Growing up, it was always a treat when tacos were on the dinner menu. Seems like most kids can’t get enough of them! Since I’ve become an adult, I must admit I’ve tended more towards the enchilada or tostada when I’m in the mood for some Mexican-inspired fare. But when I was recently craving the spicy goodness that is the taco, I remembered a great recipe we tried out several years ago using lentils.
We dusted it off, made a few tweaks, and ended up with a marvelous and simple meatless meal! It’s surprising how satisfying the lentils are (even when expecting the traditional ground beef), and how much the homemade seasonings enhance the flavor. Alex actually admitted to liking them more than their meat-filled counterpart (which is saying something since though he eats mainly meatless these days, he’s still very much a meat-lover at heart).
Give them a try – they’re simple enough to prepare for a weeknight meal, but special enough to have everyone looking forward to Taco Night!
- 1¼ cups brown lentils (8 ounces)
- 3½ tablespoons homemade taco seasoning mix
- 1 red onion
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1½ tablespoons ketchup
- 8 to 12 whole grain or corn tortillas
- Toppings of your choice: Lettuce, fresh tomatoes, shredded cheese, salsa, sour cream
- In a medium sauce pan, bring 1¾ cups salted water to a boil. Add 1¼ cup lentils, cover, and reduce heat. Simmer covered for about 20 to 25 minutes, until most of the water has been absorbed.
- Mix the taco seasonings. Wash and chop the lettuce and fresh tomatoes, if using.
- Finely dice 1 red onion and 2 garlic cloves. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a skillet; add red onion and sauté for about 3 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté for about 1 minute more.
- Turn off the heat and add the lentils. Stir in 3½ tablespoons of taco seasoning mix and 1½ tablespoons ketchup. Add more seasoning if desired.
- To serve, add lentils to a warmed tortilla and top with lettuce, tomatoes, shredded cheese, salsa, and sour cream. Fold and enjoy!
33 Comments
Zarah
July 12, 2011 at 2:56 am*stuffs recipe into the “have-to-try-or-I-might-explode-pile* :D
Lindsay @ Pinch of Yum
July 12, 2011 at 7:46 amI’m not only excited about the lentil tacos here (as I have had some lentils sitting around for a LONG time with no ideas in mind), but I’m almost more excited about the homemade taco seasoning! Yess!
Jessica
July 12, 2011 at 2:57 pmI didn’t see the recipe for the homemade taco seasoning. Can you please post it or send it to me? Thanks.
Alex
July 12, 2011 at 2:58 pmYou can find it right here: http://www.acouplecooks.com/2011/07/homemade-taco-seasoning/
Heidi @ Food Doodles
July 12, 2011 at 7:51 pmYum! I’ve seen roasted chickpeas in tacos but these look awesome too! Love using lentils but I never would have thought to put them in tacos. Awesome!
torviewtoronto
July 13, 2011 at 4:04 pmyummy looking tacos
JD Schuyler
July 13, 2011 at 6:23 pmThis is awesome!! I was just telling Jason how lentils are my new food that I’m cooking with. I’m off to guy buy some corn tortillas now. Thanks guy
sheila @ Elements
July 16, 2011 at 3:16 pmWhat a great idea! They look scrumptious! I’ll definitely try it!!! Thanks so much for sharing the recipe! :)
Melissa
July 19, 2011 at 12:53 amI made these tacos tonight and they were DELISH! Using the lentils was such a wonderful change from the norm. My family loved it. It will be our go to filling for taco nights. A huge thank you from our family to yours for a great recipe.
Alex
July 19, 2011 at 9:25 amYou’re welcome! We’re so glad you enjoyed them. They really might be tastier than ground beef – who knew?
janet
July 19, 2011 at 8:47 pmLove this! I’ve done something similar with chickpeas in a burrito.. yum!
Alycia Freimund
July 22, 2011 at 10:10 pmYUMMY. I made these and they were so good. I was out of taco seasoning so I used your receipe for that also. These were a little too spicy for the kids but my hubby and I loved them. I’m also linking this post within my menu monday blog. Thanks for a great recipe.
