Lentil tacos
Lentils simmered with chili, cumin and smoky paprika until they’re rich and a little meaty, piled into corn tortillas with all the taco toppings, a cheap, fun weeknight dinner.
- 45 min total
- 15 min hands-on
- Anyone can make this
- Serves 4
- About $1.98 a serving
- 440 calories
- Good the next day
- Vegetarian
- Gluten-free
Dolly says: Make the full amount. It’s just as good for lunch the next day.
Ingredients
For 4 servings.
- 1 yellow onion, finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 cup lentils, brown or green, rinsed
- 2½ cups vegetable broth
- 1 lime, halved
- 12 corn tortillas
- 1½ cups shredded lettuce
- 2 Roma tomatoes, diced
- ½ cup salsa
- ½ cup shredded cheddar (optional)
- ¼ cup sour cream (optional)
From your pantry
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp chili powder
- 1½ tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- ½ tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp salt
Each serving has about 440 calories, 19 g protein, 80 g carbs and 7 g fat, and costs about $1.98 at typical US grocery prices. Both are estimates from what the recipe uses.
Missing something?
- No yellow onions? White onions or red onions work.
- No limes? Lemons work.
- No shredded lettuce? Iceberg lettuce or romaine lettuce works.
- No salsa? Pico de gallo works.
- No shredded cheddar? Cheddar cheese or Mexican blend cheese or Monterey Jack cheese works.
- No sour cream? Plain Greek yogurt works.
Steps
Tap an underlined word for a quick explanation.
Heat the oil in a medium over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring, 5 minutes, until soft.
Saucepan. A saucepan is a pot with tall, straight sides and one long handle. It’s for things that need depth, like rice, sauces or a few boiled eggs.
How you’ll know: The food fills it about halfway, leaving room to bubble without spilling over.
Medium heatTimer: 5 min
Stir in the garlic, chili powder, cumin, smoked paprika, oregano and tomato paste and cook 1 minute, .
Fragrant. Fragrant means cooking until you can clearly smell it, usually garlic or spices, often in about 30 seconds. That’s the moment the flavor is ready, just before it can burn.
How you’ll know: You can smell it from a step back, and garlic is pale gold, not brown.
Medium heat
Add the lentils, broth and salt and over high heat.
Bring to a boil. It means heating a liquid on high until it’s fully boiling before you move on. A lid on the pot gets it there faster, which makes it a good moment to chop something.
How you’ll know: Big bubbles break all over the surface, and they keep coming when you lift the lid.
High heat
Cover, turn the heat to low and 25 minutes, then uncover and cook 5 minutes more, until the lentils are tender and the liquid is gone.
Simmer. Simmering means keeping a liquid just below a boil, with small bubbles rising gently. It cooks food evenly and lets a sauce thicken without scorching on the bottom.
How you’ll know: Small, lazy bubbles break the surface every second or so, and nothing is churning.
Low heatTimer: 30 min
Dolly’s tip: Still soupy at the end? Keep cooking uncovered and stirring. You want it thick enough to pile on a tortilla.Mash about a third of the lentils with the back of your spoon and squeeze in half the lime.
Dolly’s tip: Mashing some gives the filling that crumbly, taco-meat texture.Wrap the tortillas in a damp paper towel, a stack at a time, and microwave 1 minute, until soft.
Timer: 1 min
Fill the tortillas with lentils and top with lettuce, tomatoes, salsa, cheese and sour cream, with the rest of the lime on the side.
Plan this in Dollop, and get the grocery list
Dollop puts this dinner on a night that suits your week, lists only what you still need to buy, and walks you through each step while you cook.
More dinners like this
Air fryer black bean taquitos
35 min
Cheesy lentil and rice casserole
110 min
Slow cooker quinoa enchilada casserole
200 min
Slow cooker black bean enchilada casserole
275 min
Vegetarian dinners ›Pantry dinners ›What to make with lettuce and tomatoes ›What to make with tomatoes and cheddar ›