Curries and stews just aren’t the same without a nice piece of flatbread to dip with. This plant based vegan lentil flatbread recipe couldn’t be any simpler. With just two ingredients, these are super quick to whip up for any meal of the day. They work great for sopping up the gravy left in your bowl or as a bread substitute for peanut butter and jelly sandwiches!
Ingredients
1 cup red lentils
2 cups water
Instructions
- Soak the lentils in the water for 3 hours.
- Pour into a blender and blend until creamy.
- Preheat a nonstick pan or griddle on medium high.
- Pour a ladle full into pan and swirl into a nice circle.
- Cook until bubbles pop in batter, similar to cooking pancakes.
- Flip and cook on other side.
- Eat immediately or store in a tupperware container in the fridge for up to a week.
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79 comments
Oh, I’m definitely making this this week! Thank you!
Hi Jill, I made these but they were a little too dense. Should I just increase the amount of water used? Nice flavour tho
Hi Jill. Do you think yellow lentils will work as good as the red?
I think they will work but the taste will be much stronger.
Hi Jill, I just made these and found that they have quite a bite (flavour wise) to them. The red lentils I have have been in the pantry for a couple years, I’m sure that’ll make a difference but just seeing if anyone else had this issue? Thanks 😊
I soaked the lentils for 7 hours. The batter stuck to two different nonstick pans! The Flatbread was too thick and runny in the middle. Disaster! I wasted my lentils. Glad I started with half of the ingredients as a test. I thought I geard 3 or more hours. Waz the problem that I soaked them too long. I am very disappointed!
My friend did the same thing she soaked it overnight ~ stuck to pan but worked in a waffle iron
Total flip for me too I got so excited as said freeze well so I did 2 cups lentils to 4 cups water and had same problems as everyone else wet inside once it’s blended there’s no fixing it I will try again with straining them after soaking and add water as needed to get the pancake consistency I was pretty sad as I had to eat my curry without one lol wasted 2 cups lentils oh well at least they are cheap!
About how many does it make?
It just depends on the size you are making them. I was able to make 8 =)
Would green lentils work with this? If so, what would change in the preparation (if anything). Thank you.
I haven’t tried making them with regular lentils yet =)
No, they need to be a split lentil, either red or yellow. I’ve tried both and they work fine. Indian cooks us the split dahl also. I let mine soak overnight. You just have to watch them cooking in the pan, not too hot or mine have stuck.
Are these split red lentils Jill?
Yes
How would you eat this ? What does it taste like?
I use it instead of bread so I toast it and put peanut butter on it. We also eat it with soup or any kind of meal that has sauce to dunk in =)
Seems like a simple and fun recipe. I can hardly believe that you can get bread from lentils and water, it’s amazing. I think I’ll try it but not with a non-stick pan, I’d rather have the oil in a cast iron pan than the chemicals in a non-stick pan. Your show is great, I’m really glad I found it.
User parchment / baking paper in the cast iron pan and it works as non stick
Wow, great tip Truus Ruys!! Thanks.
Hi Jill, Would this work with just medium heat cooked longer? I tried it last night and the medium high heat melted my spatula to my non stick pan. I tried cleaning it using hints from the internet without success. Do you have a favorite spatula that works with high heat? And a favorite non-stick pan? I expect to replace both soon. It was fun though and I would try it again.
Hello Carol, I am using this non-stick griddle.
https://amzn.to/367Ofza
So far, it seems to be pretty good and it is supposed to be a much safer cooking surface than most non-stick pans. It doesn’t seem to have a problem with my plastic spatula. Nothing special, just one from my local grocery store.
Hello Jill do you have by any chance the nutrition facts label ?
I don’t, sorry
Look at the nutrition facts of the lentils and divide by how many flatbreads you make…Very simple
I made these tonight and had some trouble. The non-stick pan I used definitely wasn’t non-stick with these. I had a sticky gloopy mess. So the next one I used a piece of parchment and that allowed me to cook and flip, but they never seemed to get done on the inside…unless it’s suppose to be sort of wet/moist inside? The last one I made on my George Foreman grill with ceramic plates. It got golden and crispy outside, but was still more like a moist pancake inside. Let me know if that’s how they are supposed to be. I love the idea of these and want to try to make some different flavors.
