Lentils are pulse-type alongside Field peas, beans, and chickpeas. They come in various types and sizes. The most common lentils you can find in grocery stores are the green and red lentils. In most of the lentil salad recipes below, there was the use of uncommon brown lentils instead. These recipes gets ready in few minutes . They have an awesomely pleasant taste aside its wonderful flavour. Some of the ingredients used include garlic, parsley, tomatoes, oregano, dill, vinegar, scallions, sunflower seeds, Dijon mustard, lemon, honey, walnut and many more. Lentil salad recipes do not need a lot of kitchen equipment. All you need is a saucepan, pot, sieve and colander.
Lentil Salad Recipes
1. Marinated Salad Recipes
Marinated salad recipe Is tasty and flavoured with garlic and lemon, which makes it good.
Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Serves: 6
Ingredients
Dressing
- ¼ cup of olive oil
- ½ teaspoon of salt
- 1 lemon
- 2 garlic cloves
- ½ tablespoon of dried oregano
- Freshly cracked pepper
Salad
- 1 pint of grape tomatoes
- 2 oz of crumbled feta
- ½ bunch of parsley
- 1 cup of dry brown lentils
- ¼ small red onion
Preparation
- First, cook lentils as directed on its package. Pour 3 cups of water in a large pot and bring to a boil.
- When it gets hot, add lentils and boil for 20 minutes or until they become tender.
- Use a colander to drain water and set it aside to cool.
- Then, prepare your lemon garlic dressing. Use a small holed cheese grater to remove a tablespoon of lemon zest.
- Now, set aside the zest and remove about ¼ cup of juice from the lemon.
- Put minced garlic, oregano, lemon juice, olive oil, and freshly cracked pepper in a small bowl and whisk them together
- Next, wash your parsley leaves and chop them roughly. Also, cut your grape tomatoes into half and dice red onions finely.
- When your lentil has been drained well and cooled, add lemon zest, crumbled feta, chopped parsley, tomatoes, red onion and dressing.
- Stir well to combine ingredient, and dressing.
- Lastly, please keep it in the refrigerator until you want to eat it (stir before serving each time you bring it out of the refrigerator). You can also serve immediately.
Nutritional Facts
Fat 11.7g; Carbohydrate 26g; Protein 10.03g; calories 238kcal.
2. Lentil Salad with Tomato and Dill
Lentil salad with tomato and dill is easy and quick to prepare.
Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 35 minutes
Serves: 4 – 6
Ingredients
- 4 large scallions
- 1 teaspoon of salt
- ¼ cup of thinly sliced fresh basil
- 1 large garlic clove
- ¼ cup of thinly sliced fresh dill
- 1 cup of dried lentils
- 2 cups of diced tomatoes
- ¼ teaspoon of black pepper
- 3 tablespoons of red wine vinegar
- ¼ cup of extra virgin olive oil
Preparation
- First, add 4 cups of water in a 2-quart saucepan and boil.
- Then, add lentils, ½ teaspoon of salt, garlic. Remove lid and reduce heat for 25 minutes until lentils are tender.
- When they are soft, use a sieve to drain the water and transfer to a large bowl.
- Now, add tomatoes, basil, scallions, pepper, vinegar, dill, oil and ½ teaspoon of salt.
- Toss to combine well and serve immediately or store in the refrigerator until you want to eat it.
Nutritional Facts
Fat 10.3g; Carbohydrate 11.3g; Protein 4.5g; calories 150kcal.
3. Quinoa Lentil Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette
This wonderful recipe has a lot of fibre and protein; it is healthy and has a lot of goodness.
Preparation Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes
Serves: 4
Ingredients
- ½ cup of diced carrot
- ¼ cup of grape tomatoes
- ½ cup of cooked quinoa
- ¼ cup of cucumber
- ½ cup of cooked lentils
- ¼ cup of kale
- 1 tablespoon of finely diced red onion
- ¼ cup of cooked garbanzo beans
- ½ tablespoon of raw sunflower seeds
- 1/8 teaspoon of ground black pepper
- 3 tablespoons of olive oil
- ½ teaspoon of lemon zest
- ¼ teaspoon of sea salt
- 2 tablespoons of raw honey
- ½ teaspoon of Dijon mustard
- 2 tablespoons of freshly squeezed lemon juice
Preparation
- First, cook your quinoa and lentils. Put lentils and quinoa in separate pots of boiling water and let it cook for about a few minutes.
- Then, to prepare your kale, remove its leaves from the spine and cut kale into bite sizes.
