Cook Your Meatless Monday Dinner on the Cheap With These 15 Lentil Recipes (2024)

FAQs

Can lentils replace meat? ›

Lentils can be used pretty much anywhere you'd use crumbled cooked ground beef. Try them in burgers, meatballs, meatloaf, sloppy Joes, tacos, burritos, marinara sauce (for a quick, meatless Bolognese), shepherd's pie, or stuffed peppers.

The technique is simple: Treat your lentils with the same care you would minced meat. Sauté them in your cooking oil of choice for a few minutes over medium heat (usually extra virgin olive oil for us), season them with your spices, and add two cups of liquid for every cup of lentils (ideally vegetable stock).

By mixing raw ground meat with cooked lentils in a ratio of 3:1 or 2:1, you can boost your dish's protein, iron, fiber and folate content. Lentils can also be pureed or pulsed in a food processor to act as a binder, in place of egg or breadcrumbs.

Lentil stew: You can substitute chickpeas, black beans, or kidney beans for the lentils in lentil stew. Lentil salad: You can substitute black beans, pinto beans, or kidney beans for the lentils in lentil salad.

Lentils have plenty of folate, iron and vitamin B1, which also support your heart health. Lentils may be associated with a lower risk of heart disease, by lowering bad cholesterol and blood pressure. One study found that eating lentils led to greater reductions in blood pressure than eating chickpeas, peas or beans.

9. Lentils: Their detox properties are not the best thing about this particular legume. They normalize the blood sugars, protect against the cancer and also cleanses your liver to make you healthy.

Think more like you're cooking pasta- you just need significantly more water than lentils. You can also use broth instead of adding an extra layer of flavor. I like adding a bay leaf, an onion cut in half, and a clove of garlic to add flavor to the lentils.

Lentils to do not require soaking like other pulses. Rinse your lentils with fresh water before boiling to remove any dust or debris. Cook on a stovetop, using 3 cups of liquid (water, stock, etc) to 1 cup of dry lentils. Be sure to use a large enough saucepan as the lentils will double or triple in size.

Lentils do not require it but can be soaked in order to reduce cooking time by about half. Before cooking, rinse lentils in cold water, pick over to remove debris or shrivelled lentils, then drain.

As a general rule, one cup of dried lentils yields two to two-and-a-half cups of cooked lentils. Because of their rather delicate, earthy flavor, lentils work well in a variety of dishes and in almost any type of cuisine.

Are lentils cheaper than meat? ›

Having a meatless meal occasionally is good for your pocket book as they tend to be less expensive than some cuts of meat. Legumes are a class of vegetable that include beans, peas and lentils. They are typically low in fat, contain no cholesterol, and are high in protein, folate, potassium, iron and magnesium.

Cooking lentils is easy as remembering 1:2. For every one cup of dry lentils, you need two cups of cooking liquid. After that, it's just simmering until tender. Setting a timer and checking on your lentils will be important because lentils can get mushy quickly and there's not nothing worse than that!

If you have a few root vegetables hanging out in your fridge, those are also great with lentils, like in this warm lentil and root vegetable salad with parsnips and carrots. Lentils are particularly nice with cheese, as in this grilled halloumi and lentil salad.

ENJOY HERBS & SPICES

Carom seeds, fennel seeds, turmeric and peppermint are other great digestive aids. Cooking beans with a large strip of dried kombu, a Japanese dried kelp, may minimise their gas-producing properties too.

Lentils are great in soups, as an addition to salads, and as a vegetarian protein source in recipes traditionally made with meat. Similar to rice, lentils take on whatever flavors you add to the pot. Instead of plain water, cook lentils in a broth or stock.

LENTILS: 1.5 cups = 27g protein

A mere 1.5 cups of lentils contains just as much protein as a 3 oz chicken breast, but lentils contain the dietary fiber, copper, phosphorus, and manganese that you can't get from meat.

Lentils are often overlooked, even though they're an inexpensive way of getting a wide variety of nutrients. For example, they're packed with B vitamins, magnesium, zinc, and potassium. Lentils are made up of more than 25% protein, which makes them an excellent meat alternative.

Are Lentils a complete protein? No. According to the Cleveland Clinic, you should try to eat a variety of legumes, nuts, seeds and whole grains each day, which will allow you to get all the essential amino acids. All together, these equal complete proteins.

Lentils add essential vitamins, minerals, and fiber to the diet. They also provide protein and are an excellent replacement for meat in meals.