Vegan Lentil Stew
Nothing is better on a cold winter evening than a hearty comforting meal, and this Vegan Lentil Stew fits the bill perfectly. Serve with some gluten-free bread to make this the absolute perfect filling meal.
Lentils are one of my favorite meat substitutes, because of their nutritional complexity. Having them in a stew will help you and your family to stay satiated until your next meal with ease.
Now that schools are opened, I’m already thinking about fall and comfort dishes. I had a whirlwind summer, spending lots of time outdoors and now I’m ready for the cool fall, where the days are short and cozy meals are simmering on the stove.
When I think of stews, I think of my very popular Chickpea Stew and my delicious Jamaican Stew Peas recipes.
I was so privileged to have my brother and his family from London visiting us last week. We did so many fun and memorable things together. The only sad thing is that my brother literally arrived the day after we dropped our daughter off at the university.
We had to drive 8 hours overnight after arriving the day before and helping our daughter get settled in her room. Then, we arrived home at 7 a.m the following day, dropped the rental car off, picked up a van, and headed to the airport another 2 hours away to pick my brother and his family up.
We got to visit Orlando and St. Augustine, and we ate in lots of lovely restaurants. During their entire stay, I only cooked twice. I had fairly decent meals at restaurants that had vegan options, but for restaurants without, I ended up eating plain baked potatoes and vegetables.
Are Lentils Good For You?
As I mentioned before, lentils have lots of nutritional value. They come in multiple varieties, all of which I love to use in quite various recipes, such as sauces, stews, meatballs, etc. Lentils are quite inexpensive and combined with their high protein content, they are a great meat substitute and staple food.
Along with their high protein content, lentils contain lots of fiber and substantial amounts of over a dozen essential vitamins and minerals. For example, many vegans and vegetarians have trouble obtaining enough iron in their diets, and a cup of lentils contains 37% of the recommended daily intake of iron.
They also contain 90% of the recommended daily intake of folate, an especially important vitamin in pregnant women’s diets, but of course also important for the general population. These, along with many other vitamins and minerals, are already a great reason to start adding lentils to your meal rotations.
The fiber content in lentils helps your digestive system to process your meals and pass them comfortably and helps foster the growth of healthy gut flora.
Are Lentils Gluten-Free?
Lentils are a legume, not a grain like wheat. This means that they are naturally gluten-free. However, in some products, there may be a possibility of cross-contamination. If you are severely sensitive to gluten or wheat, I would recommend purchasing lentils marked gluten-free and processed in a gluten-free facility.
What Is In Vegan Lentil Stew?
- Dried Lentils – You will notice there are a few varieties of lentils. For this recipe, you can use brown or green.
- Olive Oil – For sautéing, but you can use water if you would like this recipe to be oil-free.
- Onion, Garlic, and Celery – My favorite ingredients that are vital for flavor.
- Herbs and Spices – In this recipe, I use Italian seasoning, paprika, cumin, thyme, bay leaf, and cayenne pepper.
- Tomatoes – I use a combination of diced tomatoes and tomato paste.
- Carrots and Potatoes – I think these are everyone’s favorite additions to many soups and stews.
- Vegetable Broth – You can also use 6 cups of water and 6 vegan bouillon cubes.
How To Make Vegan Lentil Stew?
- Heat oil or water in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onions and cook for about 3 minutes, then add garlic and cook for another minute.
- Stir in celery, Italian seasoning, paprika, cumin, thyme, and cook for 30 seconds.
- Add lentils, tomatoes, tomato paste, carrots and potatoes, bay leaf, and vegetable broth.
- Bring to boil, reduce heat to simmer for about 40 minutes or until stew has reached the desired texture.
- Remove bay leaf, season with salt and pepper, and serve
My Vegan Lentil Stew is very easy to make using everyday ingredients that are in most kitchens. You can use vegetable broth or water as the liquid, I have made it with both and the recipe tastes delicious. You can use either green or brown lentils.
Can Dogs Eat Lentils?