Sonja
July 23, 2011 at 8:11 pmI’m so glad you liked them! It’s great to know others enjoy a recipe too — thanks for sharing! :)
Kirstin
July 25, 2011 at 6:13 pmYum! I made lentil sloppy joes a few months ago! They were really, really good!
Nisha
August 9, 2011 at 1:42 amWe LOVE Lentil Tacos at our house. We’ve been using this recipe from Heather at Healthy Mom’s Kitchen. Homemade taco seasoning is so much better than store bought for sure!!
The Iowa Farmer's Wife
August 9, 2011 at 9:30 pmMade these tonight! Was looking for a lentil taco recipe and yours came up! I had leftover lentils so I prepared them a bit differently, but so yummy!
Emily Bradley
February 6, 2012 at 9:35 pmI just made these, and although I was hopeful they’d be good, I wasn’t expecting that much. Wow was I surprised! These are really fantastic and quite honestly made my former weeknight chicken taco recipe pale in comparison.
One thing I’m curious about: do you think the lentil mixture would freeze well? I’ve frozen lentil dishes of similar consistency (daal, stew-like soups, etc.) with great success, but I was wondering anyone had success freezing leftovers for this recipe.
Thanks for the great recipe!
Wendy
February 20, 2012 at 7:50 pmI just made these in hard taco shells. They’re great that way, too!
Sonja in Texas
May 2, 2012 at 5:08 pmHi, from another Sonja! Had to write and tell you how much we enjoyed this dish. Made them this afternoon for lunch. My taco was on corn tortilla and hubby had his on flour ones. Both were delicious. We topped the tacos with some ranch dressing combined with salsa. Nice little bit of moisture that hit the spot. Thanks for your beautifull collection of recipes.
Bekah @ Plenty
June 25, 2012 at 7:33 pmWe eat a lot of veggie tacos around here (2 Texans), but had never considered lentils. Can’t wait to try!
Molly
August 1, 2012 at 8:22 amJust wanted to add that we made these yesterday and, like everyone else has said, they really were amazing! If my eyes had been closed I would have thought it was beef, only I don’t really like “taco meat” beef and I LOVED this! (probably because it wasn’t greasy) You guys have got a new fan!
Alex
August 1, 2012 at 5:11 pmGlad you enjoyed them!
Katelyn
March 8, 2013 at 2:27 pmI am excited to try these! Is it made using dried lentils??
Alex
March 8, 2013 at 2:29 pmYes! Hope you enjoy the recipe.
Danielle
March 19, 2013 at 12:25 pmI love your guys’ blog! I started looking through the recipes recently and knew I would love it. I made these lentil tacos last night and they were so tasty! I can’t wait to cook up some of your recipes.
Sonja
March 24, 2013 at 7:46 pmThanks, Danielle! I’m so glad you enjoyed these tacos – they are one of our absolute favorites! Let us know if you happen to try anything else :)
Jennifer
April 4, 2013 at 9:34 amHi,
I would like to make this tomorrow night, but I would like to know if it is not necessary to soak the lentils one night before. If you get a chance, I would love to know!
Thanks in advance!
Alex
April 4, 2013 at 9:37 amHi Jennifer!
It’s not necessary to soak the lentils — they cook really quickly! :)
Jennifer
April 4, 2013 at 9:57 amThank you for the quick response! I can’t wait to try this recipe!
Pam
August 26, 2013 at 9:00 pmWe tried these tonight and they were delicious! I’m always looking for new ideas for vegetarian dinners, and we really enjoyed this one. Thanks for sharing!
Nikolai
February 8, 2014 at 12:03 pmThis has become one of my favorite convenience recipes. It’s simple, quick, uses few ingredients, and super affordable.
Maya @ Maya - Kitchenette
February 27, 2015 at 7:19 pmYummy ! Tacos… this is added in recipes to try thank you so much :)
Nina at FocusedonFit.com
May 3, 2015 at 3:24 pmYum! As a vegetarian, I’m always looking for fun ways to spice up taco night….what a great idea to use lentils! Gonna try these Tuesday!