Meatless Monday: Lentils

Heyo everyone!

I wanted to start this week off with my favorite meatless Monday recipe: Lentil Bowls!

These are easy to meal prep and simple to make as a quick dinner that’s filling and nutritious.

During my time in Australia, I stayed with a family friend who cooked this consistently. It is a great meal and easily personalized. Basically, you cook lentils of your choice, rice of your choice and create a fun mix of vegetables to top it.

Lentil type:

Green – these hold their shape but have a strong bell pepper flavor.

Brown – the typical lentil, hold their shape, and have a mild flavor

Red – these do not hold their shape; they have a great flavor but will turn out more like a thick soup.

I prefer using brown lentils.

Rice:

You can use any rice you like, brown rice, jasmine rice, even quinoa! I usually use basmati rice because it is my favorite!

Toppings:

I usually use bell peppers, mozzarella cubes, bean sprouts, avocado, tomato, cucumber, and carrot.  However, you can customize this any way you like! If you want to add different vegetables like lettuce or mushrooms, go for it!

I don’t have any specific directions for this recipe. All you have to do is boil lentils until tender and cook rice the way you would normally do it for whichever rice you chose! Then, mix all the veggies together in a separate bowl and add the seasonings. I usually use onion powder, garlic powder, red pepper flakes, cayenne, salt, pepper, and some olive oil. In the picture above, I tried using Curry powder, it tasted great!

If you don’t like mixing textures (cooked food with raw food), then you can make roasted veggies. Just cut all your roastable veggies, add seasonings, olive oil, and pop in the oven for 20-25 mins at 400 degrees.

Once everything is prepped, seasoned, or cooked, add it to your lentil bowl and enjoy!