Lentils are perfectly fine for consumption by dogs, and some owners choose to add lentils (cooked plainly with no salt) to their dog’s diet. I also believe that they are sometimes found in dog kibble.
The protein, fiber, vitamin, and mineral content of these wonderful legumes are great for them as well, in moderation. PLEASE consult your veterinarian before adding them to your dog’s meals so that you can keep their diet balanced and healthy.
More Delicious Vegan Lentil Recipes:
- Lentil Meatballs
- Vegan Lentil Loaf
- Jamaican Lentil Patties
- Instant Pot Lentil Soup
- Lentil Curry Lettuce Cups
- Creamy Lentil Pasta
- One-Pot Taco Spaghetti
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Categories
- Categories: Gluten-Free, Vegan
- Courses: Main Course, Stew
- Cuisines: American, Italian
Nutrition
(Per portion)- Energy: 292 kcal / 1221 kJ
- Fat: 5 g
- Protein: 19 g
- Carbs: 43 g
Cooking Time
- Preparation: 15 min
- Cooking: 45 min
- Ready in: 1 h
- For:
- 6 servings
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups dried lentils, green or brown lentils sorted and rinsed
- 1 tablespoon olive oil, or 1/4 cup water
- 1 medium onion, finely chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 stalks celery, chopped
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon ground paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 14 ounces can diced tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste, (optional)
- 2 medium carrots, diced
- 1 medium potato, diced
- 6 cups vegetable broth
- 1 bay leaf
- 1/4 teaspoon Cayenne pepper
- salt, to taste
Instructions
- Heat oil or water in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onions and cook for about 3 minutes. Add garlic and cook for another minute
- Add celery, Italian seasoning, paprika, cumin, thyme and cook for 30 seconds.
- Add lentils, tomatoes, tomato paste, carrots and potatoes, bay leaf and vegetable broth.
- Bring to boil, reduce heat to simmer for about 40 minutes or until stew has reached the desired texture.
- Remove bay leaf, season with salt and pepper and serve
This was SO delicious, thank you for sharing! Was wondering if you knew what the serving size for each serving is? I noticed a serving is 292 kcal but it does not say how big the serving size is! Thanks again :)
AA, thank you. I will have to calculate it again. I published this recipe 2012, no two nutritional calculators are the same. I use https://www.verywellfit.com/recipe-nutrition-analyzer-4157076 and I manually add the ingredients in. I’m adding a video this week so I will update the recipe, serving size is usually 1/2 cup dried lentil. I believed I used 1 1/2 cups when I last saw the ingredients, so that would make 3-4 servings.
My NON-vegan/vegetarian sons and husband love this–went on our permanent menu rotation after they reluctantly tried it
I’m so happy your family enjoyed it. Thank you for your feedback, I really appreciate it.
Hello Michelle,
thank you so, so much for sharing this recipe! Since my boyfriend discovered it about a year ago we’ve made it about every two weeks because we love it so much. It is easy to make, yet absolutely full of flavours. Did I mention I love it? ^^ Because I enjoy the spice blend so much, I even made up a recipe for a lentil noodle salad with the same spices and vegetables. For those folks who don’t want to eat soup in summer (tsk tsk).
I’m thinking about translating your recipe to German and posting it to a German cooking page. I would of course cite healthiersteps as the original source. Would that be okay with you?
Kind regards from Germany :)
Katja, I’m so happy you enjoyed it. Wow, that’s so awesome that you used it for a lentil noodle salad. That sounds so yummy. I’m sending you an email shortly.
This was terrific. I made it pretty much as written. Added a few fresh green beans cut in about 1 inch pieces. Spices were just right. Definitely a keeper!
Another delicious lentil recipe! Thank you Michelle!
Kathy, I’m so happy you enjoyed it. Thank you for your feedback.
Wow – incredibly delicious. Husband and kids gave rave reviews.
This was my first recipe I chose from this website and it was excellent! It yields quite the pot and is a quick and easy meal for the following days. I will definitely be using more recipients from this page!
