Instant Pot Spanish Lentil Soup (Lentejas)

I already blogged the Thermomix version of this Spanish Lentil Soup/Stew (Lentejas) recipe a few years ago (find it here). It's such a lovely dish. Simple yet comforting. Here it is now in Instant Pot Spanish Lentil Soup (Lentejas) recipe format!

If you want to keep it vegetarian or vegan, skip the chorizo of course, and increase the paprika a bit; also, make sure you use a good stock base like my Homemade Vegetable Stock Paste.

In the Instant Pot there are two ways of cooking this and they are going to depend on your time and energy. If you have a bit of extra time, it's worth sauteing the vegetables and the chorizo (if using) at the start. If you're short on time or just can't be bothered because you've had a tough day or a long week then skip that, add all the ingredients to the inner pot and skip straight to step 5.

For those of you with a Thermomix and an Instant Pot, this is one of those perfect collaborations: chop it all up quickly in Thermie, decant into the Instant Pot to cook, give the Thermie bowl a rinse and make yourself something nice for dessert, a treat to take into work or tomorrow's lunch!

Ready for the recipe?

Instant Pot Spanish Lentil Soup

Serves: 4-6 people

Ingredients

1 large onion or 2 small ones
3 garlic cloves
1 large carrot
1 red pepper

200 g potatoes, peeled weight

1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
100 g cooking chorizo (if you want to make it vegetarian or vegan, skip the chorizo and increase the paprika)

150 g chopped tomatoes
1 tablespoon sweet paprika (more if making it vegan)

300 g dried green lentils
1 bay leaf
1.3 litres of water, cold
1 tablespoon homemade vegetable stock paste (you can also use my gammon stock or chicken stock)

1 teaspoon salt (you can always adjust at the end)

Salt and pepper

The stick it all in, press a button and put your feet up option, also known as "stick it all in and skip to step 5"

Method

You have two options, the "stick it all in, press a button and put your feet up" option (in which case you can literally place all the ingredients in your Instant Pot and go directly to step 5) OR the Sauté option, in which case follow steps 1, 2, 3 and 5.

1. Chop onion and garlic. Dice carrot and pepper (in Thermie just chop onion garlic and carrot 5 seconds, speed 5, then add the pepper for 2 more seconds at speed 5). Reserve. Dice peeled potatoes. Reserve in a different bowl.

2. Press Sauté button (NO need to wait until the display says HOT), add the teaspoon of extra virgin olive oil, add chorizo and stir, let it sauté for approx. 2-3 minutes to release the juices.

3. Add onions, garlic, red pepper and sauté for about 5 minutes.

4.  Press Keep Warm/Cancel and add chopped tomatoes, paprika and potatoes, give it a stir and add the lentils, bay leaf, water, stock, salt and pepper (I use a few twists of the black pepper mill).

5. Lock the lid in. Steam release handle pointing to Sealing. Press Manual, use the - and + buttons to programme 5 minutes. Do a natural release at the end. You can let the rest of the steam out 8-10 minutes into the natural release or you can let it go to Keep Warm, you choose.

With lid just off after natural release

Note: you can bulk it up with more vegetables of course

Do please let me know if you try it!

After a quick stir to loosen it up

📖 Recipe

Instant Pot Spanish Lentil Soup

A delicious authentic Spanish soup, a staple in Spanish cuisine now made easier by pressure cooking it in your Instant Pot

5 from 5 votes

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Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Course Appetizer, Main Course

Cuisine Spanish

Equipment

• Instant Pot or pressure cooker

Ingredients

  

• 1 large onion or 2 small ones
• 3

  garlic cloves


• 1 large carrot
• 1 red pepper
• 200 g potatoes peeled weight
• 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
• 100 g cooking chorizo if you want to make it vegetarian or vegan, skip the chorizo and increase the paprika
• 150 g chopped tomatoes
• 1 tablespoon sweet paprika more if making it vegan
• 300 g

  dried green lentils


  
want to make it with dried red split lentils? Try this recipe instead

• 1 bay leaf
• 1.3 litres water from the cold tap
• 1 tablespoon homemade vegetable stock paste (you can also use my gammon stock or chicken stock)
• 1 teaspoon salt you can always adjust at the end
• Salt and pepper

Instructions

 

You have two options, the “stick it all in, press a button and put your feet up” option (in which case you can literally place all the ingredients in your Instant Pot and go directly to step 5) OR the Sauté option, in which case follow steps 1, 2, 3 and 5.

• Chop onion and garlic. Dice carrot and pepper (in Thermie just chop onion garlic and carrot 5 seconds, speed 5, then add the pepper for 2 more seconds at speed 5). Reserve. Dice peeled potatoes. Reserve in a different bowl.
  
• Press Sauté button (NO need to wait until the display says HOT), add the teaspoon of extra virgin olive oil, add chorizo and stir, let it sauté for approx. 2-3 minutes to release the juices.
• Add onions, garlic, red pepper and sauté for about 5 minutes.
• Press Keep Warm/Cancel and add chopped tomatoes, paprika and potatoes, give it a stir and add the lentils, bay leaf, water, stock, salt and pepper (I use a few twists of the black pepper mill).
• Lock the lid in. Steam release handle pointing to Sealing. Press Manual, use the – and + buttons to programme 5 minutes. Do a natural release* at the end. You can let the rest of the steam out 8-10 minutes into the natural release by turning the steam release handle from Sealing to Venting OR you can let it go to Keep Warm, you choose.
  

Notes

Note: you can bulk it up with more vegetables of course.

*Terminology

 

Quick release (also called quick pressure release or QPR) means venting the steam as soon as the pressure cooking process finishes, i.e. moving the steam release handle from Sealing to Venting.

 

Natural release (also called natural pressure release or NPR) means letting the float valve pop back down of its own accord, so basically you don’t need to do anything at the end and can keep your feet up. If it takes over 15 minutes, you're ok to release the rest of the steam (by turning the steam release handle to Venting) that may be left in order to unlock and open the lid. 

 

Sometimes you'll see me talk of a combination of NPR followed by a QPR. For example, a recipe can have a 4 minute NPR followed by a QPR. This means that you wait for 4 minutes at the end of the pressure cooking time and then do a QPR by moving the steam release handle from Sealing to Venting. 

Keyword lentils, soup, Spanish food

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