If you’re looking for a cozy, plant-based main dish that’s both budget-friendly and packed with flavor, this Lentil Loaf is a must-try! Made with simple pantry staples like lentils and breadcrumbs, it transforms into a hearty, protein-rich loaf that even meat lovers will enjoy. I love how it’s packed with savory umami flavor from the sun-dried tomatoes and savory mushrooms, making each slice satisfying and comforting. This vegan lentil “meatloaf” is easy to make and comes in at under $1 per serving—perfect for a wholesome, affordable dinner.
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Hearty Lentil meatLoaf Recipe
This homemade lentil loaf is my easy vegan take on classic meatloaf. It’s packed with veggies like mushrooms, onions, and carrots, protein-rich lentils, and finished with a tangy, ketchup-based glaze. It reminds me of the classic comfort food dinners I grew up with, just totally plant-based! And I know what you’re thinking, but don’t worry…the texture is just right. The mushrooms add plenty of moisture, so it’s never dry, while the breadcrumbs and flaxseed help bind everything together and stop it from getting mushy.
Whether it’s part of your weekly meal prep or your holiday spread, this lentil meatloaf will help stretch your budget without skimping on flavor.
Recipe Tips & Suggestions
- Process your veggies small and to a similar size. There’s a reason I roughly chop the carrots, mushrooms, and sun dried tomatoes before adding them to the food processor. Doing this helps the veggies process down to a similar size, meaning there are no large chunks in the meatloaf mixture that may otherwise cause the loaf to fall apart. The onion should also be diced very small.
- Make this vegan meatloaf gluten-free. By swapping in gluten-free breadcrumbs and using gluten-free soy sauce or coconut aminos.
- Let it cool. I always let my loaf cool for about 10 minutes before slicing to make sure each slice holds together nicely!
- Want to try a different glaze? Borrow the glaze from our turkey meatloaf recipe and use that instead! It’s made with BBQ sauce and will be just as delicious.
Lentil Loaf
Cost $9.55 recipe / $0.95 serving
Ingredients
Lentil Loaf Ingredients
- 16 oz. white mushrooms (whole, $3.88)
- 2 large carrots ($0.39)
- 2 Tbsp sun dried tomatoes in oil (processed very fine, $0.82)
- 1 Tbsp olive oil ($0.17)
- ½ medium onion (diced very small, $0.45)
- 1½ tsp sea salt ($0.02)
- 1 tsp black pepper (freshly cracked, $0.19)
- 3 cups cooked lentils (divided, $0.96*)
- 4 garlic cloves (minced, $0.16)
- ½ cups walnuts (processed, $1.56)
- 2 Tbsp ground flaxseed ($0.24)
- 2 Tbsp ketchup ($0.06)
- ¼ cup breadcrumbs ($0.16)
- 1 Tbsp soy sauce ($0.05)
- 2 Tbsp fresh parsley (minced, $0.10)
Glaze Ingredients
- ½ cup ketchup ($0.24)
- 1 Tbsp brown sugar ($0.03)
- 1 Tbsp soy sauce ($0.05)
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard ($0.02)
Instructions
- Gather ingredients and preheat oven to 350℉.
- Roughly chop mushrooms, carrots, and sun dried tomatoes to give your food processor a little extra help and ensure that the fresh ingredients are about the same size once processed.
- First, process the carrots until they are shredded, with no pieces larger than ¼ inch.
- Set aside processed carrots and add the mushrooms to the empty food processor. Pulse until crumbly and roughly the same size as the carrots.
- Add 1 Tbsp olive oil (or sun dried tomato oil, if you have it!) to a sauté pan over medium heat. Add the mushrooms, carrots, ½ a finely diced onion, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine and cook over medium heat while you prepare the rest of the ingredients, stirring occasionally.
- In the same food processor, add half the cooked lentils, garlic, sun dried tomatoes, and walnuts. Process to combine.
- You will notice the sauté pan is starting to look pretty juicy! The mushrooms have begun to release water, creating the perfect amount of moisture to keep your lentil loaf nice and juicy.
- Add the rest of the whole lentils, ground flaxmeal, 2 Tbsp ketchup, breadcrumbs, and 1 Tbsp soy sauce. Stir to combine.