Jake, I’m so happy you found my website. Thank you for leaving your feedback, I’m so happy you enjoyed it.
So good! I did add a can of coconut milk because I love the flavor. Thank you!
Omg I’m so happy I found this recipe!! Delicious!
One of my my favorite recipes. I make on Sunday for my lunch all week. Very tasty and filling.
Pattie, that’s awesome. I’m so happy you enjoy it.
This is amazing. Saved for repeat meal. I really enjoyed the flavor combinations with all the spices. Excellent job.
Ashley, I’m so happy you enjoyed it. Thank you for leaving your feedback.
My husband and I love this dish. I am easing my way into possibly becoming some version of a vegetarian during this new decade and searching for a good, simple recipe to start the journey. Voila! I found this recipe. Will be one of my go to meals for sure. Thanks for sharing! Here’s to a healthier decade🍾
Your recipe sounds great. I am T2 diabetic so carb count is important. Can you also include the fiber count?
Thank you Dolores, I’ll definitely ask my web developer about including fiber count as well.
I have made this recipe several times, and i’s a favorite.
I was looking at my older vegetarian recipes, and noted they called for celery seed a lot.
I added some to this, and we liked it. Another favorite spice was dill.
My vegetarian/vegan recipes are from the 80’s.
There wasn’t much cumin back then.
My son is vegan, and I have stopped eating eggs..
That’s awesome, I’m so happy you are enjoying this recipe and that you have made it your own, I love celery seed and dill so I will have to try them with it. I really appreciate your feedback, thank you.
Hi,
I actually only added celery seed to this recipe. I would use dill in drop biscuits, so far.
I’m still experimenting.
Oh I see, thank you for the clarification, happy experimenting.
My favorite lentil soup recipe!I cooked for for 15 minutes in the Instant Pot like you did your other lentil soup recipe
Very hearty!
That’s wonderful to hear, thank you very much Kimberly for sharing with us how you prepared it.
I loved it hummm! I am in a liver cleasing diet and it is winter now around I love. This recipe was perfect: comfy and tasty! Thanks for sharing!
Hello Marcia, I’m happy you enjoyed my lentil stew, all the best with your liver cleanse.
That recipe looks delicious, I have to try it! Thanks much for sharing. Greetings from MN!
Thank you Lidia, I hope you enjoy it. Sending you lots of love and sunshine from Florida.
I’m not on a health kick or anything, not even a vegan. But one day a year ago I was looking for a vegetable stew recipe and went with this one, and I kid you not I have made it over 20 times since then!! I feel like I will be making this until my old years. So comforting and full of flavour :) Thank you!
Eliza, thank you, I’m so excited for your feedback, I’m overjoyed that you love my lentil stew recipe.
Absolutely delicious! Thank you so much
Ashleigh, I’m happy you enjoyed it. Thank you for your feedback.
This is an absolutely fantastic recipe and turned out better than I could have hoped. One of the most delicious vegetarian dishes I have ever made! I added some extra chilli powder though for a kick, plus some creole spice to add some more spice plus that hint of smokiness. Highly recommended. This recipe will certainly become of my go to’s! Thanks again.
What other kinds of vegetables would work with this.. broccoli, cauliflower, spinach?
Actually all of them but add the spinach and broccoli at the last 5 minutes.
This is delicious! And it’s not that hard to make! I made it with red lentils, and they worked fine. I also used half a container of pre-cut butternut squash instead of a potato (to save me some chopping time), and it gave it a nice flavor. The only thing is that the combination of the red lentils and the butternut squash I used turned it even more orange. Keeping to a vegan diet is easier when I can find recipes I’m capable of making that turn out great, so thank you! I will be making this again!
This is awesome Jenny, I’m so happy you enjoyed it and I love your variation of butternut squash and the red lentils. Thank you for your feedback.
would red lentils work
Looks Great. I don’t see a “print” button, however. Its nice to be able to print. I’ll be trying this to serve over baked potatoes. Thank you!
Christie, thank you. I will have one up for the New Year.