Sausage Lentil Soup with Kale
30 minutes and 11 simple ingredients is all it takes to get this sausage lentil soup on the dinner table at the end of a long day. Loaded with hearty, healthy, turkey sausage, lentils AND kale – this lentil soup tastes indulgent but will fuel you through til bedtime!
Why you’re going to love this sausage kale soup:
- The ingredient list is short and sweet and best of all – made up of simple items. Most of them are pantry staples that you might already have on hand!
- It tastes indulgent, but it’s loaded with healthy ingredients. Turkey sausage, lentils and kale make up the heartiness of this soup, giving it tons of protein and fiber. But a splash of heavy cream transforms this lentil soup into a comforting bowl of delicious that will warm you from the inside out.
- It’s a great meal prep recipe! Meal prep doesn’t have to be bland chicken breast and broccoli. This soup can be your healthy work lunch for the week or dinner for the family for a couple nights. The flavors just get better with time and the broth makes it super quick to reheat! Make this soup and this easy Arugula & Goat Cheese Salad and you’ve got lunch and dinner covered for the week!
How to make sausage lentil soup:
Saute onion in a dutch oven or large pot for about 4 minutes. Add garlic and saute for another minute.
Add turkey sausage, thyme and oregano to the pot. Use a wooden spoon or spatula to crumble it as it browns.
Add diced tomatoes.
Then add lentils.
Pour in chicken broth along with another pinch of salt and pepper.
Cover pot, turn heat up to medium high and just to bring things to a simmer.
Turn heat to low and simmer for 5 minutes or until lentils are cooked through. Add kale.
Stir until the kale has wilted into the soup.
Remove from heat and stir in cream.
Season to taste with salt and pepper. Garnish with shredded Parmesan and enjoy!
And if you’re looking for a carb-loaded accompaniment, my Herb & Tomato Focaccia is REAAAAAALLY yummy dipped in a big warm bowl of this soup!
Tips for making the best sausage kale soup:
- Use your family’s favorite sausage. We like spicy turkey sausage in our family. But if you prefer a more mild flavor, the Italian turkey sausage is going to give you the same flavors. Regular pork sausage would work well in this recipe also!
- If you don’t have a dutch oven yet, soup season is reason enough to invest in one! You don’t have to spend tons of money or get a giant one – this is my fave and the one I use for all my soup recipes. The best part is that you can cover the pot with the heavy lid and store leftovers in the fridge so you’ve got a meal prepped and ready to go for the week!
- Be sure to season leftover sausage lentil soup to taste with salt and pepper after reheating. As this soup sits the flavors will marry and salt and pepper will go a long way to boosting those flavors.
Serve this lentil soup with:
- A little something crunchy like these super quick and easy crostinis. You won’t regret this crunchy addition to a bowl of warm soup!
- Or start the meal with my Roasted Garlic & Tomato Goat Cheese Dip.
- My personal all time favorite thing to serve with this soup is my Easy Baked Pecan Crusted Goat Cheese Salad.
Try these easy soup recipes next!
Did you love this recipe?
Please leave a 5-star rating and review below!
Spicy Sausage, Lentil and Kale Soup
This is the best sausage and kale soup ever! Loaded with the healthy goodness of lentils and just the right amount of spice.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 8 servings 1x
- Category: Soup
- Method: Stove Top
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 6 cloves garlic, minced
- 19.5 oz. ground spicy turkey sausage (mild or Italian works too)
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 (15 oz.) can diced tomatoes
- 1 cup uncooked split red lentils
- 6 cups chicken broth
- 5 heaping cups chopped kale
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- Kosher salt
- fresh cracked pepper
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat.
- Add onion along with a pinch of salt and pepper and cook, stirring frequently for about 4 minutes.
- Add garlic and saute 1 minute, stirring frequently.
- Add turkey sausage, thyme and oregano to the pot.
- Use a wooden spoon or spatula to crumble it as it browns.
- Add diced tomatoes, lentils and chicken broth along with another pinch of salt and pepper.
- Cover pot, turn heat up to medium high and just to bring things to a simmer.
- Turn heat to low and simmer for 5 minutes or until split lentils are cooked through.
