The golden hue of fall leaves in a bowl of lentil rice soup! Don’t worry, it’s only the color that you’re eating, not the actual leaves. This soup is belly-warming, flavorful, and oh-so-tasty. A turmeric broth flavored with lime and cumin bathes the red lentils and jasmine rice in a bowl of pure comfort food. Not to mention, it’s vegan and gluten-free!
Friends, it’s soup season. We made it. After what seemed like the longest and hottest summer ever, which is saying something for the Pacific Northwest, we are now officially in Fall. Or Autumn. Which is it? Is there some sort of consortium that makes these decisions? It’s the same people who invented Daylight Savings Time, isn’t it? There’s gotta be some sort of historian who does deep dives into these topics. Maybe one day they’ll be looking for a lentil rice soup recipe and Google will lead them here and that’s how we’ll all learn the answer. Fingers crossed.
PS – I know there are some of you out there who are not in soup season. I see you. I’m just not you. Hence, a soup recipe.
PPS – Hi everyone! Did you miss me? It’s only been um….TWO YEARS since I’ve posted a recipe here! <hangs head in shame> In the spring I made a couple of bumbling attempts at a return, and even posted some rambling thoughts and garden plans, but now, finally, I have resurrected ye olde blog from the ashes. The soup called Fawkes. HP fans, where you at? Anyway…..I re-learned how to operate my camera and unearthed a half-tested recipe, perfected and tested it, and here we are!
In the process of photographing this recipe, I remembered how much I like to arrange dry ingredients into shapes. Yes, I know I’m weird, this has been firmly established here. But these red lentils and jasmine rice kernels were practically arranging themselves into a heart, so who am I to stop true love?
And it’s true…this soup is basically love in a bowl. My friend Erin was a taste tester and said she wanted to marry it! So…that’s going to be an awkward conversation next time I run into her husband.
Seriously, though, the red lentils and the rice do make some serious magic once they cook down in the hot broth. The red lentils break down and give the soup body while the rice softens into a lovely slurpable texture. Slurpable is a word that I made up, apparently, because spell-check is waving the wavy red line flag underneath it. Wordsmithing aside, you can see for yourself in the spoon close-up below the glorious goodness just waiting to be gobbled up.
Oh, and that golden broth? Its dramatic color is thanks to the pigment power of turmeric. You don’t need a lot for it to pack a punch both in terms of flavor and color. Also at the party are cumin, onion or shallot, salt and pepper, and a big squeeze of lime at the end. It’s a stunner, folks. But wait, there’s more! Bump up the color AND nutrition by crowning the soup with delicately slivered spinach. You could do chard, as well. The spinach wilts into the hot soup as if fulfilling its destiny. As for other toppers, I’ve been known to add cilantro or dill, or even hot sauce. But you do you. I would also like to point out that a spinach leaf formed the shape of a diamond at the bottom of the bowl. I couldn’t have styled it so perfectly if I’d done it on purpose. And to be clear, I didn’t.
There you have it. A hot bowl of soup cozily wrapped in a dish cloth just waiting to be enjoyed on the couch while watching the latest episode of the The Great British Baking Show (or Bakeoff, everywhere but the US). It is just as the soup gods intended.
PPPS – there are both stovetop AND Instant Pot instructions in the recipe below. You’re welcome.
PPPPS – I’m so glad to be back. <3
Golden Lentil Rice Soup
Equipment
- Soup pot or Instant Pot
- Knife
- Ladle
Ingredients
- 9 cups water
- 3 cubes vegetable boullion*
- 1 onion or 2 shallots, diced
- 1/2 cup red lentils, sorted and rinsed
- 1/2 cup jasmine rice**
- 1 tablespoon olive oil, optional
- 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
- 1 rounded teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
- black pepper, to taste
- 1 lime, juiced
- 2 cups baby spinach, sliced thinly
- cilantro or dill, for garnish
Instructions
Stovetop Instructions
- In a large soup pan, sauté onions and salt for 5 minutes over medium heat.
- Add vegetable bouillon cubes, spices, lentils, and rice, and stir to combine.
- Add water, stir, and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 15-20 minutes until the rice is tender.
- Stir in the lime juice. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- Add spinach to a bowl and ladle the hot soup over the spinach. The heat of the soup will wilt the spinach perfectly.
- Serve garnished with fresh cilantro or dill if desired.
Instant Pot Instructions
- Select the sauté function to low or medium heat. Saute onions and salt for 5 minutes or until the onions are translucent.
- Add the water, vegetable bouillon cubes, spices, lentils, and rice, and stir to combine.
- Cook the soup on high pressure for 3 minutes. When the time is elapsed, allow the pressure to release naturally for 5 minutes. Then release the remaining pressure with the quick release valve (put a towel over the valve to minimize the steam).
- Remove the lid and stir in the lime juice. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- Add spinach to a bowl and ladle the hot soup over the spinach. The heat of the soup will wilt the spinach perfectly.
