Sausage and Lentil Soup

Sausage and lentil soup is a hearty, budget-friendly dinner that’s perfect for any night of the week. This recipe combines lentils with kielbasa sausage, onions, carrots, celery, garlic, and fresh spinach, all simmered together in a rich and flavorful broth.

Course Soup

Cuisine American

Keyword lentils, sausage

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 45

Total Time 1

Servings

Calories 448kcal

Author Elizabeth Rodriguez

Ingredients

1 tablespoon Olive Oil
1 Medium Onion finely diced
1 Large Carrot peeled and diced
1 Celery Rib finely diced
2-3 Garlic Cloves minced
¼ teaspoon Black Pepper
14-16 ounces Kielbasa Sausage sliced into ¼ inch rounds (use a fully cooked variety, smoked sausage also works)
12-14 ounce Package of Lentils sorted, rinsed, and drained (green or brown lentils work best in this recipe)
4 cups Chicken Broth use reduced sodium if you are sensitive to salt
4 cups Water
4 ounces Fresh Spinach
Salt to taste if needed at the end

Instructions

Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onions, carrots, and celery to the pot. Cook for 3-4 minutes until the onions are translucent. Stir frequently.
Add the garlic and black pepper, cook for 1 minute, stirring frequently.
Add the kielbasa sausage to the pot and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring frequently.
Add the lentils, chicken broth, and water to the pot. Raise the heat to high, bring the liquid to a boil. Then lower the heat to medium or medium-low, cover and cook for approximately 25-30 minutes or until the lentils are tender (see notes #2). Stir occasionally and keep the liquid simmering. Raise or lower the heat as needed.
Taste a couple of lentils to see if they have reached the desired tenderness. If they are still hard, continue cooking for 10 minutes and taste again.
When the lentils are soft lower the heat to low. Add the spinach and stir until it wilts.
Taste the soup and add salt if needed. As a reference we added ½ teaspoon to ours.
Serve the soup with bread or crackers, if desired.

Notes

Carefully pick through the lentils to remove any foreign objects like tiny rocks or twigs.
For al dente lentils, start checking after 15 minutes and gauge the remaining cooking time from there. For softer, fall-apart lentils, cook longer until they reach your preferred texture.
Hold off on adding extra salt to the soup until the end, as both the sausage and chicken broth already contain salt. Use reduced-sodium broth if you are sensitive to salt.
Keep the soup at a gentle simmer to meld flavors without breaking down the lentils too quickly.

Nutrition