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French Lentil Soup with Turnips and Dill

This fresh, plant-based French Lentil Soup with Turnips and Dill is hearty with lots of flavor. It’s an easy gluten-free, vegetarian, and vegan soup recipe that the whole family will enjoy.

Image of French Lentil Soup with Turnips and Dill in a white bowl against a slate background.

As you may have picked up, I’m a major fanboy of hearty soups.

In the past, however, lentil soup never really got my motoring running, gastronomically speaking.

I don’t know why…maybe because it just sounds a little bit boring (“len-dull” soup…zzzz), or maybe because the first time I tried a lentil soup, it came out of a can.

In any event, these days I’m cleaning out my pantry like never before and in the process I’m rediscovering some foods that I may have previous written off because they’re now…available.

With the addition of turnips and copious amounts of fresh herbs, I’m finding this French lentil soup recipe to be cozy, comforting, and tasty.

Another great thing about this vegan soup recipe is that it makes plenty of servings. It’s the kind of recipe that makes a huge batch, which can be stored or frozen for later.

Who would have thought lentil soup would turn out to be one of the best soups in my repertoire.

Ingredients

French Lentil Soup ingredients on a wooden cutting board.

For this recipe you’ll need:

  • French green lentils: aka “le Puy” lentils. Green lentils tend to hold together well throughout the cooking process, but you can substitute with other lentil varieties like brown lentils or red lentils.
  • Vegetable stock: you can also substitute with chicken stock for a non-vegetarian version
  • Yellow onion
  • Carrots: two average sized carrots, or roughly 1 cup diced.
  • Celery: you’ll need two ribs of celery.
  • Turnips: you can use any variety of turnips that you’d like. If you use a smaller variety like Hakurei, there’s no need to peel them before cooking.
  • White mushrooms: I like the mild flavor white mushrooms bring to this soup, but you can use other varieties.
  • Baby spinach: large spinach leaves will also work fine too. You’ll need about two cups of roughly chopped spinach
  • Garlic
  • Fresh dill: I love the flavor of fresh dill, but you can also substitute with dried dill
  • Fresh thyme: you can also use dried thyme
  • Lemon juice
  • Bay leaves
  • Sea salt or kosher salt
  • Black pepper

How to Make Lentil Soup

Start by soaking the lentils. Place the lentils in a bowl, cover with a few inches of cold water, and soak for 2-4 hours.

Close up of French lentils soaking in a bowl of water.

When your ready to make the soup, drain and rinse the lentils, then heat two tablespoons of olive oil in a large dutch oven or heavy, large pot over medium-high heat.

Add some diced yellow onion, carrots, and celery to the pot along with a pinch of salt, and cook until the onion is translucent, about 6-7 minutes.

Overhead shot of sautéing onions, carrots, and celery in a large pot.

Add in some chopped mushrooms and minced garlic and cook until the mushrooms start to release their liquid, about 3-4 minutes.

Close up of cooking mushrooms and garlic with onions, carrots, and celery in a large pot.

Add in the pre-soaked lentils and cubed turnips, then pour in 8 cups of veggie stock.

Pouring vegetable stock into a pot containing lentils, turnips, and sautéd vegetables.

Season the soup with a bay leaf, dill, thyme, and sea salt and black pepper to taste and bring to a gentle boil.

Over head shot of lentil soup in a pot with a bay leaf and fresh dill.

Reduce the heat to low and cover the pot. Simmer until the lentils and turnips are very tender, about 25-30 minutes.

Image of a hand closing a glass lid on a large pot.

Remove the bay leaf and thyme stems, then toss in some chopped baby spinach (I love me some leafy greens) and 1/4 cup of lemon juice. Season the soup with more sea salt and pepper to taste.

Close up of adding baby spinach to Lentil Soup

How To Thicken Lentil Soup

This is an optional step, but if you prefer your lentil soup to have a thicker consistency, transfer about 2 cups of the soup to a blender and purée until smooth.

Overhead image of pureeing French Lentil Soup in a glass blender.

Pour the puree back into the pot with the rest of the soup, stir, and cook for a few minutes until it is heated through.

Alternatively, if you have an immersion blender, just pulse the soup until it reaches your desired consistency.

Garnish the lentil soup with some more fresh dill and enjoy!

