I’m already declaring THIS my favorite recipe of the winter of 2018/2019, and we haven’t even gotten to winter yet! That’s just how excited I am about this Lentil Stew. I’ve made it twice in a row and am not even tired of it yet. I’ve even eaten it twice for breakfast. My want for this hearty lentil stew knows no boundaries.
I had been craving beef stew but felt like I’d been eating a bit more meat than usual lately, so I decided to try to craft something just as rich, hearty, and flavorful, without meat. I modeled this Vegan Winter Lentil Stew recipe after my Slow Cooker Beef Stew, but I made a few substitutions to make it 100% plant-based. The medley of vegetables and herbs creates a thick, flavorful, and comforting stew that is just begging for some crusty bread to sop it all up. I served mine with a batch of No-Knead Bread and was in heaven.
Ingredients for Lentil Stew
- Aromatics: Any good stew will start with aromatics for a nice deep flavor. I used onion and garlic (four cloves, but you can measure with your heart!).
- Vegetables: A medley of vegetables adds flavor, color, and texture to this hearty stew. I used carrots, celery, potatoes, and green peas, but you could also try other vegetables like mushrooms, parsnips, or turnips.
- Lentils: Lentils are what make this stew so thick and hearty. They provide a ton of fiber and other nutrients, yet are super budget-friendly! We used green or brown lentils (not French green lentils), which cook quickly, in about 20 minutes, with no soaking needed.
- Broth: The liquid base for this stew is vegetable broth, which provides tons of complex flavor and an appealing stew-like brown color. The type of broth used will definitely impact the flavor of your stew, so I suggest using Better Than Bouillon.
- Seasoning: To flavor the stew even further we add dried rosemary, dried thyme, a little Dijon mustard for some zing, soy sauce for umami, and a little brown sugar to add a sweetness similar to what you’d find in Worcestershire sauce.
What to Serve with Lentil Stew
This hearty lentil stew is truly a complete meal in a bowl that is packed with nutrients. I wouldn’t typically serve a side dish with lentil stew, except maybe some bread for sopping up all that delicious gravy. Try our no-knead bread, garlic bread, beer bread, or drop biscuits.
How to Store and Reheat Lentil Stew
This stew will stay good in the refrigerator for up to five days. To reheat, simply microwave until hot or place in a saucepot and heat over medium-low, stirring frequently, until heated through.
To freeze this stew, I suggest dividing it into single portions, cooling it completely in the refrigerator overnight, and then transferring it to the freezer. And don’t forget, always label and date your freezer food! The stew will stay good in the freezer for about three months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight before heating, or use the defrost function on a microwave.
Vegan Lentil Stew
Servings 8 1.5 cups eachIngredients
- 2 Tbsp olive oil ($0.32)
- 1 yellow onion ($0.32)
- 4 cloves garlic ($0.32)
- 4 carrots (about 1/2 lb.) ($0.45)
- 4 stalks celery ($0.75)
- 2 lbs potatoes ($0.70)
- 1 cup brown lentils ($0.49)
- 1 tsp dried rosemary ($0.10)
- 1/2 tsp dried thyme ($0.05)
- 2 Tbsp Dijon mustard ($0.09)
- 1.5 Tbsp soy sauce ($0.09)
- 1 Tbsp brown sugar ($0.04)
- 6 cups vegetable broth ($0.78)
- 1 cup frozen peas ($0.38)
Instructions
- Dice the onion and mince the garlic. Add the olive oil, onion, and garlic to a large soup pot and begin to sauté over medium heat.
- While the onion and garlic are sautéing, dice the celery, then add it to the pot and continue to sauté. As the celery, onion, and garlic are sautéing, peel and chop the carrots into half rounds. Add the carrots to the pot and continue to sauté.
- As the onion, garlic, celery, and carrots are sautéing, peel and cube the potatoes into 3/4 to 1-inch pieces. Add the cubed potatoes to the pot along with the lentils, rosemary, thyme, Dijon, soy sauce, brown sugar, and vegetable broth.
- Briefly stir the ingredients to combine, then place a lid on the pot, turn the heat up to high, and bring the stew up to a boil. Once it reaches a boil, turn the heat down to low and let it simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Toward the end of the simmer time, when the potatoes are very soft, begin to mash the potatoes a bit as you stir. This will help thicken the stew.
- Finally, after 30 minutes, stir in the frozen peas and allow them to heat through. Taste the stew and add salt if needed (this will depend on the salt content of your broth, I did not add any extra). Serve hot and enjoy!
