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!
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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!
Very good, satisfying, and easy. I found it a little sweet and will leave out the brown sugar next time, and maybe add a bay leaf for those base notes. We had it with emmer berries (ancient wheat), steamed broccoli, and baguette and butter. It really scratched the stew itch on a chilly evening.
This looks soooo good but I’m curious…we are very careful about our sugar intake. Would it be ok to omit the brown sugar? Or is there something else I can sub it with?
It will change the flavor profile slightly, but not majorly, so you might be able to get away with it. I think it’s going to come down to personal preference.
Delish! Will make this again!
Loved this, will be making again soon!
This flavour combination is delicious!
Love this recipe! I skip the Dijon mustard because my daughter is allergic and add 8-10 oz of mushrooms. It’s become a standby for the winter months. Highly recommend this recipe!
Soo I was REALLTY hesitate over this recipes, but saw many great reviews. I couldn’t with just the vegetables and seasonings a soup could be this good and creamy.! I will be making large batches for the winter!
Heidi
I have been making this stew since you first posted the recipe back in 2018 (I think it was 2018?) and am coming back to thank you. I make it weekly until I get tired of eating it for every lunch and dinner, then I forget about it and rediscover it again a few months later and can’t believe that such a simple recipe can taste so good. I was so skeptical of the combination of dijon, soy sauce and brown sugar with rosemary and thyme, but it’s some kind of magic. Lately I’ve been using quartered tiny potatoes because I can get 4-5 pounds of them at Costco for $6-7, which is admittedly more expensive than other kinds of potatoes. But they hold up so well and become these perfect little waxy vessels for the weirdly perfect flavors in this recipe. Other than that small substitution, I follow the recipe exactly. Thanks so much for this recipe, it’s fantastic every time!
P.S. It freezes really well as written, and even a little better when made with the tiny potatoes, I think because they are waxier and less prone to becoming mealy?
It’s also really good with crusty bread! I like to put a piece of sourdough in the bottom of a bowl, cover it with a big ladle of stew, then warm it up in the microwave for 10-15 seconds to help the bread soak it up and break it up with my spoon while I’m eating the stew. I also like using bread like normal people use bread with soups and stews, but man, soppy bread is fantastic with this recipe! (which also keeps it budget friendly – you can definitely bring nearly-stale bread back to life by sopping it in delicious stews)
I have now made this stew three times and find it fabulous. Everyone in the family loves it . We have not managed to freeze any at all: entire pot gets eaten in two days! Many thanks for sharing this wonderful recipe!
Very delicious! My second ever lentil recipe and it was a wonderful one to choose. We all liked it. Didn’t change anything and the flavor was great! Will make it again considering the hardest bit is all the chopping and slicing, but worth it for a hearty warm stew.
Based on the glowing reviews, I was really hoping that this stew would turn me, a verified lentil loather, into a willing lentil eater. It did not. However, my family (who like lentils) INHALED this. They loved it. I will absolutely make this again (but I still won’t eat any).
This is a very yummy and hearty stew. I made it just as directed. There was no need for extra salt. I used Better Than Bouillon vegetable stock.. I served with warm bread, but a garden salad would be an added plus. Great meal for when you want to leave the meat in the freezer. Can’t go wrong with this. This will definitely be a family favorite..
this was great!!! directions were easy to follow!!
I make my lentil stew like this but I wanted to try a different combination of spices, and I found your recipe. This was very delicious, I think I won’t be using my usual set of spices for my lentil stew anymore!
Made this recipe for a vegetarian friend and we both LOVED it!! Followed another commenter’s Instant Pot instructions (sauteed veggies in pot, then once all ingredients are added, pressure cook on high for 15min, quick release, add peas and let heat through). Served with some garlic bread. This is a new household favorite!
Thanks for the instant pot tip. I’ll have to give it a try.