Vegan German Lentil Soup

The story behind the recipe

Lentil soup is one of my favourite childhood recipes. Usually, you make it with lots and lots of meat. However, it tastes even better without and I’ll show you how.

The most important ingredient for this soup and many other stews is knob celery. It adds lots of flavour to the dish. Celery is seasonal from July to November. Other important ingredients in this recipe are potatoes and carrots, both can be harvested from June to November. However, keep in mind that the three veggies can be stored over a long period of time and are therefore available all year long!

What do you need?

350 g brown lentils
200 g carrots
200 g knob celery
600 g potatoes
1 onion
2-3 bay leafs
1.5 to 2 L vegetable broth
Oil
Salt, Pepper, Marjoram
(optional) lemon juice/vinegar and sugar

How do you make it?

Chop all the veggies in pieces of the same size.
Gently roast the onions with a bit of oil in your pot.
Add carrots and celery and roast for a bit.
Add the veggy broth, bay leafs, and marjoram.
Let simmer for 20-30 minutes (depending on the size of your vegetable slices). Don’t forget to stir from time to time to avoid burning.
Add potatoes and season with salt and pepper.
Let simmer for 15 minutes or until the potatoes are done.
Season to your taste with lemon juice or vinegar and sugar.
Enjoy!

Tips

I really recommend seasoning the soup with lemon juice or vinegar and sugar. The mix of sourness and sweetness completes the dish. Usually, everybody seasons their own portion to make it perfect. For example, I love to use a lot of both, lemon juice and sugar (and by a lot I really mean a lot!) while my family likes to only use a bit.