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This hearty bowl of Hungarian Red Lentil Soup will be on your table in no time. It's so easy to make and calls for simple, easy-to-find ingredients. It's gluten-free and oil-free too!
This Hungarian Red Lentil Soup Recipe is directly from the pages of The Vegan 8 cookbook by Brandi Doming. It's a new family favorite!
If you haven't heard of Brandi's blog, The Vegan 8, you're in for a real treat. She has mastered the art of keeping recipes simple, yet satisfying, and full of flavor.
She uses no more than 8 ingredients for her recipes (not including water, salt & pepper) and they're easy-to-find. Her recipes are all dairy-free and are mostly oil-free, gluten-free, and nut-free too.
Brandi's recipes make it easy to eat healthy even with a busy lifestyle. Plus, they are designed for the whole family to enjoy. You'll have a lot of happy campers at the table.
What's inside?
Inside you'll find 100 easy-to-make recipes that are simple and delicious. Each recipe accompanies a beautiful, drool-worthy photo too. It's a total coffee table book!
The cookbook is broken down into 9 scrumptious categories: Breakfast, Snacks & Appetizers, Lunches, Sauces & Dressings, Easy Entrées, Soups & Stews, Sides & Dips, and Staples.
You'll find mouth-watering recipes like Pumpkin Pie Crepes, Easy One-Pan Red Curry, Teriyaki Patties, BBQ Bean Ball Sub, Broccoli Cheese Soup, Creamy Cajun Lemon Sauce, Skillet Mexican Corn, Spinach Artichoke Dip, Showstopper Chocolate Cake, Chocolate-Peanut Butter Candy Bites, and this Hungarian Red Lentil Soup.
I've already made a handful of Brandi's recipes and I didn't need to change a thing. The flavors and textures were all on point. I'm so excited to make some more!
How to make Hungarian Red Lentil Soup
- STEP 1: Simmer the onions, garlic, and carrots until slightly tender (about 8 minutes)
- STEP 2: Add the red lentils, Hungarian sweet paprika, tomato paste, dry mustard, salt, and pepper. and simmer on low for about 10 minutes.
- STEP 3: Add the lite coconut milk. Cook on medium-low for 5-10 minutes until soup slightly thickens and lentils are tender, but still firm.
- STEP 4: ENJOY!!
Looking for more cozy soup recipes? Here are my faves:
- Instant Pot Yellow Split Pea Soup
- Vegan Potato Leek Soup
- Vegan Ajiaco (Colombian Potato Soup)
- Roasted Tomato Soup
I’d love to hear from you
If you make this Hungarian Red Lentil Soup Recipe, let me know what you think by ★ star rating it and leaving a comment below. It would really make my day. You can also follow me on Instagram and share your creation with me. Just tag me @veganhuggs and hashtag #veganhuggs so I don’t miss it.
Hungarian Red Lentil Soup
Ingredients
- 1 cup yellow onion , diced
- 3 carrots , cut into 1⁄4-inch-thick slices
- 3 cloves garlic , minced
- 1 cup dry red lentils , rinsed well with cold water
- 6 tablespoons tomato paste
- 2 tablespoons Hungarian sweet paprika
- 1 teaspoon dry mustard
- 1 ½ teaspoons fine salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 cup canned “lite” coconut milk , well shaken
- 3 ½ cups water , divided
Instructions
- Add the onion, carrots, garlic, and 1 cup (240g) water to a medium pot over medium heat. Bring to a simmer, and cook for 8 minutes, stirring a couple of times during, or until the veggies are tender but not overly so.
- Remove the pan from the heat, and add the lentils, 2 1⁄2 cups (600g) water, tomato paste, paprika, dry mustard, salt, and pepper. Stir well, and bring to a boil over high heat. Cover, reduce the heat to low, and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Add the milk, and increase the heat to medium-low; cook 5 to 10 minutes or until the lentils are tender yet still firm, and the soup thickens some. Stir often, and do not overcook, as you don’t want the lentils to become mushy. Taste and add more salt, if desired. Serve immediately.
Notes
Nutrition
Adrienne Sz
I made this soup yesterday and it was very nice. Thank you, The only thing I have to say that this is not a traditional Hungarian food. Just because it has Hungarian sweet paprika powder as an ingredient it doesn't mean that it's Hungarian food. I'm proud to be Hungarian and I think it's better to clear this misunderstanding. Traditional Hungarian recipes doesn't contain coconut milk. Otherwise it's an easy to make delicious soup. I will make it again.
