These Zesty Lentil Stuffed Eggplants will have you saying "Yes!" to adding a meatless option to your dinner plans next week! Tender eggplants are stuffed with lentils, tomatoes, and spices to create a delicious and hearty dish!
I'm ashamed to admit it, but I've never used lentils as a stuffing before! I love lentils! I really like lentil soup; it's absolutely one of my favorite fall soups - I've just never really experimented with lentils.
This Stuffed Eggplant recipe is a great meatless option for your dinner menu next week! And as a meat eater myself, this lentil stuffing a great dupe for ground beef!
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Ingredients:
- Eggplants: These tender vegetables can be found in the produce section, usually near the squash and zucchini.
- Olive Oil: You'll need this to cook the onion and help bind the seasonings to the lentils.
- Canned Lentils: I like canned (or bagged) lentils for this recipe, as they are easy and quick to prepare, making it more likely that I'll actually fix this dish during a busy week!
- Onion: I prefer a yellow, sweet onion for this recipe.
- Seasonings and Spices: I find that lentils benefit from seasoning liberally. So you'll need Brown Sugar, Smoked Paprika, Chili Powder, Dried Thyme, Cumin, Onion Powder
- Liquids: Tomato Paste, Balsamic Vinegar, Soy Sauce, Low Sodium Veggie Broth
- Tomatoes: I love Roma tomatoes for this recipe, they are delicious and sweet!
- Garnishes: Non-Dairy Yogurt Alternative and Fresh Parsley
Steps to Prepare:
My personal opinion, this recipe was rather simple, just a little lengthy. It helps to have all of your ingredients prepped and ready to go so you don't make your kitchen a complete mess!
STEP 1: Preheat the oven to 400° and roast the eggplants.
You'll want to start with washing your eggplants, cutting them in half, and scooping out the pulp. Be sure to leave about a ¼ inch of flesh around the eggplant, so it will keep its shape.
Drizzle olive oil on the eggplant, sprinkle sea salt, and roast for 30 minutes.
STEP 2: Start preparing the lentil stuffing.
While the eggplant is resting, start preparing the filing by pulsing the eggplant pulp you removed in a food processor until it is broken down to a large grain. (See image)
Gather and prep your all of your stuffing ingredients (refer to the recipe card), drain and rinse the lentils.
Add the brown sugar, paprika, chili powder, dried thyme, cumin, and onion powder to the food processor, and pulse a couple more times to combine. Set aside.
STEP 3: Sweat the onions.
Heat a large pot over medium heat, add a tablespoon of olive oil, red pepper flake, and the chopped onions. Cook the onions until they are translucent, about 4 or 5 minutes.
Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about a minute.
Stir in the tomato paste, cooking it for about 90 seconds. Add the balsamic and soy sauce and stir.
STEP 4: Combine the prepared stuffing with the cooked onions.
Add the seasoned eggplant pulp from the processor, the lentils, and the vegetable broth. Cook for 5 minutes.
Stir in the diced Roma tomatoes, and cook for another 5 minutes.
Remove the eggplants shells from the oven, and decrease the temperature to 350°.
Stuff the eggplants with the prepared stuffing, and bake for another 10 minutes.
Remove the eggplants from the oven, let them cool for a few minutes, and top with non-dairy yogurt alternative and fresh chopped parsley.
If you enjoyed this Stuffed Eggplant, you may also enjoy these other recipes from the blog!
- Sweet Potato and Black Bean Quinoa Bowl with Avocado Crema
- Crispy Chickpea "Chicken" Nuggets
- Vegetarian Black Bean and Corn Taquitos
I hope you enjoyed this Lentil Stuffed Eggplant recipe! If you try it, please rate it and leave a comment below! (That's so helpful for my site!) I'd love to hear about your experience making it! Snap a photo and tag me on Instagram (@atoastedcrumb) so I can repost it to stories!
Lentil and Tomato Stuffed Eggplant (Vegetarian)
Ingredients
- 2 Eggplants halved, pulp removed and reserved
- 1 tablespoon Olive Oil
- ½ teaspoon Sea Salt
- 1 tablespoon Brown Sugar
- 2 tsp Smoked Paprika
- 2 teaspoon Chili Powder
- 1 teaspoon Dried Thyme
- ½ teaspoon Onion Powder
- ½ Yellow Onion diced
- 1 teaspoon Red Pepper Flakes
- 1 tablespoon Tomato Paste
- 1 teaspoon Balsamic Vinegar
- 1 tbsp Soy Sauce
- ⅓ cup Vegetable Broth
- 1 15oz Can Lentils drained and rinsed
- 2 Roma Tomatoes diced
Garnishes
- 1 tablespoon Non-Dairy Yogurt Alternative
- Fresh Chopped Parsley
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°.
- Cut the eggplants in half and scoop out the pulp of each half. Leave about ¼ of eggplant flesh around the rim. Place the reserved pulp in a food processor.
- Place the eggplants on a baking sheet or rimmed pan, drizzle with olive oil, and sprinkle with sea salt. Roast in the preheated oven for 30 minutes while you prepare the stuffing.
- Process the removed eggplant pulp by pulsing the food processor a couple of times.
- Add the brown sugar, paprika, chili powder, thyme, cumin, and onion powder to the processor and pulse a few more times to combine.
- Heat a pot over medium heat, add olive oil. Add the diced onion and red pepper flake, cook for 4 - 5 minutes until the onions are translucent.
- Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
- Add the tomato paste and cook for about 2 minutes.
- Add the balsamic vinegar and soy sauce, and stir.
- Add the eggplant pulp mixture, drained lentils, and vegetable broth to the pot and let it cook down for about 5 minutes.
- Add the chopped Roma tomatoes, and let cook for another 5 minutes.
- Remove the eggplants from the oven and lower the temperature to 350°.
- Stuff each eggplant with the stuffing, and place back in the oven to bake for another 10 minutes.
- Remove from the oven, allow to cool slightly.
- Top with non-dairy yogurt alternative and fresh chopped parsley.
