Vegan Lentil Veggie Loaf! Don’t sleep on the veggie loaf! This quintessential plant-based main dish is perfect for special events, holidays, or any day of the week.
Healthy and flavorful this Vegan Lentil Veggie Loaf is brimming with nutritious veggies and hearty beans, then topped with a tasty BBQ sauce. Your family will be seated in a flash when this yumminess comes out of the oven. A total must have in your recipe rotation.
Whole Food Plant Based, Vegan, plant based, oil free, refined sugar free, no highly processed ingredients.
Hi there, Ameera here!
This recipe was highly controversial in our house. Everyone had really strong opinions on the multiple kitchen versions. It was insane how opinionated every person was on what made the perfect lentil loaf.
In the end, we gave instructions to our readers on how to figure out which version would best suit their family’s preferences. Be sure to check out our Tips for Success for additional guidance and information.
You gotta give this one a try!
Tips for Success:
- Flavor Profile: This Vegan Lentil Veggie Loaf has great flavor. It’s moist with undertones of smokiness from the BBQ Sauce and smoked paprika.
- Divided Opinions: We performed numerous kitchen tests trying to make sure that everyone was happy, but in the end, each person had some really strong opinions about their preferred flavors and textures. If you prefer a really moist veggie loaf, use 8 oz. of chopped mushrooms. If you prefer a veggie loaf that is less moist, then use 5 oz. of chopped mushrooms. The chopped mushrooms play a big role in how moist the loaf is.
- Spice Distribution: Really get your hands into the mixture to ensure the spices, bread crumbs, and oats are evenly distributed.
- Parchment paper: Cut the parchment paper in a long strip allowing enough to hang over the sides of the pan. This will help remove the veggie loaf from the pan later.
- Food Processor: We have a large food processor. If you have a small one, then simply use the food processor to break up the lentils and chickpeas then dump into a large bowl, then break up the sauteed veggies and mushrooms, dump into bowl. You can then add each of the components into a large bowl and mix all together by hand. You do not need to clean out the food process each time.
- Breadcrumbs: We used Dave’s Killer Bread that we left out overnight on a sheet of parchment paper to dry out, then processed in a food processor. In other words, just take out the bread and lay it out flat onto a parchment paper covered baking sheet overnight to dry out. Then add the dried out bread to your food process and process until chopped into bread crumb-sized pieces.
- Oats: You can use either quick oats or rolled oats. If using rolled oats, consider chopping them in the food processor for 10 seconds, just to break them up.
- Canned Lentils: We used Delallo Imported Italian Lentils. They come in a 14 oz. can. Most grocery stores carry them in the specialty aisles. If using dry lentils, select lentils that hold their shape after cooking like a brown lentil such as small brown lentils called Pardina lentils. Cook dry lentils separately, adjust time accordingly. If cooking dry lentils, you want to end up with 1 ½ cups of cooked lentils.
- BBQ Sauce: We used our Sweet and Smoky BBQ Sauce (Sweet Baby Ray’s Healthy Copycat).
Leftovers and Freezing:
Leftovers will generally keep for 4 to 5 days in the refrigerator. Store in a covered container.
This veggie loaf freezes well.
Pantry Products:
- Tamari: We used San J Tamari Soy Sauce, Gluten Free, Reduced Sodium. You can substitute the tamari with reduced sodium soy sauce, Braggs Liquid Aminos, or Braggs Coconut Liquid Aminos.
- Breadcrumbs: We used Dave’s Killer Bread – 21 Whole Grains and Seeds to make our breadcrumbs. Feel free to use your favorite breadcrumbs.
- Sea Salt: Please adjust the sea salt based upon your family’s sea salt preferences and/or based upon dietary needs.
Kitchen Products Used:
- Food processor
- Large skillet
- Loaf pan
- Parchment paper
We certainly hope you give this flavorful loaf a try! If you give it a try, please leave us a review! Post a picture on Facebook or Instagram and tag us! We would love to hear from you.
PrintVegan Lentil Veggie Loaf
- Prep Time: 30 Minutes
- Cook Time: 60 Minutes
- Total Time: 90 Minutes
- Yield: 6-8 Servings 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Stovetop, Oven
- Diet: Vegan
Description
Healthy and flavorful this Vegan Lentil Veggie Loaf is brimming with nutritious veggies and hearty beans, then topped with a tasty BBQ sauce.
