These simple lentil flatbreads have just four ingredients. Made out of split red lentils, they're gluten free, vegan and couldn't be easier to make!
We're kinda low on flour right now, so we had a play round in the kitchen to see if we could come up with some tasty flourless flatbreads.
And we're so pleased with the result - we'll for sure keep on making these even when we do have flour again!
We think you'll love how easy these red lentil flatbreads are to make:
- They’re gluten free and vegan
- They’re protein rich
- And there’s no flour, no yeast and no baking powder needed!
There’s just four ingredients:
- Red lentils
- Water
- Curry powder
- And salt
The curry powder and salt are optional, but they make things just a bit more yummy!
The process is simple: just mix all the ingredients together, leave to rest for one hour, then blend together into a thick batter. Then cook them in a pan on both sides. It’s that simple!
STEP 2 - Soak for 1 hour
STEP 3 - Blend until you have a very thick batter
STEP 4 - Cook on both sides in a non stick pan or oiled skillet
What's the texture like?
The texture of these red lentil flatbreads is a bit like a firm pancake crossed with a naan bread. They've got a slightly crispy crust when they are fresh.
The most important thing when making these flatbreads is to blend well, so the lentils are well broken down. If your blender is not so powerful and doesn’t puree the lentils the first time you blend, then let the batter soak for another 15 mins, and blend again.
The resulting batter should be relatively smooth and thick enough to hold it’s shape, but still fluid.
Serve them
These flatbreads are best eaten when they’re freshly made, but you can also heat them up again in a pan or a toaster.
We like to eat them with some mango chutney and a yummy vegan curry. Especially our Apple Curry!
More tasty lentil recipes
We really love red lentils, we eat this Red Lentil Dal almost every week, and we even served it at our wedding!
We also love this satisfying one-pot Potato and Lentil Dahl with Spinach. It’s got a secret ingredient you might not expect!
Hope you enjoy these flatbreads!
Sophie & Paul
📖 Recipe
Red Lentil Flatbreads
Ingredients
- 1 cup (180 g) red lentils
- 1 ½ cups (360 ml) water
- 1 tsp curry powder
- ¼ tsp salt
Instructions
- Mix all the ingredients in a bowl or directly in your blender
- Leave to soak for 1 hour
- Blend the mixture (don't drain it) until you have a thick batter. The batter should be like very thick pancake batter and relatively smooth (a bit grainy is normal). If your blender isn't very powerful and the lentils are not well blended, then rest for another 15 minutes and blend again.
- Heat up a non stick frying pan or seasoned cast iron skillet with a small amount of oil in
- For each flatbread, spoon 2 or 3 tablespoons of batter into your pan. Cook on medium high heat for 1-2 minutes until the surface has some bubbles. Then flip with a spatula, and cook for 1-2 minutes more until lightly brown on the underside and cooked all the way through.
- Continue until you've cooked all your flatbreads. You can keep the flatbreads warm by stacking them on a plate and covering with a tea towel.
Notes
Nutrition
This information is calculated per serving and is an estimate only.
Susie says
How do you thicken up this recipe? It's so watery!
Sophie and Paul says
Hi Susie, Sorry to hear you're having this issue. The ratio of lentils to water always works perfectly for us to make a thick batter. Not blending enough, a mistake when measuring or using already cooked lentils could be reasons why the batter would be watery? To fix a more liquid batter you could add some gram flour, or if you have a good high speed blender you could pulse some red lentils into flour and then gradually add that until you have a thicker texture. Hope that helps, Sophie
Annie says
I can see why these are a favourite - they are quick and easy to make, taste good and are filling. When I eat a vegetable curry, with no legumes - and I eat a lot of Indian food - I find flatbread aren't that satisfying, but I don’t want rice every time. Or quinoa,. These flatbread/pancakes are perfect. I used moong dal and the batter was a bit too thick, made to the recipe -maybe they absorb more water than lentils. Anyway, I just added some more water and it was fine. These will become e part of my standard repertoire. Many thanks!
Ellen Carson says
I have found my red lentil flat bread bitter the only time I ever made it in the past so rinsed the lentils and then soaked them 3 hrs in the mixing water, then noticing the cup marker on my glass liquid measuring pitcher, drained the water out, rinsed and replaced it exactly, leaving it over night. Then next morning I blended it like crazy in my Vitamix. But alas, something went wrong and the batter is much too watery!
Can my batter be retrieved?
Sophie and Paul says
Hi Ellen, I expect that your batter is more watery because the natural starches in the rinsing/soaking water are gone and they have a thickening effect. For this batch you could simply try soaking more lentils, draining and adding them in with the rest to reduce the wateriness. Alternatively adding some gram/chickpea flour could also be a quicker possibility. I haven't had the experience of bitter lentils, but according to several sources older lentils can taste more bitter, so you could also try using fresher lentils next time. Seasoning the batter with salt also helps to balance bitter flavours. Hope that helps! Sophie
Ron says
Are they supposed to be slightly gummy/mushy in the inside?
Sophie and Paul says
Hi Ron, I find the texture normally comes out as a cross between a naan and a pancake, so not completely bready but not mushy. Perhaps they were a little undercooked or had too much liquid? I have found them to be mushy and gummy when I tested the recipe with other types of lentils than red lentil. Hope that helps, Sophie
Lotus says
Some how I missed the ratio of water to lentils and how much curry powder.
Sophie and Paul says
Hi, Are you seeing the recipe card at the end of the post (and just above these comments)? All the quantities of ingredients are listed there. Hope you enjoy the flatbreads!
Julie says
can you freeze these, an how long will they keep in the refrig,? Thanks
Sophie and Paul says
Hi Julie, yes you can freeze them! They should be great if you just put them in the toaster straight from the freezer. In the fridge, they should keep for a couple of days.
Hope this helps! x
Sara says
hello, do you can I make these with canned lentils? or does it have to be dry? thank you!
Sophie and Paul says
Hi Sara, We always use dry red lentils. Canned lentils are already cooked, and a lot more moist, so I suspect that they would make a wetter batter which may not work so well. I have never seen canned red lentils, but if you have some you could try blending them and then cooking with the same method, but without testing it ourselves I am not sure how well it would work. Hope that helps! Sophie
Alyssa says
While this recipe looks wonderful I really l think you should credit this dishes origin and call it by it’s real name, Dosa.
Sophie and Paul says
Thanks Alyssa, hope you try the recipe and enjoy them! They are similar to dosa in that they are lentil-based flatbreads. However dosa are traditionally made from a mixture of lentils (urad dal) and rice, which is fermented overnight and gives them a slightly tangy taste. Dosa are also much thinner and crisp in texture than these flatbreads.
Juli says
I will definitely be making these again. So easy and delicious.
Sophie and Paul says
Thank you, Juli! 🙂
Janet says
My first attempt & although my first pancake didn’t have much of an aesthetic appeal, they did look better as I progressed. Having said that, we all enjoyed them very much. I have decided that I need one of those wooden tools which the French use to spread their crepes evenly. An investment, as I will definitely be making these again (& again). Thank you.
Sophie and Paul says
So glad you loved them Janet and have fun making them again soon!