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As of June 30, 2025, the National Library of Medicine (NLM) will remove the Healthy Recipes collection from MedlinePlus. You can still find many of these recipes at Delicious Heart Healthy Eating from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) and at Food Hero, a USDA-supported initiative with Oregon State University Extension Service and the Oregon Department of Human Services.

For more on healthy eating, visit the MedlinePlus Nutrition health topic.

URL of this page: https://medlineplus.gov/recipes/lentil-taco-filling/

Lentil Taco Filling

Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 30 minutes
Total time: 40 minutes
Number of Servings: 8

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup chopped onion
  • 1/2 cup chopped bell pepper (any color)
  • 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder or 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1 teaspoon oil
  • 1/2 cup dried lentils, rinsed
  • 4 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried cilantro or oregano (optional)
  • 1 1/4 cups broth, any flavor

Directions

  1. In a large skillet, sauté the onion, bell pepper and garlic in oil until tender, about 3 minutes.
  2. Add the lentils, chili powder, cumin and cilantro/oregano (if using). Cook and stir for 1 minute.
  3. Add broth. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer until the lentils are tender, 20 to 30 minutes for brown lentils, Add water if necessary to keep the lentils just covered with liquid.
  4. Uncover; cook until mixture thickens and most of the water is gone, 5 to 10 minutes.
  5. Use for tacos, wraps or salad.
  6. Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours.

Find more delicious recipes from FoodHero.org

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Recipes that make it to Food Hero have had a long journey getting there. Most of the recipes have been used by our nutrition educators in the field and then submitted to the Food Hero team to be considered for the website. Recipes have the criteria found at this link: https://foodhero.org/recipe-criteria.