This flavorful Moroccan Lentil Salad is infused with fragrant spices, crunchy celery, toasted almonds, dried apricots and loads of fresh herbs- a healthy vegan salad that can be made ahead- perfect for midweek lunches! Vegan and GF. Video.
Sometimes you’ll never know the value of a moment until it becomes a memory. ~Dr. Seuss
Here’s another make-ahead vegan salad I think you will fall in love with- Moroccan Lentil Salad. I love the flavors and spices in this salad, and how energized I feel after eating it. Lentils are high in protein and are considered a “slow-metabolizing” carbohydrate- the kind of carb that has so many health benefits. Plus I’m just a huge fan of lentils. ( If you are too, make sure to take a peek at these 25 Lentil Recipes.)
Health aside, this lentil salad just tastes yummy. So this is what I like to do- meal prep a couple of healthy salads ahead, to always ensure we have something nutritious in the fridge in case of hunger “emergencies” when many good intentions go out the window. 🙂
Moroccan Lentil Salad Video
Lentil Salad Ingredients:
Today I used Black lentils but any whole lentil will work here along with dried apricots (un-sulfured if possible, or sub dates!), celery, chopped red onions ( which you can soak in saltwater if you have problems digesting), toasted almonds, fresh herbs -cilantro, mint or parsley- and orange zest.
The Moroccan dressing is infused with cinnamon, cumin and ground clove– very flavorful!
Why I love this Lentil Salad Recipe
- It’s so easy to make – pretty much just toss it all in a bowl and let the flavors meld.
- The leftover salad tastes better and better each day.
- Can be made ahead! Perfect for gatherings and potlucks or midweek meals.
- It’s vegan and gluten-free!
Hope you enjoy this Moroccan Lentil Salad as much as we have! Let us know what you think in the comments below
Happy summer! 🙌
xoxo
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Moroccan Lentil Salad
- Prep Time: 20
- Cook Time: 20
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 6-8
- Category: vegan salad, legumes, lentil recipes
- Method: stovetop
- Cuisine: moroccan
- Diet: Vegan
Description
The BEST Lentil Salad infused with Moroccan Spices, this healthy vegan lentil salad can be made ahead and keeps for 4 days, perfect for healthy midweek lunches!
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup chopped red onion
- 4 cups cooked lentils (1 1/2 cups dry- do not use split lentils– use whole black lentils, brown lentils, green lentils )
- 2 cups celery, chopped
- 1 cup dried apricots, chopped
- 1/4 cup almonds, chopped or slivered, toasted
- 1 cup cilantro or flat-leaf parsley (or use part mint, or a blend of all three, chopped
- zest and juice of one orange
Moroccan Dressing:
- 2 tablespoons honey or maple syrup
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup red wine vinegar, or sub sherry vinegar, or apple cider vinegar
- 2 garlic cloves, finely minced (use a garlic press)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt, more to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
- pinch or two chili flakes (optional, but good)
Instructions
- Cook lentils according to package directions (see notes, feel free to do ahead)
- If sensitive to onions, chop and place in a bowlful of cold, salted water.
- Place lentils, celery, apricots, almonds, drained onions, herbs and orange zest in a large bowl. Squeeze with the orange juice.
- Mix dressing ingredients into the bowl. If using honey, mix dressing ingredients separately (easier). Toss with salad ingredients.
- Taste, adjust salt and add chili flakes if you like. I usually add a little more salt after this sits a while.
Notes
This is will keep 4 days in the fridge.
To cook lentils: Use the pasta method. Bring 1 1/2 cup lentils (dry) and 6-8 cups salted water, to a boil, lower heat, simmer uncovered until just tender. Don’t overcook. Little black lentils cook very fast! 12-16 minutes, depending on size. Strain, let cool.
Keywords: vegan lentil salad, best lentil salad, moroccan lentil salad, lentil salad, black lentil salad, lentil recipes
This salad was amazing. Will be a regular from now on
Great to hear Ruth!
I loved this recipe, the spice mix is excellent. I used black lentils and the cooking time was closer to 20 minutes for me. It’s the first recipe I have tried here, so we are off to a good start! 🙂
★★★★★
Great to hear Isabelle!
Perfection. I make this very often and the whole batch gets eaten in no time. Thank you for this recipe!
★★★★★
Thanks so much Jo!
