Chicken Lentil Soup: Easy Weeknight Soup
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When the weather starts getting cooler and the leaves start to turn, it’s soup season. Nothing warms you more than a great bowl of homemade goodness – especially this hearty and nourishing Chicken Lentil Soup. This healthy lentil soup is a simple weeknight meal that comes together in about a half hour. Full of hearty vegetables like carrots, beans, and potatoes paired with chicken bone broth, this soup will warm you up right down to your toes.
For this recipe, you will need: pre-cooked chicken, chicken broth, carrots, celery, onion, potatoes, red lentils, great northern beans, and herbs.
Clearly, I’m fully embracing fall over here as this is the second soup to be posted in a month (Check out my 10 Minute Chicken And Rice Soup).
Soup is basically the perfect food:
- Full of good-for-you veggies and bone broth? Check.
- Feels like home in a cup? Check.
- Can make it 1ooo different ways and never get bored? Check.
Not going to lie, I was pumped when we got a house with air conditioning so we could comfortably have soup all summer long. But everyone else typically waits for cooler weather to have soup, and I’m so glad the weather’s changing so I can share this quick, healthy lentil soup with you.
I’m always trying to find ways to make our food healthier and more nourishing. Anyone else? Luckily it’s pretty easy to up the health factor at my house, as my kids will eat just about anything (August just won’t eat mushrooms and Ari has yet to find a food he doesn’t like), and my husband likes most food. This red lentil soup recipe is so nourishing and is high in protein with chicken, lentils, and beans.
Lentils were definitely not something I grew up on. Once as a teenager, I remember trying to make a lentil soup and it took forever and ever. Even after the soup bubbled away for no less than an eternity, it still seemed like the lentils were undercooked. Ok, this may be an exaggeration, but typically, regular green lentils take about 30 minutes to fully cook. It’s not that long in the grand scheme of things, but if something can be quicker, I’m all about saving some time.
Split Red Lentils… quicker cooking than regular lentils
Over the last 6 months I’ve started to incorporate more lentils again after finding split red lentils at Trader Joe’s. I love adding them to soup, rice dishes, and even tacos because you can barely see them… which means your kids and husband will barely see them, making this healthy lentil soup a very family-friendly meal. Also, split red lentils only take about 5-10 minutes to cook rather than 30 minutes. They’re much more practical for my busy family, and for this mom who despises having to cook dinner every night. I’m still trying to figure out why these little people insist on eating dinner all the time. I mean, come on. We just ate dinner last night!
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Tools you may need: cutting board, knife, ladle, and large pot or dutch oven (I have this one).
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What is in chicken lentil soup?
Whatever your heart desires! As with any soup or recipes, you can totally customize this, but this is my favorite way to make this easy lentil soup. This chicken lentil soup takes on a more Italian flavor because it includes rosemary, parsley, and great northern beans (or your favorite white bean), but feel free to change up the seasonings to what you prefer. I also LOVE salty soups, so I always say add salt and pepper to taste. Since I serve this to my kids, I wait to add all the salt my heart desires until I serve it. This way, Ari (the baby) can have the unsalted version and we can have our own salt preferences.
To make this recipe even faster, make your chicken and broth ahead of time. I do it by using this simple recipe.
Chicken Lentil Soup Ingredients:
- Pre-cooked chicken – this helps make it a speedy meal.
- Chicken broth
- Butter
- Carrots
- Celery
- Onion
- Potatoes
- Split red lentils
- Great northern beans – I used canned, because time is of the essence. You can totally use dried and cooked beans if you would like.
- Herbs and spices- I used dried rosemary, parsley, garlic powder, salt and pepper.
How To Make Chicken Lentil Soup
In a large pot over medium heat, add butter, onions, and celery. Cook for about 2-3 minutes until they start to become translucent.
Add carrots, celery, potatoes, split red lentils, rosemary, garlic powder, and dried parsley. Saute for about 4-5 minutes.
Add in broth and bring to a boil. Boil about 10 minutes, and then add in pre-cooked chicken, great northern beans, and salt and pepper to taste. Cook about 5 more minutes or until potatoes and carrots are fork tender.
Chicken Lentil Soup Recipe
Chicken Lentil Soup
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Ingredients
- 6-8 cups chicken broth homemade or store-bought
- 2-3 tbs butter
- 1 onion diced
- 3 potatoes diced
- 3 carrots diced (I leave the skin on)
- 3 stalks celery diced
- 1 cup split red lentils
- 1-2 cups pre-cooked chicken shredded
- 1 can great northern beans drained and rinsed
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tbs dried parsley
- 1 tbs dried rosemary
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a large pot over medium heat, add butter, onions, and celery. Cook for about 2-3 minutes until they start to become translucent.
- Add carrots, celery, potatoes, split red lentils, rosemary, garlic powder, and dried parsley. Saute for about 4-5 minutes.
- Add in broth and bring to a boil. Boil about 10 minutes, and then add in pre-cooked chicken, great northern beans, and salt and pepper to taste. Cook about 5 more minutes or until potatoes and carrots are fork tender.
- Serve and enjoy.
Notes
Nutrition
Need more healthy meal ideas? Check these out:
What is your favorite kind of soup?
Oh my gosh – so much goodness in this soup!!
It’s so filling too! Yum.
Just made this tonight for dinner!! So delicious, healthy and filling!
Yay! I’m glad you liked it. Now you should give me that recipe you made me the other night. That soup was yummy
Looks like a big bowl of comfort to me! Chicken soups are my favorite!
I love a good, hearty bean soup for dinner, and this one looks perfect!! Thanks!
Super easy, no fancy ingredients and tons of flavor! This is a definite “make again” recipe!
Woo hoo! Thank you Jenny, I’m so glad you loved it!
This is such a yummy, hearty, comforting soup for this time of the year. I love all of the veggies and legumes/beans that you packed into it.
Thanks Emily! My kids love all the beans and I love that it is so healthy for them.
Such a yummy comfort food!
Soup is the best!