says
I noticed olive oil is not mentioned except in ingredient list and the instant pat recipe preparation at the beginning of this page does not include it at all. It would be easy to miss adding the tbsp of olive oil.
Taylor Stinson says
Hi Lee – olive oil is listed in the recipe. It’s not listed in the blog post text because it’s considered a pantry staple and not necessarily something you would need to run out and buy as you would with fresh ingredients.
Julie says
I followed the recipe exact, but left out one onion. Mine were reeeeally large. Unfortunately i kept receiving a burn message. I improvised by putting it on the saute mode and cooking it like on the stove top. I had to add more vegetable broth because it kept becoming overly thick. Not sure what happened with it, but it received rave reviews either way!
Stacy says
I’m so happy I found this recipe!! I used kale instead of spinach and added butternut squash because I had some that needed to be used up. This soup is AMAZING!! Thank you!
Lucy says
are you using dry lentals or canned?
Taylor Stinson says
Dry lentils!
Lisa says
Thank you. I made it last night, it was amazing! absolutely delish. Very rich can only have one bowl but sooo good!
Emily says
I have someone in my family who is allergic to spinach. Do you have a recommendation for a substitute for spinach?
Taylor Stinson says
You can use kale or just leave the spinach out 🙂
Lawrence says
Hello,
I was wondering…would it be a big deal if I used a whole bag of lentils? meaning 160z instead of just a cup. Do you think it would be a mistake?
Thanks
Taylor Stinson says
Hey Lawrence – I always recommend using exactly what’s written in the recipe for best results. If you added more lentils than 1 cup, it may result in a burn message or a super thick stew. If you don’t mind the thickness and it doesn’t burn on the bottom then you should be ok!
Kay says
I’m really excited to try this recipe, but I don’t have an Instant Pot. Would I be alright to use a slow cooker, or should I cook on the stove top?
Taylor Stinson says
I would cook it on the stovetop! You should be able to dump everything in, bring to a boil and simmer for 30-40 min 🙂