Hooray for easy soups! This Curried Red Lentil and Pumpkin Soup is the type of recipe that saves the day—very few ingredients, fast, and really delicious. Oh yeah, and did I mention how incredibly inexpensive it is?? Seriously, just pennies per bowl. It’s also freezer-friendly, super healthy, just happens to be vegan-friendly, and you can have fun customizing the toppings. It basically checks all my boxes! Bookmark this recipe for later because I promise it will become part of your regular rotation.
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Have Fun with the Toppings
I just LOVE any meal where I can add toppings and this soup is the perfect blank slate. Not that it’s not awesome on its own, it’s just that the flavors in this lentil and pumpkin soup are versatile and can handle being paired with all sorts of add-ins. So here are some ideas: go creamy with a dollop of plain yogurt or sour cream (as I do in my classic pumpkin soup recipe), spice it up with a few red pepper flakes or sriracha, toss in some crunchy pepitas (pumpkin seeds) or croutons, or sprinkle on a few sprigs of fresh cilantro. Or hey, DO THEM ALL. I won’t judge.
Can I Substitute the Pumpkin?
If you don’t have canned pumpkin, you can use about a cup and a half of mashed sweet potato or butternut squash in its place. Just make sure they’re really soft and well-mashed so there is no stringiness in the final soup. Oh, and speaking of that, you can take an immersion blender to the finished soup for a super silky finish if you’d like. Me? I prefer to have a little texture from the lentils.
Can I Use Brown or Green Lentils for Pumpkin Soup?
While you can use a different type of lentil, it will definitely change the outcome of the soup. Red or yellow lentils are best for this soup because of their mild flavor and the fact that they break down quickly when cooked, giving the soup a nice thick consistency (like split pea soup). A brown or green lentil will give the soup a much earthier flavor and have a chunkier texture.
What Kind of Curry Powder Do You Use?
I’m not very picky about curry powder and haven’t come across one yet that I don’t like. I do prefer to use mild curry powder for this soup, that way I can adjust the heat by adding my own cayenne pepper if I want. One brand that I’ve enjoyed is Sharwood’s mild curry powder. Or you can try making your own curry powder using this recipe for Easy Homemade Curry Powder from Spiceitupp.com.
Red Lentil and Pumpkin Soup
Servings 6 1.33 cups eachIngredients
- 1 yellow onion ($0.31)
- 2 cloves garlic ($0.16)
- 1 tsp grated fresh ginger ($0.10)
- 1 Tbsp olive oil ($0.16)
- 1 Tbsp curry powder ($0.30)
- 1 15oz. can pumpkin purée ($1.05)
- 1 cup dry red lentils ($0.67)
- 6 cups vegetable broth ($0.78)
- 1/2 tsp salt ($0.02)
Instructions
- Dice the onion, mince the garlic, and grate the ginger. Add the onion, garlic, and ginger to a large pot with the olive oil and sauté over medium heat until the onions are soft (about 5 minutes).
- Add the curry powder and continue to sauté for about a minute more.
- Next, add the pumpkin purée, lentils, and vegetable broth. Stir to combine.
- Place a lid on the pot and bring the soup up to a boil over medium-high heat. Once boiling, turn the heat down to medium-low. Simmer the soup, stirring occasionally, for 20 minutes.
- Finally, taste the soup and add salt to taste (about ½ tsp). Serve hot with bread for dipping!
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Equipment
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!Love savory pumpkin recipes? You should also try our Spicy Coconut and Pumpkin Soup, Chipotle Pumpkin Pasta, or Easy Pumpkin Soup.
How to Make Curried Red Lentil and Pumpkin Soup – Step by Step Photos
Dice one yellow onion, mince two cloves of garlic, and grate about 1 teaspoon of fresh ginger (I use a small-holed cheese grater). Add the onion, garlic, ginger, and 1 tablespoon of olive oil to a large pot and sauté over medium heat until the onions are soft and translucent.
Add one tablespoon curry powder to the sautéed vegetables and continue to sauté for one minute more.
Next add 1 cup uncooked red lentils, 1 15oz. can of pumpkin purée (NOT pumpkin pie filling), and 6 cups vegetable broth. Stir to combine the ingredients.
Place a lid on the pot, turn the heat up to medium-high, and bring the soup up to a boil. When it reaches a boil, turn the heat down to medium-low and let the soup simmer for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes the lentils should be broken down and tender, resulting in a thickened soup.
Give the soup a taste and then add salt. Salt is what is really going to make the flavors pot, so don’t skip it! The amount of salt you’ll need will ultimately depend on the salt content of the broth you used, but I added about a ½ teaspoon of salt.
not bad, but it was basically slightly worse dal. the pumpkin added nothing. just make dal lol
Shockingly delicious relative to how easy it was to throw together!
Easy, cheap, fast and delicious. Made it over my lunch hour on one of my working from home days. Used 4 cup veg broth and a can of coconut milk. Yummy!
Just the thing for a chilly evening. I used brown lentils since that’s what I had. Also didn’t have broth so I used water and added extra diced onion, some diced carrots, and a diced red bell pepper plus extra spices and salt. This was quick to put together and more hearty than expected. Definitely making this soup again.
Love this soup! It’s easy and quick to prepare, is super tasty, and has budget-friendly, healthy ingredients. Just made this again today and was reminded why it’s become part of my regular rotation :)
hits the spot on a chilly fall day
Have you ever subbed out some of the broth for coconut milk?
I’ve made similar soups with pumpkin or lentils and coconut milk and it’s always delish! I haven’t done it with this exact one, but I’ve made enough similar soups that I can confidently say it would be great. :)
I’ve made this about 10 times now. Recipe is easy, cheap and delicious! Thanks!!
Great recipe! I used chicken broth instead of veggie broth and added some red chili flakes for added heat. Incredibly warming for a rainy day lunch! Excited to eat the leftovers.
I can never get enough pumpkin. Pumpkin smoothies, pumpkin muffins and yes, pumpkin soup. My daughter mentioned this one to me last night. I searched for the recipe and I found it and made it. The flavour is spectacular!
This is Thanksgiving weekend in Canada. I stock up on canned pumpkin to last me until next Thanksgiving. A 28 ounce can is now $2.47.
Did I mention my love of pumpkin?
I thought the recipe called for black pepper so I put in a healthy amount of that. It came to kind of dominate the dish and I loved it. The texture of the soup is pretty great as well as are the other flavors. This isn’t one of my favorites, but this is a great soup to dip bread in. Had to go to a whole bunch of places to find pumpkin puree though. Major hassle, probably not gonna make again
Whoops, mixed this up with a different soup recipe on this site. Literally don’t remember this soup other than that it tasted good and a little pumpkiny. And how annoying it was to find the pumpkin puree, but I said that already
Easy Inexpensive, Filling Adaptable
I have been doubling the recipe, using whatever broth, topping with whatever herb I have. I also add to the double batch some mashed up canned carrots (drained). Seems I like a mild curry so I subtract a bit of curry and add a bit of tumeric and of cumin.
I eat off of these double batch for days, sometimes with a baked potato or some basic salad mix to which I can add whatever fruits or veggiesI have on hand.
Makes my life so much easier.
OMG.
I never leave reviews but…
I made this exactly, but I threw in a can of salmon at the last minute.
This was incredible.
You are a food genius.
I’ve been calling this Covid soup. I stocked up on lentils and pumpkin when lockdown started and it’s what I make when I haven’t made it to the grocery store recently. My whole family loves it!
Hi, could you put this through the food processor to get a more smooth consistency?
Yes but in small batches.