Not sure why they turned out that way.Maybe pour off a little bit of the liquid before blending. It sounds like they might just be a little too watery.
Could these be baked on parchment paper in the oven?
Yes.
Watched you on Chef AJ and was thrilled to find out about you and your recipes, etc. xoxoxoxo You are darling. LOVED all you shared. And this recipe is GREAT. I only had brown lentils so made them with the non-reds. Anxious to try them with red lentils. The brown tasted lentilly, which is fine, but from what you said, the red ones will have a lighter flavor. THANK YOU!
Fantastic! My non vegan husband (who I give a lot of props to because he tries and likes a lot of my foods) said when he tried one “Oh yes, all day long!” So simple. What do you put on yours?
How many carbs per piece of bread?
This recipe is a real find! For an experiment, I salted the top (bad me) and also added nutritional yeast. Very yum. This makes a perfect protein snack when you need a bite of something savory. It’s also great for serving beside a pile of veggis or sopping up sauces, Ethiopian style. Thanks.
This might be a silly question, but do you drain and rinse the lentils after soaking, or blend with the soak water?
Oooops, I found my answer when watching the video.
can I use ready made flour, instead of the whole lentils? how much? thanks
I haven’t tried that so I’m not sure but I would try it. Maybe 1 cup flour and then just add water until it is pancake batter consistency.
Can I soak them just for 2 hours instead?
You can try it.It will probably work just fine.
What kind of blender do you have?
It is a Blendtec Professional 800
https://amzn.to/2Y280pA
I made these and here are some observations:
1st time: I used green lentils because I didn’t have red – followed recipe to the letter. It worked, it was crazy how fast and easy they were, but they were a little bland (not that I care, but I wouldn’t share them with someone unless there was a wow factor).
2nd time:
Green lentils again, skipped the soak time since I have a vitamix – it worked fine.
Added veggie broth instead of water – also a good choice.
Added nutrional yeast – I put it on everything but ice cream.
Topped with light coating of hummus, chopped tomatoes, avocado, and fresh sprouts – shared it with a friend and she was shocked at how good and healthy this was. We were both left stunned at how quickly this awesome meal came together.
This is definitely a great way to make some good clean bread-like food that’s healthy and protein packed. I’ll definitely be doing this again.
Trying for first time and on high and medium high heat was gummy inside. On medium heat lt cook for at least 4 minutes. Cook longer or does middle firm up?
Hmmmm, someone else just wrote in saying that they were having the same problem. I suggested trying: pour off just a little of the water before blending. Maybe the batter is just a little too watery.
I’ve seen this idea before bout your video encouraged me to try them finally. They came out perfectly! I will definitely keep these on hand. Thanks Jill!
Thank you Jill, this recipe worked very well for me. I followed the directions and got pancake batter consistency, I cooked them like I do pancakes, made them small and got 18 from the one cup of lentils. I plan to keep these on hand.
I soaked 1 cup red lentils in 2 cups waster for 3 hours. Did not drain them. Put them in Vitamix blender and they are just super watery. What did I do wrong??? I’m pretty sure you said to look for a pancake batter like thickness.
I tried this super simple but super healthy recipe and I’m enjoying iy right now. As a family with a big crush with lentils, we are thankful to you🙏🏻
OMG! Just tried these for the first time and — because I don’t own a non-stick pan — decided to try using my pizzelle iron…Absolutely amazing AND beautiful! Cooked perfectly on both sides because both sides cook at the same time! Love love love this recipe!
This recipe is amazing! I added a bunch of spices and turned it into a wrap… so delicious and filling. Worked beautifully on my cast iron pan. Thank you!!
Thank you so much Jill! Made this today and they were amazing, very similar with crepes which my 3 years daughter was never able to eat due to her gluten, eggs and milk allergies. I used a Tefal non stick pan and flip them only when fully cooked so i didn’t had any issues sticking to the pan.
Some mentioned plastic spatula melting I always use wooden spatula. If pan is sticking try using half cut onion or potato before and between. I am from India we make this with all lentils in combo with rice, oats and quinoa ( spilt and whole) Moong daal ( whole is green when spilt its yellow) you can add any vegetables or fruits like toppings. Can also add ginger, turmeric, cumin for flavor. I eat plant based food. Thanks for your effort..
