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5-Ingredient Lentil Sandwich Bread (V, GF, Oil-free option)

Amazing 5-ingredient lentil sandwich bread that is grain-free, sugar-free, and vegan! Made with whole lentils, it looks and tastes like whole wheat bread.You can also replace the 1 tablespoon of oil with water, making this oil-free.

Grain-Free Bread, Made with Whole Lentils

Hi everyone, I hope that you are enjoying the first few days of spring!

Everything is in bloom here in Texas and the weather is blissful. All at once, I am craving lighter, fresher flavors and foods, such as salads, simple vegetable preparations, smoothies.

Nevertheless, I am always in the mood to bake, so if it is still chilly where you are living, fear not, I have an option that works for any climate.

Benefits of 5-Ingredient Lentil Sandwich Bread

It looks a lot like whole wheat quick bread, and has a taste and texture to match.  Yet it is:

  • Grain-free
  • Vegan (egg-free, dairy-free)
  • Yeast-free
  • Sugar-free
  • Gluten-free
  • Oil-free option

It is an excellent slicing bread, too, ideal for the eponymous sandwiches, as well as toast. It’s great with sweet or savory toppings, too!

2 slices of lentil bread on a black cooling rack

Ingredients for Lentil Sandwich Bread

To make this bread, you will need the following:

  1. Uncooked lentils (I used the common brown/tan variety, but you can use what you have on hand)
  2. Tapioca starch (potato starch works fine, too)
  3. Psyllium husk (I have options if you do not have psyllium)
  4. Vegetable oil (e.g., olive, safflower or avocado oil. Only a tablespoon is needed (oil-free options included–simply use an extra tablespoon of water)
  5. Baking powder (be sure to use a grain-free variety if you need this to be 100% grain-free)
ingredients for lentil bread on a piece of slate

Let’s Make Some Bread!

The bread is super-simple to make, but it does require some advance planning to soak the lentils.

Step 1: Rinse and Soak Lentils

Rinse the uncooked lentils under cold water and then place in a large bowl. Cover the lentils with water (enough so that there is about 1 inch/2.5 cm above the lentils) and let soak for at least 2 hours or up to 24 hours.

Step 2: Drain & Rinse Lentils

Drain the plumped-up lentils and give them another rinse under cold water.
overhead view of soaked lentils in colander

Step 3: Blend the Lentil Batter

Place the lentils, 1/2 cup (120 mL) fresh water, and both the oil and salt, in a blender.

Blend away, stopping several times (especially at the start) to scrape the sides of the blender. Keep blending until the result is a completely smooth batter.
batter for lentil bread in a blender

Step 4: Add Remaining Ingredients

Transfer the batter to a large bowl.

You can add the remaining ingredients to the blender, but I prefer to scrape the lentil mixture into a bowl before adding the tapioca starch, psyllium husk, and baking powder.

Why dirty an extra bowl? Because the final batter is quite thick and sticky; I find it more manageable to add the final ingredients in a bowl.

If you have a  a traditional blender (as opposed to a high speed blender, like a Blentec or Vitamix),  I strongly recommend transferring to a bowl before adding the final ingredients. You don’t want to blow out the motor, even for a great loaf of bread!
bowl ful of lentil bread batter

Step 5: Spread Batter in Prepared Pan

Scrape and spread the batter into a 9×5-inch (22.5 x 12.5 cm) loaf pan that has been lined with parchment paper.

Can you bake without the parchment paper? Yes, but the sides will get darker than in a parchment-lined pan. It’s good either way!

Spread the batter evenly and give the pan a hard bang on the counter to remove any big bubbles.

unbaked loaf of lentil bread

Step 6: Bake

Slide the pan into the middle of a preheated 400F (200C) oven and bake. Pretty simple, right?

In roughly 50 minutes (it will sound hollow when you tap the top), you have a glorious, golden loaf of bread!
baked loaf of lentil bread in pan on a cooling rack
Remove the bread from the pan soon after it emerges from the oven. I’ve found that leaving it in the pan can result in a slightly soggy bottom. No one needs that!
whole loaf of baked lentil bread on a black cooling rack

Cool and Slice

Let the bread cool completley on a wire rack. Your only remaining tasks are slicing and eating!