Ingredients
Skillet Base Ingredients:
- 5 oz. to 8 oz. diced cremini mushrooms (or Baby Bella mushrooms) *
- 2 Tablespoons reduced-sodium tamari *
- 1 medium yellow onion, fine dice
- 1 medium carrot, (½ cup), fine dice
- 2 celery ribs, (¼ cup), fine dice
- ½ red bell pepper, (½ cup), fine dice
- 2 Tablespoons minced garlic
Processor Ingredients:
- 1 – [ 14 oz. ] can lentils, drained and rinsed *
- 1 – [ 15 oz. ] can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 2 Tablespoons flaxseed meal
- 2 Tablespoon BBQ Sauce (of choice) *
Other Ingredients:
- ¾ cup breadcrumbs (of choice) *
- ¾ cup oats
Herb/Spice Ingredients:
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoons garlic powder
- 1 Tablespoon dried minced onions (optional)
- ½ teaspoon regular chili powder (optional)
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon ground mustard powder
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley
- ½ to 1 teaspoon sea salt (+/-) *
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper (+/-)
Toppings:
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 F.
- Line a loaf pan with parchment paper, including excess (see notes) and set aside.
- Place the Spice/Herb Ingredients into a small bowl, mix well, set aside.
- Sauté the chopped mushrooms in the tamari until reduced, then transfer to a bowl along with any juices.
- Place the diced onion, carrots, celery, and red bell peppers into the large skillet, sauté until soft, then add the garlic, sauté for 30 seconds, remove from the stove, allow to slightly cool.
- Place all the Processor Ingredients, the sauteed veggies, sauteed mushrooms (and any remaining mushroom liquid), and the Spice/Herb Mix into a food processor and process just until slightly broken up, pulse about 10 seconds, do not pulverized them. You should still see chunky elements.
- Remove the mixture from the food processor and place into a large bowl. Add the breadcrumbs and oats, mix by hand. Make sure all the ingredients are evenly distributed and everything sticks together.
- Place the loaf mixture into the parchment paper lined loaf pan and press firmly. Really pack it in the loaf pan by pressing the mixture firmly with a rubber spatula or the back of a wooden spoon into the pan. Press to create a cohesive loaf. Fold the excess parchment paper over top of the loaf.
- Place into the oven at 400 F for 30 minutes.
- After 30 minutes, lower the oven temperature to 350 F and bake for an additional 20 minutes.
- After 20 minutes has expired, remove the loaf from the oven, remove the excess parchment paper that was folded over the top of the loaf by cutting it off (still leave an inch or so on each side, so you can later lift the loaf out of the pan later) top with BBQ Sauce (or ketchup) and return to the oven for 10 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and allow to stand for 15 minutes before slicing and serving.
- When ready to serve, use a thin edged knife and loosen any edges that are not covered by parchment paper. This will ensure the loaf stays intact when removing it from the pan. Remove the loaf from the pan by lifting it using the parchment paper, then slice, serve, and enjoy.
Notes
*Please reference the blog post for Tips for Success, Pantry Items Used, Storage and Freezing, and Kitchen Products Used.
*Sea Salt: Please adjust the sea salt based upon your family’s sea salt preferences and/or based upon dietary needs.
*Servings: 6 to 8 Servings
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Made this today. Followed the recipe exactly using the 5oz of mushrooms and it was delicious! My husband loved it too.
Hi there Donna,
WOOT!!!! We are thrilled that you gave this recipe a try and enjoyed it! Thank you so much for leaving us a fantastic review of this recipe!
-Ameera and Robin
Wow! First lentil loaf (new to this lifestyle) and this was great! Thank you so much for your recipes and website. 💕 such a great resource and help.
Hi there Juls,
YAYYYY!!! We are thrilled that you enjoyed this recipe. Thank you so much for the lovely comment and awesome review.
-Ameera and Robin
Made tonight with 8oz of mushrooms and ketchup. My very first lentil loaf that held together beautifully. This will be a staple in our rotation.
Hi there Iani,
WOOO HOOO!!! We are thrilled that you enjoyed this recipe and it worked well for you. Thank you so much for the awesome review.
-Ameera and Robin