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Nutrition
Video
Scroll down for the step by step photos!
How to Make Vegan Lentil Stew – Step by Step Photos
Begin by dicing one yellow onion and mincing four cloves of garlic. Add the onion, garlic, and 2 Tbsp olive oil to a large soup pot. Sauté over medium heat.
While the onion and garlic are sautéing, dice or slice 4 stalks celery (depending on how chunky you want your stew). Add the celery to the pot and continue to sauté. Peel and chop four carrots into half-rounds, add them to the pot, and continue to sauté.
While the carrots, celery, onion, and garlic are sautéing, peel and cube 2 lbs. potatoes into 3/4 to 1-inch cubes. Add the potatoes to the pot along with 1 cup brown lentils, 1 tsp dried rosemary, 1/2 tsp dried thyme, 2 Tbsp Dijon mustard, 1.5 Tbsp soy sauce, and 1 Tbsp brown sugar.
Finally, add 6 cups vegetable broth to the pot and give everything a brief stir. Place a lid on top, turn the heat up to high, and bring it up to a boil. Once it reaches a boil, turn the heat down to low, and let it simmer for 3o minutes, stirring occasionally.
Toward the end of the simmer time, when the potatoes are very soft, begin to mash them a bit against the side of the pot as you stir. This will thicken the stew. After 30 minutes, add 1 cup frozen peas, and allow them to heat through. Finally, taste the stew and add salt if needed (I did not add any salt because the broth I used had enough).
Enjoy your Vegan Lentil Stew with a big chunk of crusty bread to sop up all that richness!
Could I add kale to this?
You most definitely could! I add spinach often.
This was excellent! I’d feed it to the omnivores. I added some balsamic vinegar for extra zing.
We all loved this, including our 3 teenage boys! Will be definitely making this again.
Since I drastically reduce my meat intake I found my stews were suffering. This recipe is a brilliant replacement for my old beef stew. I think it was even better reheated the next day for lunch.
Probably the dumbest question in the world, and from the photos it looks like the answer is an obvious “no,” but.
Do I need to soak the lentils overnight? Just wanna make sure I get the recipe 100% right and don’t make a stupid mistake that ruins everything.
Thanks!
Hi Julia! No need to soak them overnight. Enjoy!
Delicious. Left out the celery and added a chopped green bell pepper instead. Added 5 cups broth instead of 6 and it was a little thicker. We served it over rice. Would make it again!
I don’t usually like lentil soup, but I love this one. It’s become one of our staples. Fantastic recipe!
I don’t think I’ve ever commented on a recipe *ever*, but this was so so freaking good I couldn’t help myself. Meal prepped this for the week and I’m looking forward to it each night! Thanks for sharing!
So good! I used to buy canned lentil soup all the time but this is so much better!
This is a great vegan recipe! I’ve been trying to incorporate more vegetarian meals into my week and decided to give this a try. I was a little unsure of the soy sauce and Dijon in the recipe but made it just as the recipe said and it came out great! Much heartier and stew like than I expected. I used an immersion blender before adding the peas to make it thicker. Just a few pulses.
This is always delicious in winter. I leave out the celery (family aren’t fans). I like to let it simmer on low an extra 1/2 hour when I’m not in a rush. It makes everything thicker and more tender.
I love this recipe! I added some turmeric and parsley flakes because I had no rosemary, as well as adding some Field Roast vegan sausage for some extra protein. Overall, I, as well as my non-vegan family, really liked this recipe! Thank you!
Is it possible to use barley instead of lentils? I know that’ll really cut down on the nutritional value but do you think it would taste good! Lentils/legumes just aren’t for me :)
I think it would taste great! It will definitely affect the texture of the stew, though. You’ll probably end up with more of a soup. As the lentils break down they thicken the stew, kind of like split pea soup, and the barley won’t have that same effect.
Out of all of the soups I make (and I make a lot 😂), this is my boyfriend’s favorite! Hearty, delicious, and freezes wonderfully.
Hooray!
OMG- this stew is TOO good! We’re omnivores but are following your vegan meal plan and absolutely loving it.
I only had a quart of vegetable broth on hand, so I made a quick broth with some miso paste, water, and a little Trader Joe’s umami powder to make up the difference. I was also out of brown sugar and used honey instead (a tiny bit less than called for– like 3/4 a tbsp).
Oh that broth sounds delicious! Happy to hear you’re loving the plans too!