Name: Lentil loaf recipe
Prep time: 35 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 80 min
Ingredients: 1 cup Walnuts; 1 cup Pecans; 1 tbsp Coconut oil; 1 Red onion; 1 Clove of garlic (minced); 1 cup Shitake mushrooms (thinly sliced); 1¼ cup Chestnut mushrooms (Crimini ) (thinly sliced); Salt and pepper (to taste); 1½ tbsp Vegan Worcestershire sauce; 1 tbsp Coconut oil; 2 cups Sweet potato (peeled and thinly sliced); 1 Carrot (peeled and sliced); 2 tbsp Fresh thyme; ½ cup Puy lentils (cooked); ½ cup Green lentils (cooked); ½ cup Brown lentils (cooked); Salt and pepper (to taste); 4 tbsp Tomato paste; 3 tbsp Vegan Worcestershire sauce; ¼ cup Wholemeal breadcrumbs; ½ cup Tomato paste; 1 tbsp English mustard; 2 tsp Liquid smoke; 2 tbsp Black treacle; 2 tbsp Maple syrup; 2 tbsp Balsamic vinegar; ½ cup Water; ½ tbsp Chili powder; ½ tsp Garlic powder; ¼ tsp Fine sea salt

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Veggie meatloaf, delicious and brimming full of lentils, nuts, veggies, and spices, and topped with an incredible BBQ sauce, our hearty vegan lentil loaf is a real crowd-pleaser. This hearty and nutritious lentil loaf is perfect for a winter meal. Packed with protein and fiber, it will fill you up without weighing you down. Serve it with your favorite vegetables for a complete meal.

Homemade lentil loaf cut into slices with fresh thyme, ready to eat.

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Why you’ll love this vegan lentil loaf recipe

It’s a delicious vegan centrepiece for a Sunday dinner, Thanksgiving dinner, or Christmas dinner.

It’s super tasty and is always polished off in our house, even the meat eaters love it.

You can make it ahead and even freeze it.

All the ingredients are 100% vegetarian and vegan.

“This is the best lentil loaf I’ve ever tasted” said my friend who’s been a vegan for 25 years. That made my day, my job was done!

What ingredients do I need?

You’ll need all the ingredients shown in the photograph below.

Ingredients for making a veggie lentil loaf, water, maple syrup, treacle, balsamic vinegar, garlic c;loves, red onion, sweet potato, fresh thyme, mushrooms, pecans, chili powder, green and brown lentils, Worcestershire sauce, bread crumbs, walnuts, English mustard, coconut oil, tomato paste, salt and pepper, garlic powder.

How to make our delicious vegan lentil loaf with step-by-step instructions

Making our vegan meatloaf recipe is easy if you follow our simple instructions.

A full printable recipe along with the measurements in both US customary and metric is available in the recipe card below.

Preheat your oven to 175°C/350°C.

For the lentil loaf

Prepare your loaf tin by wiping vegan butter all around the sides and bottom, then set it aside.

Lay your walnuts and pecan nuts on a baking sheet and roast for 10 minutes.

Roast walnuts and pecans. — Roast the nuts in the oven.

Saute onions, garlic and mushrooms. — Sauté the onion, garlic, mushrooms, and vegan Worcestershire sauce.

Saute carrots and sweet potato. — Cook the sweet potato and carrot.

Meanwhile in a large skillet over medium heat, add your coconut oil, red onion, garlic, and mushrooms and season with salt and pepper and vegan Worcestershire sauce, stirring often, and cook for 5-8 minutes until the onions are caramelized, and then set aside.

Using the same skillet, add more coconut oil and lay the sweet potatoes and carrots, in a single layer, cover, and cook for 6-8 minutes until golden brown, you may have to do this in batches.

Once cooked set aside.

Pulse nuts in food processor. — Add the nuts to a food processor and pulse until they are a rough consistency.

Add cooked veggies and pulse. — Add the cooked vegetables and pulse.

Place in bowl and add tomato paste, and Worcestershire sauce. — Place the mixture in a mixing bowl, and add tomato paste and vegan Worcestershire sauce.

Add your roasted nuts to a food processor and blitz until they are a nut meal, then add your red onion, garlic, mushrooms, sweet potatoes, carrot, and fresh thyme, and give it a few pulses to combine.

Finally, add in your mixed lentils, season with salt and black pepper, and pulse to combine, you don’t want a puree.

Place in prepared loaf tin and press to compress. — Place in a prepared loaf tin.

Now, add the mixture to a large mixing bowl and add tomato paste, vegan Worcestershire sauce, and wholemeal breadcrumbs, then stir to combine, until you have a loose dough.

In your prepared tin, add the mixture and press it firmly down to compress it, this will ensure you don’t get a crumbly loaf.

For the sauce

Place tomato paste, English mustard, liquid smoke, black treacle, maple syrup, balsamic vinegar, water, chili powder, garlic powder, and fine sea salt in a mixing bowl and whisk vigorously to combine, whisk until the sauce thickens.

