Fitness / September 20, 2024

Ham and Lentil Soup

Ham and Lentil Soup is good any time of year, not just on cold winter nights. Enjoy a bowl today!

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Making soup out of leftovers helps you stretch your meals while providing comforting bowls of deliciousness for your family. Even if you are single and living alone, making a pot of ham and lentil soup is a good idea, as it will provide you with many future meals for those days when you just don’t want to cook. I often have several single-serve containers of various soups in my freezer at any time.

We’ve all been there—those days when we come home from work tired, hungry, and wanting only to sit and relax. You open your fridge and notice there’s nothing for dinner. Takeout and delivery can get expensive. Plus, you might have to wait upwards of an hour before you’re actually sitting down to eat. A better alternative is opening your freezer, pulling out a container of soup, and, within a few minutes, sitting down to a delicious meal.

This soup basically has it all: the heartiness of the lentils and ham, the rich stock, and that warm feeling it gives you when you cozy up with a bowl and let its aroma soothe you. Perfection in a bowl!

Stovetop, Instant Pot, Slow Cooker, Crock-Pot: Which Is Best?

Ham and lentil soup is one of those dishes that you can make however it’s most convenient for you. It only requires about an hour of cooking time on the stove, which is easy enough. Everything cooks in one pot for easy cleanup.

Instant Pot: The sauté setting on an Instant Pot allows you to cook the vegetables in the pot before adding the other ingredients. The lentil soup cooks in only 12 minutes on high pressure, followed by a natural pressure release of around 15 minutes.

Slow Cooker or Crock-Pot: If you’re making the soup in a slow cooker, you have two options: sauté the veggies in oil first in a pan and then add them to the cooker, or skip that step and place everything into the pot all at once. I’ve done it both ways, and it turns out just as good. Cook the soup for three hours on high or four to five hours on low.

Is Ham and Lentil Soup Healthy?

Lentils provide an ample amount of fiber, iron, protein, and folate and are good for stabilizing blood sugar levels and aiding digestion. The vegetables used provide additional vitamins, and the ham provides extra protein. For a leaner meat option, you can substitute a leftover cooked turkey carcass or diced cooked turkey. Bear in mind, however, that the taste will be different.

Do I Have to Presoak Lentils?

Lentils are not the same as beans. Not only do you not have to pre-soak them, but you don’t want to. Their cooking time is short, and soaking them could result in a pot of mush on the stove.

INGREDIENTS

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 carrots, sliced
2 celery stalks, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
8 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 meaty ham bone or 1.5 cups diced cooked ham
1 pound dried lentils, rinsed
1 teaspoon dried thyme
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

Sauté

Cook onions, carrots, celery, and garlic.

Simmer

Add broth and ham, followed by lentils; cook until tender.

Season

Remove ham bone, season, and serve.

Devour!

FAQs & Tips

How to Make Ahead and Store

Most soups taste better the second day, once the flavors have had time to meld overnight. The same applies to ham and lentil soup. You can make it a day ahead or even overnight in a slow cooker or Crock-Pot.
Once prepared, it will stay well in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 4 days. Lentil soup also freezes well for up to 3 months. I suggest freezing your soup in single- and double-serve containers for convenient future meals. While defrosting overnight in the fridge is ideal, I often take the container straight from the freezer to the microwave.

Can I Add Other Vegetables and Herbs to the Soup?

I love increasing the nutrients in soup, and one of the best ways to do that is by adding spinach or kale. I add them towards the end of the cooking time since they do not take long to wilt. Chopped broccoli is another great addition to lentil soup. Using fresh rather than dried thyme is another way to enhance the taste. And cumin, turmeric, oregano, and rosemary are other herbs and spices to consider.

Does It Matter What Color Lentils I Use?

Yes, different colored lentils result in different textures. You can use brown or green lentils in soups such as this as they hold their shape better. However, yellow and red lentils will likely turn to mush. That happened to me recently when I noticed a bag of red lentils about to expire and decided to use it in soup. Lesson learned.

Serving Suggestions

Soup and salad naturally go well together, so add a crunchy Shaved Brussels Sprout Salad or Broccoli Grape Salad to your meal. A bowl of Blueberry Cobbler is the perfect ending to any meal, including this ham and lentil soup. You can use any fruit or mixture of fruit you like for a tasty treat. Don’t forget to top it with a scoop of ice cream.