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+ servings
Spoonful of delicious curried lentil soup in a beige soup bowl.
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5 from 20 votes

Red Lentil and Ham Soup

Red Lentil and Ham Soup is an easy delicious, curried lentil soup that can be on your table in 20 minutes and a perfect solution for that left over holiday ham.
Prep Time5 minutes
Cook Time15 minutes
Total Time20 minutes
Course: Mains
Cuisine: American
Servings: 4
Calories: 504kcal
Author: HWC Magazine

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoon olive oil
  • 4 carrots peeled and chopped
  • 2 celery sticks
    chopped
  • 1 onion
    peeled and chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic
    peeled and minced
  • 8 cups chicken broth
    gluten free and lower sodium
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1.5 cups red lentils
    split dried. Please wash and pick over for things don’t belong
  • 1 sprig thyme leaves
    fresh or or 1 teaspoon dried
  • 1 cup ham chopped or if all you have is the ham bone, just add that.
  • 2 teaspoon curry powder
    (or to taste)
  • salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Stove Top Directions

  • Add olive oil, carrots, celery and onions to a large pot and cook on medium heat until translucent. Add garlic.
  • Add chicken broth, bay leaves, red lentils, thyme, ham and/or ham bone, curry powder and salt and pepper to taste. Cook on medium high heat for about 15-20 minutes until the vegetables and lentils are tender. Remove bay leaves and fresh thyme from soup pot.
  • Enjoy! (if you wish, you can puree, but perfect just the way it is)

Pressure Cooker (Instant Pot) Directions

  • Sauté onion, celery and carrot in the Instant Pot (pressure cooker) with a little olive oil, just until aromatic. Then add garlic, chicken broth and bay leaves to the pot.
  • Add red lentils, thyme, ham or ham bone, mild curry powder and salt and pepper to taste.Place the lid on the pressure cooker and lock into place. Be sure to put the steam release valve in the closed position. Set the pressure cooker for 10 minutes on high pressure cooker. Allow to naturally release for 10 minutes and then carefully release the steam valve. Remove bay leaves and fresh thyme from instant pot.

Slow Cooker Directions

  • Put all of the ingredients for ham and lentil soup into slow cooker. There is no sautéing required. Put the lid on the slow cooker and set on high for 4 hours or low for 6 to 8 hours. Remove bay leaves and fresh thyme from soup pot.
  • Enjoy!

Video

Notes

Try our easy Air Fryer Ham with Cranberry Glaze for an easy holiday ham recipe. 
How to prepare split red lentils for cooking?
There is no need to pre-soak split red lentils. Just rinse lentils with cool clean water to remove any debris. Then, pick over for any lentils that do not look like belong that are dark, etc. and remove.
How long to cook lentil soup in the pressure cooker (instant pot)?
In order to make a creamy split lentil soup, set the pressure cooker on high for 10 minutes, let it naturally release for 10 minutes and then perform the quick release method.
Do you need to cook the red lentils before adding to the soup?
No, you do not need to cook them first. Just add the lentils to the pot with the other soup ingredients and they will get creamy and delicious.
How long can you store lentil soup?
You can store ham and lentil soup for 3 days in a sealed container in the refrigerator or it can be frozen for up to 2 months.
If your soup is too thick, you can add a little extra chicken broth or water to the sip and season as you desire. 

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 504kcal | Carbohydrates: 56g | Protein: 36g | Fat: 17g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 22mg | Sodium: 607mg | Potassium: 1418mg | Fiber: 23g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 10252IU | Vitamin C: 10mg | Calcium: 97mg | Iron: 7mg