Add balsamic vinegar, water, chili powder, garlic and salt. — Add tomato paste, mustard, liquid smoke, treacle, maple syrup, balsamic vinegar, water, chili powder, garlic powder, and salt.

Stir to combine into a sauce. — Stir to combine.

Then, add a ¼ inch – ½ inch (approx. 1cm) to the top of your vegan meatloaf, spreading as evenly as possible.

Now, place the loaf in your oven and bake for 45 minutes, once cooked, remove it from the oven and set it aside for 5 minutes.

Add the bbq sauce to the top of the lentil loaf. — Spread the sauce on top of the loaf.

Two tins of meatloaf fresh out of the oven. — Cook.

Two meatless meatloaf on dishes and ready to eat. — Slice and serve.

Once slightly cooled, remove from the tin.

Serve your new favorite loaf and enjoy!

We hope you enjoy making and eating our vegan lentil loaf and would love to hear how you got on with making it.

Please leave a comment below or feel free to ask any questions you may have.

Absolutely delicious slices of lentil loaf, ready to eat.

Recipe notes and tips

Can’t eat nuts?
If you’d like a nut-free lentil loaf, then use rolled oats instead.
Making ahead?
You can keep your loaf in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days or freeze it in slices.
Is your loaf mushy?
Don’t let your meatless meatloaf go mushy, if the lentils look too wet then dry them with kitchen paper, and if the lentil mixture looks too wet then add additional breadcrumbs slowly until you get the right consistency.
Got a crumbly loaf?
Try using flax egg to help hold it together.
Don’t have a loaf tin?
Use a muffin tin instead, you can have mini lentil loaves instead.
Beware of the barbecue sauce
It’s not your typical sauce, it’s created to be really strong and to compliment the flavors of the loaf.
Out of green or brown lentils?
Use red lentils instead.
Don’t have balsamic vinegar?
Use apple cider vinegar instead.
Can’t get hold of vegan Worcestershire sauce?
Use soy sauce instead.
Quality equipment
Use good quality loaf pans and you won’t need to line them, but if you are in any doubt use a parchment lined loaf pan or vegan butter.

What should I serve with my vegan lentil loaf?

Our lentil loaf is perfect when served with mashed potatoes, steamed green beans, roasted parsnips, roasted carrots, parsnip puree, roasted cauliflower, Ocean Spray cranberry sauce, and vegan gravy – please note these are not necessarily vegan side dishes.

We think these delicious pan fried morel mushrooms would be really great with a slice of lentil loaf and maybe some air fryer carrots, and air fryer asparagus.

What lentils will I need to make a lentil loaf?

We’ve used a variety of cooked lentils.

Puy lentils, brown and green lentils.

If you prefer, you could use just one type of lentil.

Should you cook vegetables before adding them to vegan meatloaf?

Yes, you should.

In our lentil loaf, we saute the vegetables, this way they don’t go into the loaf raw, and the flavors are released more.

It’s always best to use cooked vegetables.

How do I avoid mushy lentil loaf?

Nobody wants a mushy loaf.

There are a couple of ways to avoid that wet mushy texture

Make sure that all the water is out of your canned lentils, pat them with kitchen paper if necessary.

You can also add more breadcrumbs to soak up the excess liquid from the pre-cooked lentils, but be careful, it’s a fine line between a mushy loaf and a dry one!

What can I use instead of nuts?

If you’d like a nut-free lentil loaf, then use rolled oats instead.

A lentil loaf, freshly made with a sprig of rosemary on top.

How to store and heat leftover lentil loaf

Leftovers? What are they?

Seriously though, any leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator for up to five days.

To freeze simply bake your easy lentil meatloaf and leave it to cool down to room temperature.

If you are going to freeze it, we always slice it, dry freeze the slices, and then place the frozen slices into freezer bags.

Alternatively, you could slice them and use parchment paper slices to separate the slices.

When you’re ready to use them, just defrost them in the fridge overnight and then cook for approximately 15 minutes at 140°C/275°F

More delicious recipes for you to try

Delicious nut roast freshly cooked with roasted potatoes.

Nut roast recipe

Air fryer Brussels sprouts

Roast parsnips recipe

Oven-roasted potatoes

Print Pin Recipe

Lentil loaf recipe

Brimming with lentils, nuts, veggies, spices, & topped with a tasty BBQ sauce, this is the best lentil loaf recipe ever! If you're looking for what to give a vegetarian or vegan this holiday, then this is a perfect choice! Perfect for Sunday dinner, Thanksgiving & Christmas dinner, the whole family will love this.

Prep Time35 mins

Cook Time45 mins

Total Time1 hr 20 mins

Servings

Calories390

Course: Main course

Cuisine: American

Author: Mandy Applegate | Splash of Taste

Utensils

Loaf pan or tin

Large skillet