Can’t wait to make this! Welcome back.????
Thanks! Can’t wait to hear what you think! 🙂
I needed this amazingness today!! Loved reading the post, and will hopefully get to try some made by the creator herself!
I’m such a proud Sister!!
Your comments are always my favorite! How lucky am I to have such a hilarious and encouraging sister? ????
Yay!!!! Welcome back. I missed yooooouu! This soup sounds delish. I love that you include IP instructions cause I’m a special kind of lazy. I will be making this SOON. Can’t wait to try!
Thanks Lisa!! I’m a special kind of lazy too. The kind that waits two years to post a recipe. ????
Hello, friend. Love your humor, and your recipes. I will be making this tomorrow.
Hi Julie! Thank you so much. ???? Would love to hear what you think of the soup!
Welcome back! I’ve been promised some of this wonderful sounding soup when I get to HUG the recipe creator in November!
Thanks Momma! I can’t wait hug you and then serve you a big bowl of soup!! ????????????
Very glad to have you posting again. I’ve enjoyed using your old recipes and look forward to enjoying new ones too.
Thank you Martha! I’m so glad to be back! 🙂
Ring the wedding bells, I just realized I have all the ingredients for this soup on hand and we are running away together!
The next time I cook anything with multi colored dry ingredients I am going play with my food and make shapes. That “lentil-rice heart” looks like more fun that it ought to. I tried to combine the words lentil and rice to make a cutsy-combined word for the heart and actually typed out “Lice Heart” before I realized that doesn’t work AT ALL – should not be typing while tired. =) Now I’m having nostalgia for when I was in elementary school and my teacher had a big bin of dried beans that we could run our hands through. I can’t remember a single other thing about that teacher or classroom. Apparently the beans really made an impression on me. Sorry, tangent.
The photos for this post are gorgeous, that first one with the bright soup surrounded by colorful ingredients is especially stunning and deserves a spot in an art gallery.
I’m so happy that Pass the Plants is back BABY
Everything about this comment is pure gold. 🙂
I’m making this tomorrow. It looks so good.
Can’t wait to hear what you think Lorita!!
The GOLDEN LENTIL RICE SOUP I-P Instructions incomplete. Can not trust this recipe or any others you Beth. Sorry.
Hi Arlan, what do you feel is incomplete about the Instant Pot instructions? I reviewed them again and they make sense to me. I also feel it’s a bit unfair to write off all of my recipes and not give the benefit of the doubt. There is always an opportunity for clarification and mistakes do happen. I would be glad to receive constructive and specific feedback. Thanks.
Glad you are back. I will try the recipe!
I just started the instant pot! I used a box of low sodium Pacific broth and dried onion flakes, cut the rice, lentils,cumin and turmeric in half and set the IP for 22 minutes. I’ll see how that goes! I have only lemon juice. Might skip that part!
I’m excited to try this because I have several of your recipes in my rotation. Lasagna toast,cheesy cauliflower, high protein mashed potatoes!
Thanks for the new recipe. I hope to see more!
Hi Beth, wellcome back ! I love soups, and this looks wonderful, I will make it tomorrow in my new pressure cooker. Really pretty photos too. I like your blog! Hope to see more soon
Hi Bente, sorry I didn’t approve this comment earlier! I thought I had but it appears not. Thank you so much! <3
Yesss you’re back! AND with a lentil soup recipe. You’re one of my favorite recipe bloggers, glad to see you’re posting again! *encouraging cheers from the Netherlands*
Oh, thank you so much Nicole! I really appreciate such a warm welcome. <3
I see my comment has not yet been approved.
I just said welcome back and that I would make your delicious soup in my pressure cooker.
And I did.
What a soft, light and elegant tast it has. Yet filling and very satisfying.
I chose to dump a whisk of lemongrass into it, before closing the lid, because I had no lime or lemon.
We liked it very much, with the spinach, and will definitely make it again.
Five stars from me in Denmark ; )
Oh I love the idea of lemongrass! Thank you for the update Bente! I’m so thrilled that you enjoyed the soup. It’s soup weather here today, so cold and drizzly. Wish I had a bowl of it right now! 🙂
I made this today and it’s delicious! The rice gives it the texture and body that make it different from other red lentil soups I’ve tried. Tumeric and cumin are a great combination and add so much flavor. I didn’t use the oil to saute, but I don’t think it matters, given how much flavor is packed into this soup. I put it over spinach and baby kale and feel like I’m having a meal that’s tasty, satisfying and healthful. Thanks Beth! Also, I love your photography!
So excited to see you creating recipes again! Welcome back; you were missed.
We prepared the Golden Lentil Rice soup tonight and… oh my! This is the epitome of comfort food! I particularly like the smooth mellow taste. It’s perfect for a cold winter day and so simple to prepare. This is now on my go-to recipe list. Thanks Beth!