Description

These Lentil Tacos offer a delicious and hearty vegetarian alternative to traditional meat tacos. Featuring a smoky, spiced lentil filling simmered with tomatoes, garlic, and aromatic spices, this recipe is both nutritious and packed with flavor. Perfect for a quick weeknight dinner, the lentils are cooked until tender, partially blended for a creamy texture, and served in charred corn tortillas with fresh red onion, cilantro, and optional toppings like pico de gallo or guacamole.

Ingredients

For the Lentil Filling

1 tablespoon avocado oil
1 small red onion, diced (about 1 cup)
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 large tomato, chopped (about ¾ cup)
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
½ teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon kosher salt
¾ cup dry brown lentils
2 ½ cups low sodium vegetable broth or water

For Serving

8 corn tortillas (or hard shell tacos)
½ red onion, chopped
½ cup chopped cilantro
Pico de gallo, diced avocado, guacamole, hot sauce (optional for topping)

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Instructions

Sauté Aromatics: Heat the avocado oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the diced onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until slightly softened, about 4 minutes. Add the chopped garlic and tomato, cooking until the tomatoes soften, about another 4 minutes.
Add Spices and Lentils: Stir in the onion powder, garlic powder, chili powder, cumin, smoked paprika, dried oregano, and kosher salt until combined. Add the dry brown lentils and pour in the vegetable broth or water. Stir to mix everything evenly.
Simmer Lentils: Bring the mixture to a boil, then cover the pan and reduce heat to low. Let the lentils simmer uncovered for 30 to 45 minutes, until tender and most of the liquid has been absorbed.
Blend Half of the Lentils: Turn off the heat. Carefully transfer half of the lentil mixture to a food processor fitted with a blade attachment and blend until smooth. Return the blended lentils to the pan and stir to combine for a creamy texture.
Char Tortillas: Over an open flame on the stove, char each corn tortilla for about 30 seconds on each side until slightly blackened and warm. This adds a smoky flavor and softens them for serving.
Assemble Tacos: Spoon approximately ¼ cup of the lentil filling onto each tortilla. Top with chopped red onion, cilantro, and optional pico de gallo, diced avocado, guacamole, or hot sauce as desired. Serve immediately.

Notes

You can use vegetable broth or water depending on flavor preference; broth adds more richness.
Adjust spices to taste, especially chili powder for heat level.
Leftover filling can be refrigerated for up to 3 days or frozen for longer storage.
For gluten-free tacos, ensure tortillas are certified gluten-free corn tortillas.
Substitute brown lentils with green lentils if necessary but cooking time may vary.