Lentil soup in a jar with rice and deep, curry seasonings makes a great gift! It even comes with a free, printable recipe card.
I love giving (and receiving!) food gifts. You can't go wrong with tasty edibles, or mixes, and this layered lentil soup mix that I give out from time to time is always a big hit! Recipients often ask me for the recipe, so that they can make it again.
If you need more DIY food gift ideas, homemade ginger syrup is another popular one!
Table of Contents
Recipe notes
This recipe makes one jar of lentil soup mix, but if you're planning to make a lot of these, I recommend doing it assembly line style. Line up all of your ingredients and measuring cups around the table, so you can go from ingredient to ingredient.
Start by adding green lentils and all of your spices to the jar. You can use either powdered or cubed vegetable bouillon in this mix. If you do use cubes, just crumble them, so they'll blend in visually with the other dried spices.
Then, layer on jasmine or basmati rice, and top it off with red lentils.
The amount of red lentils you'll need is going to vary a bit. The key is to make sure that you pack the lentils into the jar tightly. The tighter you pack the jar, the better those pretty layers will hold up!
I'm also including a page of printable recipe cards that you can attach to your jars that tells your giftee how to make the mix. Be sure to print that out. Then, cut out the cards, punch a hole in the corner of a card, and tie it to the jar top with ribbon or twine.
To make the lentil soup
If you want to make this soup for yourself, put all of the jar mix ingredients into a bowl, so they're ready to add when it's time.
Saute onion in a little bit of oil until the onion starts to turn golden. Then, add water and the jar mix.
Simmer the mix with he pan covered until the lentils soften, then stir in a can of coconut milk. Season to taste with salt and lemon juice, and you're ready to dive into a cozy bowl of lentil soup!
Storage directions
The jar mix will keep for up to six months in the pantry.
Store prepared lentil soup in an airtight container in the refrigerator. It will keep for up to five days.
📖 Recipe
Lentil Soup Mix in a Jar
Equipment
- twine - optional
Ingredients
For the jar mix
- ½ cup green lentils
- 2 teaspoons powdered vegetable bouillon or 2 vegetable bouillon cubes, crumbled
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon yellow curry powder
- 2 teaspoons ground ginger
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper use ¼ teaspoon or omit for mild
- 1 cup jasmine or basmati rice
- ¼ cup red lentils approximate - top the jar off with the red lentils, packing them down well
For the soup
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 small onion sliced thin
- 8 cups water
- 15 ounce can coconut milk
- salt and lemon juice to taste
Instructions
Make the jar mix
- Add the green lentils to a pint jar, then add the spices and smooth them out. Pour in the rice, and then top the jar off with red lentils. Make sure that you pack the jar tightly, so the pretty layers stay intact!
- Print out the lentil soup recipe card page onto cardstock, cut it up, punch holes, and tie one recipe to each jar with twine.
Make the soup
- Heat the olive oil in a large pot on medium heat. Add the onion and a pinch of salt. Cook for 8-12 minutes, until the onions start to turn golden.
- Add the water and soup mix to the pot, and bring to a simmer. Turn down to low, and cook, covered, until the lentils and rice are cooked and very soft (about 45 minutes).
- Add the coconut milk, and heat it through. Add salt to taste, and serve. Enjoy!
Video
📝 Notes
Nutrition
Frequently asked questions
You don't! One of the reasons that lentils work well for soup mixes like this is that they cook up relatively quickly without needing to soak.
Yeah, it is! Lentils are packed with protein and fiber, and this soup is packed with lentils.
Rice and lentils are a great combination, especially with cozy, warming seasonings like ginger and curry powder.
Nonnie
I’m thinking of adding dried minced onion so the recipient doesnt have to sauté onion. Will the liquid in the recipe be enough to absorb the minced onion?
Becky Striepe
Great idea! It should be fine, but you can always have them add a splash of water or broth, if the pan starts to dry out.
Christine
My broth cubes are Edward &Sons garden veggie cubes. It says the serving is 1/2 cube (5.25g) to 1 cup water, do I still need 2 cubes? Which by their guideline would be enough for 4 cups water?
Thank you so much for the printable recipe cards! I’m making this today for my neighbors.
Becky Striepe
Yes, I use the same cubes. The extra cube gives is so much flavor! :)
Irene Kim
Can I substitute half of the rice with quinoa for the other half? Rice and and quinoa have the same water ratio so I am thinking yes… so excited to make this as Xmas gifts this year, and go try the recipe myself!
Becky Striepe
Yes, that should work fine! What a fun idea!
Melissa
Hi how many does one jar serve please?
Becky Striepe
I'd say 2-3 servings.
Michelle
If I were to just use curry powder how much powder would I use?
Becky Striepe
I'd use 2-3 teaspoons per jar.
Sheila
You can ignore my curry question — thought it was it's own spice. You learn something new every day! I had no clue it was a combination of spices. Was never a big fan, but now I have to try because my son LOVES it!
Becky Striepe
I hope he loves it as much as my family does, Sheila!
Sheila
There is no curry in this recipe. I thought it was "Curried Lentil Soup"?
kathy stahl
what size can coconut milk?
Becky Striepe
15 ounce!
Elizabeth
Thank you for recipe. How many servings does the soup recipe make?
Becky Striepe
Ooh good question. It makes 4 servings. Enjoy it!
Susan
Cannot locate the lentil soup recipie card. Anyone know instructions
Becky Striepe
Hey Susan! Is this link not working? I made some back-end changes, so if you can't download from here, I need to figure out how to fix that for sure! Thank you for the comment, so we can troubleshoot this! https://www.glueandglitter.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Lentil-Soup-Mix-Recipe-Card.pdf
Cadry's Kitchen
I love this idea! Lentil soup is so delicious and easy. Plus, it's nice to see an idea that's savory instead of sweet for holiday gift-giving!
Becky Striepe
Thank you!
Abby Cohen
You must be reading my mind! I have been wanting to give healthy edible gifts, and have been looking at the soup-in-a-jar recipes on line but not seeing anything I really liked.
Becky Striepe
I'm so glad I could help, Abby!
heidikerr
My friends are health nuts and also really into homemade gifts. I think this will be perfect. Also, I have all of the ingredients in my pantry. Score!
Becky Striepe
Awesome! Happy gifting! :)
Jes
I really wish I'd had the time to whip up edible gifts this year--definitely bookmarking for next!
Becky Striepe
I hear ya! I made way fewer gifts this year than last. 2012 has been a busy one!!
AdamK
I'm a huge fan of lentil soup..but I dont recognize this variant. I am skeptical but willing!
Becky Striepe
Let me know how you like it! I love Indian spices in anything, especially lentils!
Andrea
I like this clever idea. The jars would make a great hostess gift as well as a holiday gift.
Becky Striepe
Thanks, Andrea! I love the idea of giving them as hostess gifts!