Cozy up with a bowl of this hearty vegan lentil vegetable stew topped with garlicky croutons. It's dairy and gluten free, meal prep friendly and packed with flavor!

We eat a whole lot of lentils here in the Crowded Kitchen household. They're my personal favorite vegan protein source! Contrary to popular belief, they can actually be pretty tasty, too.
This filling vegan stew is a wonderful use for lentils. It's packed with hearty vegetables like carrots, celery and onions, along with plenty of flavorful dried herbs. A touch of coconut milk adds creaminess and depth.
The stew is fantastic on its own, but it's extra delicious topped with homemade garlicky croutons! It's equally good with just about any kind of warm, fresh bread. Totally up to you.
Serve it up alongside a simple salad (this kale tahini caesar is a favorite) and a glass of wine. It's almost like being in the French countryside. (One can dream, right?!)
Which kind of lentils should I use?
French green lentils (also known as Puy lentils) are our legume of choice for this vegan lentil stew.
They’re smaller, darker in color, and more flavorful than regular green lentils. French lentils also don’t lose their shape when they cook (unless you overcook them), so they’re an excellent choice for this stew.
That being said, if you can’t find and French lentils or already have a lot of green or brown lentils on hand, feel free to use those instead. Black lentils will also work, as they hold up well when cooked.
Avoid red and yellow lentils, which tend to break down into mush when cooked. These lentils are best used in puréed soups, curries and purees.
Vegan Lentil Stew Ingredients & Substitutions
- Vegan butter: feel free to substitute 1:1 with olive oil!
- Vegetable base: carrots, onions, celery and garlic. These are the easiest (and probably cheapest!) options, but you could also substitute or add in sweet potatoes, regular potatoes, parsnips, shallots, etc.
- Vegetable broth: We used regular vegetable broth (not low sodium). If you use low sodium, you may want to add a touch more salt (unless you're actively watching salt intake! Or, make homemade broth from vegetable scraps.
- Coconut milk: You'll just need one cup, but it adds a ton of creaminess and depth to this stew. Feel free to sub with any vegan (unsweetened) creamer.
- White wine vinegar: all good soups need a bit of acidity to balance everything out. Feel free to sub with a splash of white wine while the vegetables are sautéing. Or, add a squeeze of lemon juice.
- Tomato paste: optional, but encouraged for more flavor and acidity.
- French green lentils: see section above on substitutions!
- Herbes de Provence blend: commonly available in most stores, it's a blend of herbs like parsley, rosemary, lavender, fennel, thyme, basil, etc. Feel free to sub with your own blend of herbs.
- Swiss chard: You can sub with another leafy green like kale.
- Fresh parsley: Optional, but freshens everything up!
Homemade garlicky croutons
Homemade croutons are a delicious topping for this vegan lentil vegetable stew. They're also super easy to make!
Any bread of choice will do. Slice up into cubes, then toss well in olive oil, garlic and onion powder, salt and pepper until well coated. Bake in a 375˚ oven while the soup is simmering.
It only takes about 15 minutes for perfect, golden brown, crunchy croutons! Be sure to stir once or twice while cooking to make sure they're evenly cooked on all sides. Keep a close eye on the oven – they tend to go from "perfectly bronzed" to "burnt to a crisp" very quickly 😉
Meal prep & freezer tips
Meal prepping this soup? Follow the exact same cooking instructions. When you reheat the soup for eating, add another cup or two of broth as the lentils will soak up quite a bit.
Depending on how much broth you have to add, you may also have to add more seasoning, especially salt. Give it a try and season to your hearts desire!
To freeze this soup, leave it on the stove to cool completely. Then, transfer to a freezer-safe container (you can even use a reusable or plastic bag!), seal and freeze for up to 6 months.
When you're ready to use it, leave it to defrost in the refrigerator overnight. Then, gently simmer until completely thawed over low heat. Again, you will probably have to add more broth to loosen it up. Just be sure to taste and re-season if necessary.
More favorite lentil recipes
Lentils are one of our favorite vegan protein sources. They're SO versatile and surprisingly tasty when prepared correctly! Once you've tried this lentil vegetable stew, give these recipes a try:
- Vegan Bolognese. Lentils replace ground beef in this meat-free bolognese recipe.
- Lentil Sweet Potato Curry Soup. One of our most popular soup recipes for good reason!
- Moroccan Carrot and Lentil Salad. Studded with golden raisins, pistachios and tossed in a citrusy Moroccan-spiced vinaigrette.
- Lentil Meatballs. These hearty vegan meatballs are made with lentils, brown rice and plenty of flavorful spices and herbs.
- Vegan Shepherd's Pie. Lentils are the perfect hearty filling for vegan shepherd's pie!
- Puréed Red Lentil Soup. A favorite in our house!
If you make this vegan lentil vegetable stew recipe, we’d love for you to leave a comment and rating below! We also love to see your creations on Instagram – tag us at @crowded_kitchen so we can see what you’ve been cooking.
Print📖 Recipe
Vegan Lentil Stew
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 4-6 servings 1x
Description
Cozy up with a bowl of this hearty vegan lentil vegetable stew topped with garlicky croutons. It's dairy and gluten free, meal prep friendly and packed with flavor!
Ingredients
Soup:
- 3 tbsp vegan butter
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup celery, diced
- 1 cup carrots, diced
- 4 cups vegetable broth
- 1 cup coconut milk or dairy free creamer
- 2 tbsp white wine vinegar
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- ¾ cup dry French green lentils
- 1 tbsp Herbes de Provence (dried basil, thyme, marjoram, parsley, rosemary, etc)
- 1 tsp kosher salt, divided
- ½ tsp ground pepper
- 2 cups swiss chard, chopped roughly*
- ⅓ cup chopped parsley
Garlicky croutons:
- 2 cups of bread, cubed
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp ground pepper
- ¼ tsp garlic powder
- ¼ tsp onion powder
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375˚F.
- Cube bread and toss with olive oil and seasonings until well coated. Spread onto sheet pan and bake for 15 minutes, until golden brown and crispy. Set aside.
- Heat a large soup pot over medium and add butter. Sauté onion for 5-7 minutes, until softened. Add garlic and cook for additional 2-3 minutes, stirring often.
- Add celery, carrots and ½ teaspoon of salt and continue cooking for 5 minutes. Add broth, coconut milk, vinegar, tomato paste, lentils, herbs, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 25 minutes.
- When lentils are tender, stir in swiss chard and parsley until wilted. Taste and adjust seasoning as desired.
- Serve topped with croutons and more fresh parsley.
Notes
*Feel free to substitute swiss chard with another leafy green like kale.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Category: Soups
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: French
Nutrition
- Serving Size:
- Calories: 234
- Sugar: 8.1 g
- Sodium: 1335.4 mg
- Fat: 13 g
- Saturated Fat: 2 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 26.4 g
- Fiber: 3.7 g
- Protein: 4.5 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
Kim says
I usually never leave reviews about recipes, but I had to with this one.
It was really easy and SO VERY GOOD!
Such a rich, flavorful taste.
I can’t wait to share this with friends whenever the world allows us to have weekend group dinners again.
Lexi says
Thank you so much, Kim, it really means a lot! I'm so glad you enjoyed! And i'm with ya - can't wait to have dinner with friends again!
Jeanne Rademacher says
This was so good
And easy enough for me to make!
Loved it!!
Lexi says
Yay thrilled to hear that, Jeanne!! Thanks for your comment!
Ramona says
I look forward to making this tomorrow - your recipes NEVER fail to deliver:)
Lexi says
Aw thank you so much, Ramona! Hope you enjoy!