Lentils are cheap, tasty, nutritious and filling, and easy to find in shops. You can buy dried lentils (but mostly these are in plastic bags unless you live near a zero waste shop). But they are easy to find in tins. So if you have some cheap tins that you’ve bought and don’t know what to do with them, try these super-simple recipes.
This lentil stew (Running on Real Food) is ideal if you would normally eat chicken or turkey stew, and also freezes well if you live alone, or eat in small quantities. It’s filling and ideal on cold days, with crusty bread.
Before cooking, read our post on food safety for people and pets (many foods like salt, onion, garlic and mushrooms are unsafe near animal friends).
Just bin food scraps from alliums (onion, garlic, leeks, shallots, chives) along with citrus/rhubarb, as acids could harm compost creatures.
Lentils are very versatile. You can just throw them into pasta or rice dishes to add protein and calcium. Or you can blend them in stews and soups, or add to fresh salads, for a more filling lunch. Whatever the season, there is always something tasty to make with lovely lentils!
Although native to the Middle East, lentils are widely eaten in southern Europe, by people everywhere. It’s only in England that lentils are thought of solely as ‘vegan or vegetarian foods’. So push the boat out, and explore the world of lentils. You won’t regret it!
Even if you eat meat, all environmentalists say that there is not enough land in England for everyone to eat free-range. So if you don’t agree with factory-farming (and likely you don’t), then it pays to eat a few plant-based meals each week anyway. And lentils are a lovely place to start!
There are three main types of lentils:
- Red lentils are the easiest to cook, but tend to be less likely found in tins. So if buying from stores in plastic bags, you can recycle the packaging at supermarket bag bins, if your kerbside does not recycle. They take around 20 minutes to cook in water. They go quite mushy, and are nice in all recipes.
- Green and brown lentils are more ‘earthy’ in flavour. These take longer to cook, but are the best choice to replace meat in dishes like vegan shepherd or cottage pie, and hold up better if making lentil burgers.
- Black lentils are not so easy to find, but again are more dense in flavour.
Hearty Lentil Soup
This hearty lentil soup (The Simple Veganista) is packed with veggies, and much healthier than canned soup. Easy to make in one pot, you can create this recipe on the stove, or in a slow cooker or Instant Pot.
You can freeze leftover soup in SouperCubes (made from silicone, these are like big ice-cube trays, you just portion out leftovers, to pop out and reheat when you wish).
If you like making soup, invest in a stick blender, as it’s far less faff than washing up blenders. It’s UK law that if you buy a new electrical appliance, the shop has to recycle the old one for you.
Lentil Potato Soup
This lentil potato soup (Running on Real Food) is super-tasty and filling, yet also one of the cheapest dinners you could ever make. The lentils and spuds are cooked up in one pot with green veggies, in a curry broth.
Curried Lentils & Greens Soup
This curried lentils & greens soup (The Simple Veganista) ticks all the flavour boxes. Made with potatoes, carrots and green veggies, this soup is even better the next day (just keep leftovers in a covered container, in the fridge).
3-Ingredient Lentil Soup
This 3-ingredient lentil soup (GastroPlant) only needs lentils, garlic and miso (a salty Japanese broth that you can find in all grocery stores and health shops – avoid miso if pregnant/nursing as it’s unpasteurised, so try one of the other lentil recipes in this post.
The soup is tasty enough without avocado garnish (or just top with peas, a more local and ethical alternative – or just some chopped fresh parsley).
Chickpea Lentil Salad
Want extra protein and calcium? Then try this chickpea lentil salad (Running on Real Food). Drained canned chickpeas are also high in nutrients, and this is a high-nutrient salad, if ever there was one. Forget a plate of limp lettuce leaves, try this instead.
It contains artichokes and olives, but you can sub with capers or sun-dried tomatoes (you can also sub the chickpeas with canned white beans, if preferred).
Lentil Shepherd’s Pie
This lentil shepherd’s pie (Running on Real Food) subs the meat with lentils – more healthy and animal-kind!) You’ll never miss the meat with this hearty mushroom lentil filling, topped with creamy mashed spuds (Flora vegan butters are free from palm oil).
It’s ready in 1 hour, and leftovers keep in the fridge (in a covered container) for a short time. Of you can freeze the rest, to eat another day.
Recipe Break: Easy Red Lentil Soup
