Lentil Wild Rice Soup

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

It is a lighter, more healthy version of wild rice soup that’s vegan. Classic wild rice soup recipes are creamy and rich with butter, chicken and sometimes heavy cream. The broth in this soup is made with vegetable stock and a small can of diced tomatoes to give it nice acidity.

Including both lentils and rice makes the soup very filling. This is how you get soup to eat like a meal for lunch or dinner. What beans do in chili and other soup recipes is what these additions do in this hearty soup.

During fall and winter, it is always good to have another version of vegetable soup. This one ticks the boxes because it’s simple to make, nutritious, flavorful and freezer-friendly. 

The Ingredients

This is what you need:

• Wild rice: Try different brands to see which blend you like most. 
• Green lentils simmer in soups and hold their shape. Do not substitute with red lentils because they will break down in broth. Rinse your lentils with cold water in a strainer before you add them to the soup
• Onions, celery & carrots are the starting point for building flavors like they are for so many other soup recipes.
• Mushrooms: You can use white mushrooms, cremini mushrooms or baby bella mushrooms. Brush off the dirt before dicing them.
• Garlic: Three minced garlic cloves may sound like a lot, but it’s the right amount with the vegetables in the lightly tomatoey broth. They melt right into the olive oil and veggies as you sauté everything.
• Dried seasonings: The soup is seasoned with a mix of cumin, thyme, red pepper flakes kosher salt and black pepper. If you don’t have thyme, rosemary is another good option.
• Vegetable broth: It’s best to use low-sodium vegetable broth, so you have full control over the seasoning of the soup, especially salt. If you don’t mind if the soup isn’t vegan/vegetarian, you can use chicken broth instead.
• Spinach: I stir in baby spinach when the soup finishes simmering. The heat will quickly wilt the leaves. You can use kale, too, depending what greens you have at home. Kale is sturdier, so it will take longer to soften.
• Lemon: Squeezing in lemon juice adds wonderful brightness to the soup.
• Parsley: Chopped fresh herbs also give the soup freshness along with the lemon.
• Olive oil: Use extra-virgin olive oil for the best taste.

Serving

You can keep it simple and eat this soup with a piece of sourdough or another artisan bread with a good crust. I always like soup with a salad such as this lemony arugula salad, Italian chopped salad, a better than a restaurant house salad or a chickpea cucumber salad. 

Storage & Leftovers

First, let the soup cool to room temperature. You can store it in an airtight container in the fridge up to 3 days. To save it longer, you can freeze it up to 1 month. If you are going to keep it in the freezer, divide it into smaller portions rather than putting it one big container to make it easier to thaw. Warm it in the microwave or on the stovetop.

Please keep in mind that the longer you store the soup the more the rice and lentils will absorb the broth. Not only will they become softer, but you may need to add water or more broth when you reheat leftovers. Taste it when you have it warmed up in case you need to add seasonings.