Description
This Turkey Lentil Soup is full of flavor and loaded with protein and fresh vegetables. Plus, it's ready in less than an hour! This healthy soup is the perfect cold weather weeknight meal.
Ingredients
Scale
- 2/3 cup green lentils, dry, uncooked
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 lb ground turkey
- 1 carrot, peeled and diced into thin circles
- 1 yellow squash, ends removed and diced
- 1 yellow sweet onion, peeled and diced small
- 1 bell pepper, seeds and stem removed and diced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 dried bay leaf
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1/2 cup roasted red peppers, drained and diced small
- 14 ounce can diced tomatoes, drained
- 28 ounce can tomato sauce
- 32 ounce chicken stock
- 1/2 teaspoon to 1 teaspoon salt to taste
- 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Add lentils to a large bowl with cold water and allow them to soak for about 5 minutes. Strain and rinse the lentils well, shake out the excess water, and set aside.
- In a dutch oven over medium heat, pour in the olive oil and add in the ground turkey. Cook for 5 to 6 minutes breaking up the meat with a wooden spoon as it cooks.
- Stir in onion, carrot, squash, green peppers, and the seasoning blend of cumin, paprika, coriander, garlic powder, and oregano. Do NOT add salt as it can make the lentils tough. Cover and cook for 5 minutes to soften the vegetables.
- Add the minced garlic, bay leaf, roasted red peppers and diced tomatoes. Stir to combine.
- Pour the lentils into the pot along with tomato sauce.
- Stir in the chicken stock. Cover and bring to a low boil. Then, reduce the heat to low. Stir, then cover and cook for 30 minutes, stirring halfway through to make sure lentils aren't sticking to the bottom.
- Uncover the pot and season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Serve and top with parmesan cheese, if desired. Enjoy!
Notes
- The lentils need to be rinsed well and then soaked for a few minutes in cold water, just to remove any debris. This is important because sometimes little stones can end up in the bag.
- Do not salt the soup until the very end to avoid toughening the lentils during the cooking process.
- Once the lentils are finished, pull the dutch oven off the stovetop to avoid overcooking.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Category: Soup
- Method: stovetop
- Cuisine: Mediterranean