Erin
Would this work with brown lentils? Turns out that’s all I have on hand. Thanks!
Melissa Huggins
I haven't tried it so I'm not sure how much longer it'll take to cook or if you'll need more liquid. Brown lentils are a bit firmer after cooking so the consistency will be different too. I'm sure it'll be delicious though. 🙂
Elaine Wruck
Amazing ! ! I am transition to plant based! This recipe is another great easy peasy no fuss meal! Low cost , very filling and so good for you! Yummy too! I did add celery and more garlic! So good my family and Co workers love it too!
Melissa Huggins
Hi Elaine, I'm so happy you liked it (your co-workers too). Thank you for giving it a try and sharing your feedback. 🙂
Mauri
How much water is used in this recipe. I see one cup water and one cup milk. Please advise and thank yo
Melissa Huggins
Hi Mauri, it's a total of 3 1/2 cups of water. 1 cup is to sauté the onions and garlic. The rest goes in with the lentils. Hope this helps. Thank you for stopping by 🙂
Natalie
This recipe is amazing! I had some Hungarian paprika I purchased in Hungary a few years ago. I didn’t have dry mustard on hand. I substituted 1 1/2 tsp of English mustard. I had to cook the lentils a bit longer than the recipe stated. Other than that this was a super easy and really delicious recipe! Thank you!
Melissa Huggins
Hi Natalie, I'm so glad you liked it. Thank you for making it and leaving your feedback 🙂
Kinga
I’m from Hungary and was happy to find a Hungarian red lentil recipe although I think the paprika makes it Hungarian. 🙂
I have one question: instead of coconut milk can I use cow milk? Whole or reduced fat or maybe cooking cream? Thanks for answering!
Melissa Huggins
Hi there, yes, you can use any milk you prefer as long as it's thick. Thank you for stopping by 🙂
Jennifer
This was so good and easy to make. Do you think I could use veggie broth instead of water, or would that alter the flavor too much?
Melissa Huggins
Hi Jennifer, I'm so glad you liked it. Thank you! Yes, you can use vegetable broth. I would use a low sodium variety, but if you use regular, just adjust the salt in the recipe. 🙂
Jamie
I searched for red lentil recipes after buying a bag of them for the first time. Now they are all gone in 1 week. This recipe is so good and easy I've made it 4 times in a row. Great for a quick dinner when ur too tired to cook. It almost makes itself 😉
I subbed sweet paprika for regular and used a lite carton of coconut milk. Still came out good.👍
Melissa Huggins
Hi Jamie, I'm so happy to hear this! It's a family favorite over here too. I love how easy and satisfying it is. 🙂
Margaret
Love this recipe. So easy and tasty, I make it regularly. Always a winner to share with family/friends.
Melissa Huggins
Hi Margaret, so happy to hear this! Thank you for making it 🙂
Cap'n Dave
I made this last night and it was SO good!
I added a little Cabernet Sauvignon and changed out the coconut milk for vegan sour cream, diluted a little bit with some almond milk, increased the paprika since what I had wasn't the Hungarian Sweet but just your regular McCormick's variety, and touched it up with a tiny "splorp" of cayenne pepper sauce since even after ramping up the paprika, it was still a little "weak". (Next time, I'll order the CORRECT paprika online, since all anyone has around here is the dried colorant or the smoked.)
Even though I reduced the recipe to 1/3rd of its amount, I STILL have enough leftovers for lunch today!
Served it up with a side of roasted Brussels sprouts in vegan butter with "bacon"...a quite satisfying meal that stayed with me the rest of the night! This one's a keeper!!!
Melissa Huggins
Hi Dave! This is so awesome to hear! Thank you for making it and sharing your modifications. It sounds delish with the vegan sour cream. I haven't found Hungarian paprika in local stores either. It really is the best!
The Brussels sprouts with 'bacon' sound incredible too! Now I'm hungry! 🙂
John
This looks absolutely amazing and delicious. I am trying this recipe this weekend to surprise my wife, however, I am going to add some organic potatoes that I just bought. Thank you for all the great recipes.
Melissa Huggins
Thank you, John! It sounds perfect with the potatoes! So nice of you to make this for your wife. Enjoy! 🙂