Lentil Soup with Sausage & Kale + VIDEO

This hearty Lentil Soup with Sausage and Kale will warm you up and keep you wanting more!

Growing up, we ate a lot of processed foods – Hamburger Helper, Macaroni & Cheese, Lunchables. Somehow I survived… I also ate a lot of canned soup. The lentil soup from Progresso was one of my favorites. I recently tried it again… Ummm… Huh… (scratching head). How did I survive?

Time to step things up a notch – Let’s give that lentil soup an upgrade.

The first thing I decided needed to be thrown into the mix was sausage. I went with mild Italian sausage… Debating first on using spicy sausage. I decided that it might be a bit too spicy, and figured that I could spice things up at the end with some red pepper flakes if it needed it. This is also great for those who don’t really care for the heat.

You can totally customize this soup to fit your tastes – I threw in a teaspoon of red pepper flakes at the end to give that hint of spice. However, you could totally leave them out if you want. Or, really heat things up by throwing in more. You can also make this a vegetarian lentil soup by leaving out the sausage.

I used some of my homemade slow cooker bone broth as the stock (I had it on hand in the freezer), but you can swap it out for some boxed chicken broth too. They’ll both work just fine and will be amazingly seasoned at the end of the cooking process. That’s because the lentils cook in the stock. They simmer away with some crushed tomatoes and soften up to a wonderful, almost creamy texture.

You’ll find dried lentils in your grocery store near the other dried beans. Look for brown lentils, rather than the red variety which cook up faster.

My go-to brand is Bob’s Red Mill Brown Lentils. I’m so excited to see that lots of stores now have a full-on Bob’s Red Mill section with all of their great products. Founded 40 years ago by Bob and Charlee Moore, Bob’s Red Mill is an employee-owned company that focuses on products that are non-GMO and kosher, with many of the products, like these lentils, being vegan and packed with fiber.

Once they reach that perfect texture, and the soup is nice and thick, we’ll add in some kale at the end.

I’m using baby kale. I prefer the texture and find it to not be quite so bitter as the “adult” version. Look for it in tubs by the pre-packaged salad mixes. You can also make a lentil sausage spinach soup but swapping out the kale for spinach.

Don’t be shocked by the 5 cups of greens that we’re adding in there. It’ll look like way too much at the beginning, but in just a few quick minutes, it shrinks down to almost nothing. I love knowing that I have 5 cups of nutritious kale packed in there – hello healthy! Not to mention, all that fiber that the lentils add too… I’m making up for aforementioned Hamburger Helper.

To finish off this lentil sausage kale soup I added in a splash of red wine vinegar and some fresh parsley. It helps to brighten up everything at the end. Don’t forget to season with salt and pepper too. You’ll need a good sprinkling of both, but it will depend on the salt content of your chicken stock. So, dress it up at the end to your liking.

The end result? This homemade Lentil Sausage Soup is SO much better than the stuff from the can! I mean, SO much better…

What to Serve with Lentil Soup:

• Arugula Salad Recipe {EASY + Delicious}
• Apple Slaw with Celery Root
• Shaved Brussel Sprout Salad with Mustard & Parmesan
• Vegan Caesar Salad

Have you made any upgrades to some of your favorite childhood foods? I’d love to hear in the comments below.

If you loved this Lentil Soup with Sausage recipe I would appreciate it so much if you would give it star review! Also, be sure to snap a picture of your finished dish and share it with me on Instagram using the hashtag #platingsandpairings and tagging me @platingsandpairings.

For more great Platings & Pairings recipes, be sure to follow me on Pinterest, Facebook, YouTube and Twitter.

Lentil Recipes:

• Instant Pot Lentil Soup with Sausage & Kale
• Instant Pot Lentil Bolognese Sauce
• Slow Cooker Lentil Soup with Chipotle
• Instant Pot Cheesy Southwestern Lentils & Brown Rice

Wine Pairings for Lentil Soup with Sausage: 

• Medium-bodied, rustic wines like Chianti, Cotes du Rhone, and Sangiovese have earthy, spicy flavors that echo those in the Italian sausage and lentils.

Soup Recipes: 

• Smoky Chipotle Potato Cheese Soup
• Hungarian Mushroom Soup with Fresh Dill
• Slow Cooker Lentil Soup with Chipotle
• Easy Tomato Bisque
• Avgolemono Soup (Lemon Chicken Soup with Dill)

Lentil Soup with Sausage Recipe

Lentil Soup with Sausage and Kale

This hearty Lentil Soup with Sausage and Kale will warm you up and keep you wanting more!

3.84 from 12 votes

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Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 40 minutes

Total Time: 50 minutes

Servings: 6 people

Created by Platings and Pairings

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Ingredients

• 1 pound bulk mild Italian sausage1 pound bulk mild Italian sausage
• 1 medium onion (diced)1 medium onion (diced)
• 2 celery stalks (thinly sliced, with leafy tops)2 celery stalks (thinly sliced, with leafy tops)
• 2 cloves garlic (minced)2 cloves garlic (minced)
• 4 cups bone broth (or chicken stock)4 cups bone broth (or chicken stock)
• 2 cups dried lentils2 cups dried lentils
• 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
• 5 cups loosely packed baby kale leaves5 cups loosely packed baby kale leaves
• 2 teaspoons red wine vinegar2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
• Salt and pepper (to taste)Salt and pepper (to taste)
• ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley¼ cup chopped fresh parsley

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Instructions

• In a large Dutch oven or heavy pot, cook sausage over medium-high heat until the meat crumbles and begins to brown, about 5 minutes. Add onion, celery and garlic and cook until softened, about 5 minutes.
  
• Add stock, lentils, red pepper flakes and tomatoes and bring to a boil. Reduce to a rapid simmer, partially cover, and cook until lentils are tender, 30-35 minutes.
  
• Add kale and simmer, uncovered, until tender, 2-3 minutes, Stir in vinegar and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Sprinkle with chopped parsley before serving.
  

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Nutrition

Calories: 572kcal | Carbohydrates: 52g | Protein: 37g | Fat: 25g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Cholesterol: 57mg | Sodium: 846mg | Potassium: 1409mg | Fiber: 21g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 6033IU | Vitamin C: 89mg | Calcium: 190mg | Iron: 8mg