- Next, add the sun dried tomato lentil mixture from the food processor and cook, stirring often, for another 10-15 minutes over medium heat. The mixture will soak up all of the juices from the mushrooms, and the flax will begin to help bind the lentils and veggies together, creating a dough-like paste.
- Remove the cooked lentil mixture from the heat and allow it to cool for 10 or so minutes so it’s easy to handle. Meanwhile, mix the ½ cup ketchup, brown sugar, 1 Tbsp soy sauce, and Dijon mustard together and set aside.
- Once the lentil mixture has cooled, form it into a loaf on a parchment-lined baking sheet. My loaf was roughly 9.5” long, 6” wide, 1.5” tall. This is a hearty meal, and it feeds a crowd!
- Using a spoon or an elevated spatula, cover the lentil loaf with the prepared sauce, being careful to lightly cover the sides, but taking special care to make sure you have no bare spots on top.
- Bake for 45 minutes. Remove from the oven and top with minced parsley. Let it cool for 10 minutes or so before slicing and serving!
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Equipment
- Food Processor
- Sauté Pan
- Baking Sheet
- Parchment Paper
Notes
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!how to make Lentil Loaf step-by-step photos
Gather your ingredients and preheat the oven to 350℉.
Prep the veggies: Roughly chop 16 oz. white mushrooms, 2 large carrots, and 2 Tbsp sun dried tomatoes to a similar size. This gives your food processor a little extra help and also ensures the veggies will be processed to be a similar size.
Add the chopped carrots to your food processor. Process the carrots until they’re shredded, with no pieces larger than ¼ inch. Remove the shredded carrots from the food processor and set them aside.
Now add the mushrooms to the empty food processor. Pulse until crumbly and roughly the same size as the carrots.
Sauté the veggies: Add 1 Tbsp olive oil (or sun-dried tomato oil, if you have it!) to a sauté pan over medium heat. Add the processed mushrooms and carrots, ½ a finely diced onion, 1½ tsp salt, and 1 tsp black pepper. Stir to combine and cook over medium heat while you prepare the rest of the ingredients, stirring occasionally.
Make the lentil mixture: Add half the cooked lentils (1½ cups), 4 garlic cloves, chopped sun dried tomatoes, and ½ cup walnuts to your food processor and process until combined.
Meanwhile, you’ll notice the sauté pan is starting to look pretty juicy! The mushrooms will have released their water, creating enough moisture to keep your lentil loaf nice and juicy.
Add the remaining cooked lentils, 2 Tbsp ground flaxmeal, 2 Tbsp ketchup, ¼ cup breadcrumbs, and 1 Tbsp soy sauce to your sauté pan. Stir to combine with the other ingredients.
Now add the sun dried tomato lentil mixture from the food processor and combine. Cook, stirring often, for another 10-15 minutes over medium heat. The mixture will soak up all of the juices from the mushrooms, and the flax will begin to help bind the lentils and veggies together, creating a dough-like paste.
After 10-15 minutes, remove the pan from the heat. Let the mixture cool for about 10 minutes until you can safely handle it.
Make the glaze: Meanwhile, add ½ cup ketchup, 1 Tbsp brown sugar, 1 Tbsp soy sauce, and 1 tsp Dijon mustard to a bowl and combine. Set this aside for now.
Form the lentil meatloaf: When the lentil mix has cooled, form it into a loaf on a parchment-lined baking sheet. My loaf was roughly 9.5” long, 6” wide, and 1.5” tall.
Add the glaze: Use a spoon (or elevated spatula) to cover the loaf with the ketchup glaze. Be sure to lightly cover the sides and make sure you have no bare spots on top.
Bake: Place the baking sheet in the oven and bake for 45 minutes. Once baked, remove it from the oven and top with 2 Tbsp fresh parsley. Let your lentil loaf cool for 10 minutes or so before slicing and serving! Enjoy.
Serving Suggestions
I like to go classic with mashed potatoes and peas whenever I make this lentil loaf—it’s my favorite way to do a vegetarian “meat and potatoes” dinner. But it’s just as perfect for the holidays if you don’t eat meat or want to save a little money this year. This vegan meatloaf will be right at home on your table with green bean casserole, stuffing, roasted Brussels sprouts, and all your favorite meat-free Thanksgiving and Christmas sides.