If you bake this in the oven what temp and time. Thanks great place for ideas!
Haven’t tried making them in the oven. My guess is to try 400°F poured onto a parchment lined baking sheet. 10 minutes-ish.
I just made these with green split peas because a friend gave me her surplus. They’re super good!
What kind of blender do you use on your YouTube video? Thank you for this recipe.
It is a Blendtec Professional 800
https://amzn.to/3dVO67Y
Thank you Jill, I warmed these the next day by using the “Warm” setting in the toaster oven until slightly crisp and then topped with your Mock Tuna Salad and it is now a favorite snack or lunch. To cook the flat breads a one-egg T-Fal fry pan was used with great success. It took a long time to cook lots of flatbreads so I will now buy a couple more of the same inexpensive pans to speed things up. The one egg pans were are prefect size for me. Thanks again.
How many calories per flatbread, please? I’d really love to try this recipe & it will be very helpful for me to know the calories per flatbread. Thanks! 🙂
Hi, I finally tried this. I didn’t follow directions. I had in my mind to add 2 cups of water and that didn’t happen. So after blending my mixture seemed loose. I didn’t want to waste it so I cooked it. I was shocked that when it was in the pan it looked like pancake batter consistency. When I left it alone to cook for a few moments they didn’t stick to the pan. I have to admit I didn’t find them to taste extraordinary, yet I tried pb, then pb and jelly. Then I was looking for something else to try on them. I see how you can eat them up even with not a lot of flavor. I thought they looked similar to crepes and the end result reminded me of Ethiopian bread..
This worked perfectly for me! Thank you!
Are red lentils the same as the Indian masoor dal (lentils)?
Yes
I made it 2 days ago. The taste was very strong the first day but today it was amazing. No strong taste at all. I made a trick, I added salt and garlic powder for more taste before I baked them and it was delish. I rolled it with avocado, red onion and sweet red pepper. Thank you for this recipe.
Thank you for sharing this recipe, I love it, made myself a chicken salad sandwich, it was delicious!
I made it today, pouring off and saving a bit of the soaking water, and it was just the right consistency of batter. It cooked up lovely in my pan, and I ate it for breakfast with bites of peach instead of maple syrup along with a few sautéed veggies- mushroom, onion and baby kale. Not a strong taste on its own, so you flavor it up with something on top, or inside if using as a sandwich.
Can this be used as a pancake replacement?
absolutely
I’m making these as I write this review. I made one, tasted it and was not happy with the “raw” taste. The first one stuck, the remaining pieces are working nicely. I added cumin, smoked paprika, garlic powder and onion powder, which made a huge difference in taste. They are delicate, but I can see them working for me. Thanks!
Hi Jill. I like these so much I even popped for an electric griddle. This is such a great addition to my choices.
Similar Show idea: If you haven’t tried them, check out simple 2-ingredient sweet potato flatbreads, “roti”. SUPER yummy. The second ingredient? oat flour.
These worked out really well! Blended the red lentils and soaking water, with a bit of salt and Garam masala. The second flatbread was a bit thick, so thinned the mixture a little after that. I did oil my pan, so maybe that made it easier to get a good result? Anyway, loved the simplicity and healthiness of these, will be making them again.
You did not mention the macros always try to post the nutrition value and serving size and total servings. Thanks liked them 👍
It will vary according to how big you make them. Why not just look at the lentil package and figure it out? Info for the amount of lentils you used divided by the number of pancakes you made should give you your nutritional info.
Does high altitude affect cook time like it does other legumes? I’m at 5700 feet.
Hmmm, not sure, sorry
Unfortunately mine were inedible too. Made a beautiful looking pancake and didn’t stick to the pan but gummy inside and tasteless. Tried cooking longer and higher heat – looked wonderful but same result. Tried spreading the batter in the fry pan to be thinner like a crepe but still a gummy texture. Don’t know what else I could have tried.😟
Can you blend them and refrigerate the batter overnight?
Hmmm, not sure. I haven’t tried doing that.
We made these today as we have two bags of brown lentils left here by the kids when they moved out. No issue sticking (did add a tad of cooking spray to pan…well loved non-stick :)). Will add some ‘flavor’ next time, but these are a great alterative to empty calories for wraps and a great way to use up these lentils!