Taco Lentils

Skip the ground beef. These taco lentils make a plant-based filling with real backbone, hearty enough to stuff a taco, top a bowl, or eat straight off the spoon.

The flavor secret is the sauce. Instead of leaning only on chili powder, you rehydrate whole dried ancho chiles in boiling water, then puree them into a deep, smoky-sweet base you’d never get from a spice jar. That puree gets blended with tomato sauce, cumin, garlic and taco seasoning.

Cook the green lentils first, simmering just until tender but still whole so they don’t turn to mush. Then they go into a baking dish, the sauce pours over, and the whole thing bakes covered so the lentils drink up all that chile flavor. The result is high in protein, loaded with fiber, and naturally vegan.

Kitchen Tips

• Simmer the lentils only until tender but still holding their shape; overcooked lentils go pasty in the bake.
• Soften the ancho chiles fully before blending so the sauce is smooth, not gritty.
• Save some of the chile soaking water to thin the puree to a pourable sauce.
• Leftovers thicken and taste even better the next day; reheat with a splash of water.

Variations

• Spoon into taco shells with avocado, lime and cilantro, or build a burrito bowl over rice.
• Stir in corn or black beans for extra texture.
• Add cheese in the last few minutes of baking if you’re not keeping it vegan.