Moody image of French Lentil Soup in a white bowl on a slate background.

Storing

You will most likely have some leftovers and, quite frankly, this soup tastes even better the next day.

Store the soup in airtight containers in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.

You can also freeze this soup in freezer bags for up to six months.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are lentils Paleo?

The short answer is no. Lentils are technically legumes, and therefore they are considered a Paleo no-no .
The reasoning behind this is that legumes contain lectins and phytic acid, compounds that may cause leaky gut and inhibit mineral absorption.
It turns out that many of the studies that led to these conclusions where based on raw legumes. The cooking process actually removes most of these compounds.
Chris Kesser has talked at length about legumes and the Paleo diet, and has concluded that the bigger issue with legumes is that they are less nutrient dense than other foods options like quality animal protein.
In this caveman’s humble opinion, if you can digestively tolerate them, the nutritional and culinary benefits of some occasional lentils far outweigh the fact they are “dirty” legumes.

Should you soak lentils before cooking?

Soaking lentils is not always necessary, but does leeche out the anti-nutrients associated with legumes, making them much easier to digest. It also helps the lentils get tender faster, which cuts down on the cooking time.
The best part is, soaking lentils doesn’t take as long as other legumes–just two to four hours will do the trick. Drain and rinse the lentils well before using.

More Vegetarian Soups:

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5 from 4 votes

French Lentil Soup with Turnips and Dill

This fresh, plant-based French Lentil Soup with Turnips and Dill is hearty with lots of flavor. It's an easy gluten-free, vegetarian, and vegan soup recipe that the whole family will enjoy.
Course Soup
Keyword lentils, Soup
Prep Time 2 hours
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 2 hours 30 minutes
Servings 8

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 large yellow onion diced
  • 2 carrots diced
  • 2 celery ribs diced
  • 4 ounces white mushrooms roughly chopped
  • 4 cloves garlic minced
  • 1 pound turnips peeled and cubed
  • 1.5 cups French green lentils soaked, drained, and rinsed
  • 8 cups low sodium vegetable stock
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 6 sprigs thyme
  • 1/3 cup chopped fresh dill plus more for serving
  • 2 cups baby spinach roughly chopped
  • 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
  • fine sea salt to taste
  • black pepper to taste

Instructions

  • Heat the olive oil in a large heavy-bottomed pot over medium high heat.
  • Add the onion, carrot, and celery to the pot along with a small pinch of salt. Cook until the onion is tender and translucent, about 6-7 minutes.
  • Add the mushrooms and garlic and cook until the mushrooms release their liquid, about 3-4 minutes.
  • Add the lentils and turnips, then pour in the vegetable stock. Add the bay leaf, thyme springs, dill, and sea salt and black pepper to taste. Bring to gentle boil.
  • Reduce the heat to low, cover the pot, and simmer until the lentils and turnips are tender, about 25-30 minutes.
  • Remove the bay leaf and thyme stems and stir in the spinach and lemon juice.
  • Carefully transfer about 2 cups of the soup to a blender. Pureé it, and return it to the pot. Stir and cook for a few minutes until heated through.
  • Season the soup with more sea salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with fresh dill when serving.
Tried this recipe?Mention @sophisticatedcaveman or tag #sophisticatedcaveman on Instagram!

Notes

Soak the lentils in warm water for at least 2 hours, up to overnight, before draining and rinsing.

Equipment

The ingredient or equipment sections above may contain affiliate links to products that I personally use or recommend!

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Recipe Rating




Tina H

Friday 12th of April 2024

Found and made this soup today after searching lentil soup with turnips (never made soup with turnips before). Seems I found just the right one--your recipe. Just perfect and full of flavor! Really appreciate the dill in this, and since I had turnip greens used those instead of spinach. Very much appreciate your sharing this and thanks🙂

The Sophisticated Caveman

Monday 13th of May 2024

I also love adding turnip greens to soups whenever I have them on hand. Thanks for the comment, and glad you enjoyed the recipe!

Hannah C

Monday 1st of April 2024

This soup is delicious! It has the most beautiful, delicate flavor, and is light while still being filling enough. The lemon juice and fresh herbs really brighten it up. Can't wait to make again.

The Sophisticated Caveman

Tuesday 9th of April 2024

Glad you enjoyed the recipe and thanks for commenting!