These flavorful lentil salad lettuce wraps have a delicious blend of middle eastern spices, oven roasted sweet potatoes, sweet dates and salty green olives. Served over lettuce for a light but satisfying lunch or dinner any day of the week.
How to Make Lentil Salad Lettuce Wraps
These lentil salad lettuce wraps are easy to make and require just a few main ingredients. The sweet potatoes roast on a sheet pan in the oven for just over half an hour. This gives you just enough time to prepare the lentils and remaining ingredients before mixing ever together! Plus, this lentil salad is great the next day.
As for the lentils, It’s very important that you use Puy lentils or Beluga lentils because these will not get mushy when cooked properly. Other lentil varieties such as brown or green lentils are best for soups and stews because they break down when exposed to heat.
When boiling the lentils, I like to start tasting them early on to ensure they do not become over cooked. You want them to be tender but still have a nice bite to them. Think al dente pasta for reference. Once the lentils are ready, drain and rise them under cold water. This halts the cooking process and prevents overcooking.
While you’re waiting for the lentils, go ahead and chop up the other ingredients. Some red onion, pitted dates and parsley. Take up your time to chop everything pretty small, like almost lentil sized. I’ve found that when all the ingredients are the same size, it makes loading into a lettuce cup much easier and enjoyable. The only exception is the olives. Just tear those up and throw them in a for a salty bite.
On to the dressing—the vinaigrette is loaded with many different spices you normally find in middle eastern and Indian cuisine like cumin, paprika, cardamom and cinnamon. It may seem like a strange combination, but the dressing adds a really unique flavor to the salad. I like to combine my vinaigrettes in lidded jars because they’re easy to shake and store.
Alright, now that the lentils are cooked and the sweet potatoes are out of the oven, it’s time to assemble the salad. Toss everything together in a large bowl and pour over the dressing. You can serve the lentil salad right away or chill it in the fridge for 4-5 days. I personally prefer eating it at room temperature but letting sit overnight kind of helps the flavors all meld together so either works!
To serve, bib lettuce is my preference. I know there’s cabbage in the photos but that’s mainly for appearance. Purple and and green cabbage just look so beautiful together! I did eat them though—it was quite good, but delicate leaves of bib or romaine lettuce are still my go to for lentil lettuce wraps. Also this is optional, but a crumble of feta is also really tasty. I whipped up a batch of dairy free tofu feta to keep these vegan and it was delicious!
More Recipes you Might Like
- Farro and melon salad with prosciutto
- Lemon basil orzo salad
- Smoky oven baked sweet potato fries
- Honey sesame chickpea lettuce wraps
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Spiced Lentil Salad Lettuce Wraps
The best spiced lentil salad with roasted sweet potatoes, sweet dates, green olives and a light vinaigrette. Served over crisp lettuce for a satisfying, healthy lunch or dinner.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups dry Puy or beluga lentils
- 1 large sweet potato, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
- 1/4 cup + 2 tbsp olive oil
- 3 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 tbsp maple syrup
- 2 tsp Dijon mustard
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1/2 tsp coriander
- 1/2 tsp cardamom
- 1/2 tsp turmeric
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 large red onion, chopped
- 1/2 cup dates, finely chopped
- 1/2 cup Castelvetrano olives, torn
- 1 small bunch parsley, chopped
- Bib lettuce, cabbage leaves and/or crumbled feta for serving
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400º F and line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment.
- Toss the cubed sweet potatoes with 2 tbsp of olive oil and a pinch of salt. Roast for 30-35 minutes or until crisp.
- Meanwhile, place the lentils in a pot and cover with a couple inches of water. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer and cook for 15-20 minutes, until tender. Drain the lentils and rinse under cold water to prevent them from getting mushy.
- To make the dressing, add 1/4 cup olive oil, apple cider vinegar, maple syrup, Dijon mustard, spices and salt to a jar with a tight fitting lid. Shake to combine.
- Once the sweet potatoes and lentils have finished cooking, add them to a large bowl along with the onion, dates, olives and parsley. Pour over dressing (you may not need it all) and toss to combine. Serve with bib lettuce and crumbled feta if desired.
Notes
Recipe inspired by The Best Lentil Salad Recipe Ever from My New Roots
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
6Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 190Total Fat: 7gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 4mgSodium: 575mgCarbohydrates: 28gFiber: 6gSugar: 14gProtein: 5g
All nutritional info is an estimation
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