- Stir in kale.
- Remove from heat and stir in cream.
- Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Nutrition
- Serving Size:
- Calories: 215
- Sugar: 3.5 g
- Sodium: 191.4 mg
- Fat: 9.2 g
- Saturated Fat: 4.2 g
- Trans Fat: 0.2 g
- Carbohydrates: 24.3 g
- Fiber: 3.9 g
- Protein: 11.7 g
- Cholesterol: 19.5 mg
This post was originally published in April of 2018. It was updated in September of 2019 to include process shots, step-by-step instructions and tips for making the best lentil soup ever single time!
I’ve made this soup more often than any other this past winter. It’s SO GOOD and SO EASY and I usually have all the ingredients on hand. Shared the recipe with my mom, and she shared the soup with her neighbors and they all loved it too!! Thanks again for the recipe!
Will this cook about the same if I throw it all in a crockpot? I’d leave the kale out till the last hour.
I would guess 2-3 hours on high or 4-5 hours on low and then stir in the kale. I haven’t tried it before but I can’t wait to hear how it goes if you give it a try!
I made this tonight for dinner and it was so yummy my whole family loved it! I am thinking about doubling the recipe and making it for my church luncheon. I did add carrots and celery just to use up what I needed in the refrigerator. Thank you so much for this recipe I will definitely be making this often.
great recipe!! i’ve made it a few times for meal prep. Love that it’s an easy clean up since it’s a 1 pot soup haha.
One pot soups are the best! Great idea prepping a big batch for meals throughout the week. Thanks so much for leaving a review – I really appreciate it 🙂
Every single member loved this! I had to sub smoked sausage for the turkey sausage and Italian seasoning for the thyme and this turned out super well. Also omitted the cream for my husband who has an aversion to creamy things but I personally think it would have added tons of body. We paired it with multigrain rolls and it was gone in seconds. Can’t wait for the leftovers!
My new favorite soup!!!
I made this tonight for myself, my husband, my 15 year old and my 11 year old…. it was a hit!! They inhaled it. I will be saving this recipe for sure. A one pot wonder! ❤️ Thanks for the recipe.
I am SO glad to hear that, Jessica!! I could not agree more – this really is a one pot wonder 🙂 Thanks for leaving a review – I really appreciate it!
Oh my! This was so darn good. I am not a cook. I make about 5 or 6 things well and they are in heavy rotation. So I was skeptical that I could make this. But with kale wilting away in the fridge and left over Italian sausage my husband had from another recipe, I decided to gave it a try. (I even sent him out with the kids to get burgers because I figured we’d need a back up when I failed this recipe).
But this was so darn easy to make and oh so very good! We both ate this instead of the burgers. Also agreed, this is so good even without adding the heavy cream. I happened to have some on hand, but it would have been equally as good without it.
Thank you for this recipe, it will be in my rotation now. I had to come back to subscribe to your blog and tell you thank you! C from No.VA
I am SO glad to hear that you enjoyed this recipe! And that your husband did as well!! Thank you for coming back to the blog to leave a review – I really appreciate it 🙂
Does this freeze well?
Yes! Great question! The lentils do get a tad mushy when re-heating after frozen but it just makes for a thicker, creamier soup. Hope that helps 🙂
I make a lot of soup, and this was AMAZING!! I added carrots, celery, and a dried chili for some heat.
I am so glad to hear that, Kimberly! I am anxiously awaiting to first signs of Fall here in Wisconsin so I can dive into all my favorite soup recipes – this soup is at the top of my list to make! Thanks so much for leaving a review!
I finally made this and it is so good! I am mostly plant-based, so I used Tofurky sausage, vegan chicken broth and left out the cream (I could have used coconut milk, but I didn’t need it.) Will definitely make this again! Thanks for sharing!
What a great idea Mishael! Those are great switches to make this soup vegan! I am so glad that you enjoyed it. Thanks for leaving a review 🙂
I am so ready for soup season. We are in central Indiana and still in the 80s with the nights finally starting to cool down. Saving this for when it finally feels like fall.
I could not agree more!! Bring on all the soups!!