This is so delicious. It’s refreshing while still being quite filling. If you’re not saving it for the week’s lunches (as I am), you might add orange supremes. Otherwise it is perfect!
★★★★
I love the orange idea- sounds tasty and fresh!
Can I omit the vinegar my daughter hates it 🤣 or can I substitute with something else x
Well you may lose the balance of the salad. You could try lemon/ orange juice to taste?
Thank you I will try some orange juice x
This salad is amazing! I made it with dates as I prefer them to apricots and added carrot for color and more veggies. This will definitely become a regular. I did have to cook the puy lentils closer to 20 mins however.
★★★★★
Thanks Erin!
I need to make this as part of wedding buffet I’m in the UK by the way and I need to serve 100grm per person, so how many times do I need to multiply the receipe to achieve this please?
Unfortunately Gill, I did not weigh the salad when I made it. I would suggest making one batch, weighing it in grams and calculating from there.
Fabulous dish. An unusual and wonderful mix of flavors and textures. I used green lentils and unsulfured apricots which makes for a sort of bland appearance…when I make this for company I’ll use dark lentils and bright orange apricots so that the presentation is as vibrant as the taste.
★★★★★
Perfect Barbara!
Thank you Sylvia, I did make it for company yesterday and got requests for the recipe 😀 I really appreciate you sharing it!
★★★★★
Awesome Barbara!
LOVE this salad and will be making it often, I’m sure! Made exactly as written, I used maple syrup and for the herbs – a combo of cilantro and mint. Such wonderful flavours – thank you for this recipe!
★★★★★
Sounds perfect!
This dish is outstanding! I didn’t have cloves. But I would have put them in there if I could of. I used half parsley and half cilantro. Yummy!
★★★★★
Perfect Laura!
This is delicious! I used maple syrup and red wine vinegar. Had to leave out almonds and garlic.
★★★★★
Thanks Katie
This salad has the perfect combination of color, texture, and flavor, with the added bonus of healthy nutrition. Plus, it’s endlessly modifiable, depending on what you have on hand and what you need to use up. I used the chili pepper flakes, and not sorry. Made it as written, except I added small diced carrots. Thanks for sharing this terrific recipe. It’s a keeper.
★★★★★
Simply delicious! I substituted dates for apricots and it worked really well. I am definitely making this again soon.
★★★★★
Awesome-glad you enjoyed!
I’ve just made this to accompany dinner tonight and I can hardly wait to eat it. I followed the recipe with no substitutions although I was a little light on celery and I didn’t have any kale. I added a little extra lentils, apricots and nuts instead. I mixed everything up and tried a tablespoon before putting in the fridge. My head almost blew up. It was so good. This is going to be one of my new favorites although I feel I say that about all your recipes! You ROCK it every week. Thanks Sylvia
★★★★★
Thanks so much Trudy- appreciate you! xoxo
This is so delicious. It makes me happy to cut down on meat and this may be the best veg recipe I have,
★★★★★
Thank you so much for this recipe! I made it and it’s delicious. I added some kale and did it without almonds as I’m allergic, I also used puy lentils but otherwise followed the recipe exactly and will definitely be doing so again! I had it as a side to a vegan chicken wrap but tomorrow I can’t wait to try it as its own dish with avocado and vegan feta.
★★★★★
The recipe was very good. We ate it at room temperature
★★★★★
This is the real deal! I added blanched chopped kale; it is a meal in and of itself, but we chose to serve it with chicken shawarma. I never leave ratings and comments but felt this one deserved it! Will be making this often!
★★★★★
Appreciate it so much Carla!
Enjoyed this delicious salad very much. Added arugula. My family liked it too, so I guess this salad is a keeper.
★★★★★
YUM! I brought this salad to my 80 year old mother, and she said it is her favorite of all the things I have made. Last week I made the Lentil Walnut Apple salad, and it was so good I had to try another. Hard to say which is better…easy to say I LOVE THIS SALAD!!
★★★★★
Thanks so much- glad you liked!
I plan to this tomorrow for lunch, but I don’t have an orange. Can I sub lemon for the orange? Or should I just omit that part?
Thanks!
★★★★★
The orange really rellay elevates this here. I suppose you could try lemon.
Thank you, I’ll def add it next time! I used sherry vinegar and omitted the citrus (lomon), and it is delicious! I’ll for sure be making this again! 🙂
This is super fresh and yummy. I added carrots and green onion and a bit of ras el hanout in the dressing
★★★★★