Canning Lentil Soup

If you love lentils, this recipe for canning lentil soup is perfect, and creates a delicious soup your whole family will love. I love that this vegetarian recipe is so easy, and creates homemade food that’s convenient and ready to use at a moment’s notice.

One of my favorite things to do in the winter is get my pantry shelves all filled up with homemade convenience meals.

During hunting season, I can a lot of deer meat, made into pot roast, or meat balls or patties. This is also a good time to clean out the freezer and can meat that’s been in there a while.

I also like to make a variety of soups, and that’s what I’ve been focusing a lot on this winter. We basically survived on home-canned chicken soup earlier this winter when our whole family came down with the flu, and as the mom and head cook of the family, I really appreciate being able to pop a can, and deliver a home-cooked meal in literally seconds.

This recipe for canning lentil soup is another tool in the arsenal of instant meal variety.

Ingredients for canning lentil soup

It always amazes me how basic ingredients from the pantry can come together to make a delicious meal like this – and in this case, with the added bonus of being canned and ready to use on busy days.

• Onion
• Celery
• Carrots
• Garlic
• Lentils
• Diced tomatoes – fresh or canned/cooked, your choice.
• Italian Seasoning
• Broth
• Black pepper
• Salt

You can adjust the amounts of these ingredients to your liking, with the exception of salt. One key to safe canning is salt. This acts as a preservative in your canning recipe, and you need to be sure to use the correct amount, which is defined in the recipe card below.

Does lentil soup need to be pressure canned?

Yes. As a low acid, and fairly dense food, lentils do require pressure canning to ensure that they are preserved well.

While many “rebel canners” and certain sects of Amish water bath can things that the USDA wouldn’t recommend canning, it’s important to know that this can lead to a much higher percentage of food spoilage, and in my mind, isn’t worth the risk. I don’t know about you, but completely aside from the risk of potentially consuming spoiled food, I’m not a fan of my hard work going to waste!

Pressure canning achieves higher temperatures, making it much easier for adequate heat to reach the center of your jars, preserving the food. And it does it all in much less time.

If pressure canning concerns you, be reassured that modern pressure canners are quite safe, being equipped with weighted gauges, and safety valves. Your main concern is no longer exploding canners, but safely handling hot jars if or when you need to remove them from the canner before they cool.

There are a variety of canners you can choose from, and none of them are the wrong choice, but I like these simple Presto or Mirro canners, because they’re so simple to use.

What kind of jars and lids should I use to can lentil soup?

I find that I use fairly small amounts of lentil soup, so I can it in pint jars. That said, the brand of jar is fairly unimportant, as long as it’s a brand meant for pressure canning. Canning jars have thicker walls than generic jars you might have bought filled with mayonnaise, etc. While these kinds of jars can be great for water bath canning, mason jars handle heat better, and are less prone to breakage.

My pantry is full of a mix of Golden Harvest, Ball, Kerr, and other brands.

For lids, I prefer Denali canning lids. They have a money back guarantee if they don’t seal, and I haven’t had one fail yet. Usually, if I buy new jars that come with lids, I use those, and then for subsequent uses, switch to Denali, which I order in bulk.

How to can lentil soup

1. Wash and sterilize canning jars and lids
2. Gather and prepare ingredients.
3. For the vegetables, wash, dice, etc.
4. In a pint jar layer ingredients, starting with 1/2 cup of dry lentils per pint jar, then divide onion, celery, carrots, garlic, and diced tomatoes between jars
   
5. To each pint jar, add 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, 1/4 teaspoon Italian seasoning, and 1/2 teaspoon of salt
   
6. Fill each jar with vegetable broth, chicken broth, or water, leaving 3/4 inch of headspace. 
7. Remove any debris from the rim of the jar with a soft cloth. You can use a damp paper towel to do this, or a microfiber cloth also works well.
8. Screw down lids and rings on top of the jar firmly
9. Prepare pressure canner according to your individual canner’s instructions. This usually means adding 2 quarts of water to the bottom of a 16 quart canner. Be sure to put the inner rack into the bottom of your canner!
10. Add jars to canner, arranging jars so that they do not touch each other, or the sides of the canner, which will increase the risk of breakfast (they may be very close, but just not touching).
    
11. Fix lid to canner, with steam valve open
12. Heat over medium-high heat, until a steady stream of steam begins to escape. Set timer for 10 minutes
13. At the end of the timer, close pressure valve. Bring canner to 10lbs of pressure at sea level, or adjust for your elevation using this chart.
14. Set timer for 65 minutes (for pints), or 90 minutes (for quarts)
15. Remove from heat and let canner return to zero pressure before opening.
16. At this point, it is best to connote letting the canner cool naturally. If, however, you need to use the canner again before it’s cool, protect jars from drafts as you open the canner, and remove them. This can be done by shielding them with a towel as you move each individual jar to a towel-lined surface, and cover them with towels as they continue to cool once removed.
17. After 24 hours, check for seal, wash jars if needed (mine always have heavy hard water staining), and store in a cool place out of direct light.

How to use home-canned lentil soup

Pour contents of jar into a saucepan, and heat to a simmer. Let simmer several minutes, and use as desired.

This soup is an excellent, thrifty way to add protein to other soups and casseroles.

More canning recipes for you

• Canning split pea soup
• Canning Butternut Squash
• How to can vegetable soup
• Canning chili
• Canning ham and bean soup

 

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