- Next, rub little olive oil all over your kale and toss until kale becomes less stiff. Keep that aside and make your lemon vinaigrette
- Mix raw honey, lemon zest, sea salt, ground black pepper, olive oil, lemon juice, Dijon mustard in a small bowl. Whisk all ingredients together to mix well.
- To make it into a salad by combining, cooked quinoa and lentils, diced cucumber, quartered grape tomatoes, kale, garbanzo beans, diced red onion, diced carrot, sunflower seeds in a large bowl and toss.
- Add little lemon vinaigrette over the top, toss it and sprinkle more sunflower seeds. Serve.
Nutritional Facts
Fat 20.1g; Carbohydrate 41.2g; Protein 15.8g; calories 425kcal.
4. Lentil Salad with Feta Cheese
Lentil salad with feta cheese is filling. Addition of feta cheese and celery gives the salad a nice texture.
Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes
Serves: 4
Ingredients
- ¼ teaspoon of salt
- 1 garlic clove
- ½ teaspoon of dried thyme
- 1 ½ cups of quartered cherry
- 3 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice
- 1 ¼ cups of dried lentils
- 13 teaspoons of coarsely ground pepper
- 1 cup of diced cucumber
- ½ cup of crumbled feta cheese
- Romaine lettuce leaves
- 1/3 cup of thinly sliced celery
Preparation
- First, place lentil in a large saucepan, add enough water to cover it slightly and boil for 20 minutes under reduced heat.
- Then drain lentils well and set aside.
- Now, combine lemon juice, olive oil, dried thyme, salt, garlic and ground pepper in a medium-sized bowl. Use a wire whisk to mix until it is well mixed.
- Next, add cheese, cucumber, lentils, tomatoes and celery to lemon juice mixture
- Mix them well and serve. (you can serve on a lettuce-lined plate)
Nutritional Facts
Fat 8.9g; Carbohydrate 40.5g; Protein 19.8g; calories 309kcal.
5. Walnut Lentil Salad
This recipe is delicious and colourful. You can serve with roast pork loin or chicken.
Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 0 minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes
Serves: 6
Ingredients
- 2 spring onions
- 150g of reduced-fat feta cheese
- 2 tablespoons of chopped walnuts
- 400g can brown lentils
- Half cup of low-fat Italian salad dressing
- ½ clove of garlic
- 1 punned cherry tomatoes
- A bunch of English spinach leaves
Preparation
- First, wash your lentils, chop onions, mince garlic.
- Then, combine lentils, onion, garlic, feta cheese, and spinach in a large mixing bowl.
- Add tomatoes, walnuts and salad dressing.
- You can prepare your dressing by mixing lemon juice with a tablespoon of olive oil and Dijon mustard.
- After mixing lentils with dressing, serve immediately or refrigerate.
Nutritional Facts
Fat 6.1g; Carbohydrate 4.9g; Protein 11.2g; calories 345kcal.
6. Lentil Salad and Baby Lettuce
Lentil salad with baby lettuce is amazingly crunchy.
Preparation Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes
Serves: 4
Ingredients
- 2 finely chopped carrots
- ½ finely chopped medium onion
- 1 cup of brown lentils
- 2 garlic cloves
- 3 tablespoons of red wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon of Dijon mustard
- 3 tablespoons of olive oil
- 6 cups of baby lettuce
- Salt and ground pepper
Preparation
- First, put 4 cups of water in a medium saucepan and add lentils.
- Boil over low heat for 10 minutes and drain well.
- Then, add onion and carrots to skillet. Cook and stir for 20 minutes.
- When it is fragrant, add garlic and cook for 2 minutes.
- Now, add vinegar, Dijon and oil into a medium bowl. Add salt and pepper to taste
- Then, combine baby lettuce and 1/3 of the dressing into another bowl.
- Next, add lentils and onion mixture to the bowl with remaining dressing.
- Toss to combine, divide among salad bowls, add lentil salad and serve.
Nutritional Facts
Fat 18.0g; Carbohydrate 18.5g; Protein 8.4g; calories 260kcal.
To store cooked lentils, you can keep them in the refrigerator for a week and used within 3 months. Ensure that you store prepared lentils in an airtight plastic bag or container before putting in the refrigerator. On the other hand, you can keep dry or canned lentils in a cupboard or on a shelf for about a year. It should be a dark, cool and dry place. Although after a year, lentil cook time will increase and you will also reduce its quality. More so, refrigerating lentil salad recipes brings out the in it. Try something new and healthy.