Vegan Cauliflower Soup with Red Lentils

Name: Vegan Cauliflower Soup with Red Lentils
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 50 min
Ingredients: 1 medium sized onion ((approx 2 cups diced)); ½ teaspoon salt; ½ teaspoon freshly ground pepper; 1 teaspoon cumin; 1 teaspoon ground corriander; 1 teaspoon ground turmeric; ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes; 4 cloves garlic (minced); 4 large carrots (approx. 2 cups sliced); 3 celery stalks (approx. 1 cup chopped); 1 ¼ cups dried red lentils (rinsed and drained); 8 Cups Vegetable Stock; 1 small head cauliflower*

Published: Dec 11, 2021 · Modified: Jul 14, 2025 by Debra Klein · This post may contain affiliate links · 31 Comments

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The BEST Cauliflower Soup Recipe with Red Lentils and Carrots is delicious and so satisfying. Partially blended for the perfect texture and a creamy vegan cauliflower soup. A one pot, simple and nourishing plant based meal that is perfect for warming you on a cold day.

Large white bowl filled with yellow textured creamy soup with chunks of carrots and cauliflower. Crusty bread chunks on the table and a striped blue napkin.

This post has been updated from the original that was posted on September 20, 2016.

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Key ingredient notes
Why you will love this soup
How to make it
Debra’s Pro Tips
📖 Recipe

There is an awesome fresh pressed juice shop near my daughter’s first apartment, that also made homemade, hearty, vegan soups. One day we had one that was particularly satisfying and delicious, with chunks of cauliflower, carrots, lentils and a creamy sort of base.

Weeks later, I was still craving that soup and knew I would keep recipe testing until I was able to create vegan cauliflower red lentil soup perfection….because a well rounded nutrient dense bowl of soup that’s delicious will put cravings on the back burner and make energy soar, and that’s always the way I want to nourish.

I kept at it, and then I had an outdoor get together with friends and a fire pit….put a double batch of this in the crockpot, plugged in outside. And guess what? Nothing was left..that’s when I knew I was done tinkering and this hearty vegan soup recipe was ready for the blog.

Key ingredient notes

Labeled ingredients: Carrots, vegetable broth, celery, cauliflower, red lentils, onion, garlic, spices.

CAULIFLOWER: Low in calories and carbs, and high in vitamins, nutrients, fiber, and antioxidants. Use fresh or frozen florets to provide bulk. This vegan creamy cauliflower soup has no cream…just cauliflower that’s been partially pureed for a wholesome thickness.
RED LENTILS: Awesome plant based source of protein, that are also rich in fiber, folate, iron, phosphorus, magnesium, zinc and potassium. They’re a great choice for this pureed lentil soup since they cook up more quickly than other types of lentils and fall apart easily providing texture and naturally thicken the soup.
ONIONS: White, yellow or sweet vidalia onions will all work well. You could also use leeks, scallions or even shallots in a pinch.
GARLIC: Garlic isn’t just a flavor builder, it also helps fight inflammation, build immunity and is loaded with antioxidants. Let it sit for 10 minutes after mincing to release the anti-bacterial components.
SPICES: Cumin and coriander offer flavor, turmeric offers some additional anti-inflammatory benefits and salt and pepper are added for taste. Simple, yet effective.
VEGGIE BROTH: Here’s my EASY recipe for Homemade Veggie Broth. It is worth making it yourself to avoid unnecessary sodium and inferior quality oils. I freeze mine in quart mason jars, or 1 cup cubes so I always have the amount I need at my fingertips. If you buy already made broth, be sure to read the ingredient label to know what you’re getting. Look for a brand with the least amount of sodium, processed oil and the most wholesome, real ingredients you can find.

Why you will love this soup

White bowl of colorful cauliflower red lentil soup. Blue striped cloth napkinis off to the side and you can see torn pieces of crusty bread along the sides too.

The flavor is fabulous, the texture is varied…it’s interesting in all the right ways.
Easy to make with wholesome, nutritious ingredients.
Plant based protein from the red lentils makes this a complete meal.
Budget friendly!
Creamy Vegan Soup….with no coconut, dairy or cashews.
One-pot, easy clean up.
Freezes beautifully and great for meal prep.

How to make it

Get your ingredients ready before you begin. Dice the onion, slice the carrots and celery, mince the garlic. Rinse and drain the red lentils. Measure the spices. Cut cauliflower into florets.

Diced onions inside a dutch oven, cooking.

Heat a dutch oven or soup pot over medium heat. Saute the diced onions in 1 Tablespoon veggie broth. If the pan becomes dry before the onions become soft and clear, add another Tablespoon broth, or 1 Tablespoon water. You can also saute in olive oil, if you prefer.

Dutch oven with layers of vegetables cooking. You can see purple and orange sliced carrots, sliced celery, some onions and a bunch of spices. — Add carrots, celery and spices.

An assortment of colorful vegetables and spices cooking in a dutch oven. You can see orange and purple carrots, celery. — Add carrots, celery and spices.

Next, add in the carrots, celery, cumin, coriander, turmeric salt and pepper. Stir while veggies soften and the spices begin to open up.

Dutch oven with vegetables that have been sweated, plus red lentils — Stir in red lentils and coat with spices.

Vegetables and broth in a dutch oven cooking. — Stir in red lentils and coat with spices.

Stir in the rinsed lentils and garlic. Cook stirring as the garlic becomes aromatic and the lentils become coated with the spices. Then cover with veggie broth and bring to a boil.

Dutch oven with veggies and broth cooking, Cauliflower florets were just added to the top. — Stir in Cauliflower florets.

Blue Dutch Oven filled with broth and vegetables, including cauliflower cooking. — Stir in Cauliflower florets.

Stir in the cauliflower florets. If you’re using frozen, you can stir in directly from freezer, no need to defrost. Turn down the heat and simmer, uncovered for 40 minutes. Sir occasionally to keep lentils from sticking to bottom.

Blue dutch oven filled with some chunky, some creamy cauliflower red lentil soup with chunks of cauliflower and different colored carrots.

Soup is done when all the veggies are tender. Use an immersion blender to puree some, to create a creamy cauliflower and red lentil soup base. Leave some of the cauliflower and carrots whole, if desired. If you don’t have an immersion blender, puree in batches using your blender or food processor.

Taste for seasoning. Sprinkle on additional salt and pepper as desired and garnish with some fresh parsley.

Debra’s Pro Tips

A mix of creamy and chunky is my favorite way to enjoy this soup. I use my immersion blender to puree just some, until the base is thickened, but some pieces of veggies remain. If you don’t have one, transfer half the pot of soup to a regular blender and run until smooth, then dump that back into the pot and stir well.
Just 5 minutes of patience to slowly build flavor with the onions, chopped veggies, spices and garlic will be greatly rewarded in the finished product.
Freeze in individual serving sizes…you’ll be so thankful to have an easy lunch when you need it.
Speaking of lunch….put some in a thermos and take it to work or school.

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