Storage & Reheating
Store any leftovers in the fridge for 3-4 days, either wrapped in plastic wrap or in an airtight container. Reheat slices in the microwave or in a 350ºF oven until warmed through. You can also freeze this vegan loaf recipe (I like to freeze individual slices so they thaw faster) for up to 3 months. Wrap the slices well in plastic wrap, then place them in a freezer-safe bag or container. For the best results, let them thaw in the fridge overnight before reheating.
Can’t stand ketchup in the quantity called for in the glaze—any thoughts on using something like barbecue sauce?
You can use BBQ sauce. I’ve also made this glaze with plain tomato paste instead of ketchup and it came out great that way, too.
I also wished a blurb on cooking the lentils was included. I had to go google it bc I don’t often do it.
This is in the oven now!
Looking forward to making this! Any chance we can substitute an egg or two for the flaxseed?
Absolutely! You can substitute 2 eggs instead of the flax. Just gently beat the eggs and add in after you let the vegetable mixture completely cool, that way you don’t accidentally scramble some of the eggs. :)
Can you put a puff pastry around this to elevate for thanksgiving, if so would you eliminate the glaze? And would you bake for the same amount of time?
Ooh, love this idea. I think you could, but it would depend on the cook time for the puff pastry maybe? I would still glaze it before you put the puff pastry on, personally! Send us a photo if you try it!
Do you know of a substitute for the mushrooms? I’m looking forward to trying this recipe out!
There’s really no substitute for mushrooms in this particular recipe since they are so much of the bulk and flavor of it. I would have to retest a completely mushroom-free lentil loaf before making a suggestion. If you play around with it, let us know!
What do you recommend I substitute for mushrooms?
There is no equal substitute for mushrooms in this particular lentil loaf recipe, since they are so much of the bulk and contribute so much flavor.
Looking forward to trying this! What could I substitute for the flax seed? It’s not something I’ve ever cooked with, and it doesn’t seem worth it to buy just for 1 recipe.
Also, for folks who are newer to cooking with lentils, you might want to add a short explanation of how to cook them plain – basically, just boil in water and then drain. Back before I learned that, I used to be mystified by recipes like this that call for plain cooked lentils.
Hey, Elisa! If you’re not vegan, you can totally use eggs as your binder. For this particular recipe, I would substitute 2 eggs if you’re not using flax. Gently beat and fold the raw egg in *after* you let the vegetable mixture completely cool before shaping it into a loaf. You don’t want to add it to the hot pan like you do with the flax because you’ll end up with a veggie scramble! :) If you are vegan, I highly recommend trying out flax eggs for baking! They are a game changer. We tested a bunch of different egg substitutes for baking in one of our YouTube videos and it came out on top for not-sweet options. If you have chia seeds on hand, you could make a chia egg as well– I recommend pulsing the chia in a spice grinder first so you don’t have the chia seed texture in this loaf.
Yes, I definitely think cooking lentils should be an explicit part of the recipe! Even if it makes the time longer, it’s more accurate.
I’m afraid to admit I almost used canned lentils to make this recipe take even less time! *Gasp*
I will paste the directions from the bag of lentils here. I could do a blog post on how to cook lentils (and/or how to sprout them) sometime! In the meantime, I hope this helps!
“Before cooking always examine, sort, and rinse well to ensure maximum wholesomeness of this natural product. Lentils require no soaking. In a large pot, for each pound of lentils (about 2 cups) add 6-8 cups hot water. Simmer gently with lid tilted until desired tenderness is reached, about 15 to 20 minutes.”
i have been on the fence for years about getting a food processor (mostly because i don’t know which one to choose and get them confused with food choppers). can you share the brand/specifications of the one that you use? thank you!
Can you use egg instead of flax?
Yes, that would work. Make sure you add 2 raw eggs (lightly beat them first) to the veggie mixture once it has completely cooled. Stir it in, then form your loaf. We have a fun video on our YouTube channel that compares a bunch of egg substitutes in baking if you’re curious to try more options in the future!
Walnut allergy, ideas for a sub?
Any nut or seed substitute will do. Or, just add extra lentils. Personally, I like the texture difference of adding the nuts. (Shelled sunflower seeds, pecans, almonds, etc. all work.)
Surprisingly filling and fed our family of 5 with leftovers! I love mushrooms so I was excited to try this! Yummy!