You can slice the bread very thin, or go thick and rustic. It’s very filling, so I prefer thin slices for sandwiches and medium slices for toast.

I’m loving this bread but I am excited to know what you think if you give it a try.

Happy Baking, everyone!


sliced lentil bread on a wooden cutting board

More Easy, Grain-Free & Vegan Breads to Love:

loaf of lentil bread , sliced, on a black cooling rack

5-Ingredient Lentil Sandwich Bread (V, GF, oil-free option)

Yield: 1 loaf (14 slices)
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 50 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour

Amazing 5-ingredient lentil sandwich bread that is grain-free, sugar-free, and vegan! Made with whole lentils, it looks and tastes like whole wheat bread.

Ingredients

  • 1 and 1/2 cups (300 g) uncooked brown lentils
  • water to cover lentils
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil (or more water)
  • 3/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 1/2 cup (60 g) tapioca starch
  • 1 tablespoon psyllium husk
  • 2 and 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

Instructions

  1. Rinse the lentils to remove any debris and then place in a large bowl. Fill the bowl with enough water to cover the lentils by at least 1 inch (2.5 cm). Soak for at least 2 hours or up to 24 hours. Drain the lentils and transfer to a blender.
  2. Preheat oven to 400F (200C). Line a 9x5-inch (22.5 x 12.5 cm) loaf pan with parchment paper (leaving an overhang). Grease or spray exposed interior sides of pan.
  3. Add the 1/2 cup water, oil (or extra water) and salt to the blender with the lentils. Process, stopping several times to scrape sides and bottom of blender, until completley smooth.
  4. Scoop the lentil mixture into a large bowl. Stir in the tapioca starch, psyllium husk and baking powder until completely blended. Spoon batter into prepared pan, smoothing the top. Give the loaf pan a bang on countertop to release any large bubbles. Re-smooth the top, if needed.
  5. Bake in the preheated oven for 48 to 53 minutes until golden brown and bread sounds hollow when tapped.
  6. Remove bread from pan and cool completely on a wire rack. Slice and eat as desired!

Notes

Storage: Store the cool bread, tightly wrapped, in an airtight container at room temperature for 2 days, the refrigerator for 1 week, or the freezer for up to 6 months.

Other Lentils: You can use other varieties of lentils in place of the common brown/tan variety (e.g., split red lentils, green lentils, black lentils). For best results, measure 300 grams of lentils rather than going by cups.

Oil-free Option: The oil gives the bread tenderness, but if you do not eat oil, replace with an equal amount of water. You may want to consider replacing the 1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon water with an equal amount of nondairy milk (one that has some fat in it) to make up for the missing oil. If you choose to use full-fat, canned coconut milk, I recommend replacing no more than 2 tablespoons of water.

Psyllium Substitutes: Psyllium husk works best in this recipe, giving much needed structure in the absence of grains, gluten and eggs. If you do not have it, use 4 teaspoons of flaxseed meal or ground chia seeds. The finished bread may dip--just a little bit--in the center with these substitutes.

Tapioca Starch Substitutes: An equal amount of potato starch can be used in place of the tapioca starch. I have not made this with arrowroot, but an equal amount of arrowroot powder should work, too.

Nutrition Information
Serving Size 1 slice (1/14 of loaf)
Amount Per Serving Calories 103Total Fat 1gSaturated Fat 0.1gCholesterol 0mgSodium 186mgCarbohydrates 17.4gFiber 5.6gSugar 1.3gProtein 5.8g

Did you make this recipe?

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Judy

Sunday 21st of January 2024

Followed the recipe, 1.5 Cups green lentils. Omitted the oil.

Love the taste, but the bread was quite doughy and a large empty space at the top of the loaf. Wonder what I did wrong?

Camilla

Tuesday 23rd of January 2024

Hi Judy! Any chance that your oven is convection (as opposed to traditional radiant heat)? The bubble top with doughy bottom seems to come up with spree of my other alternative bread recipes when convection heat is used. These unusual breads need slow steady heat from a radiant oven.

Tim

Tuesday 1st of November 2022

I made as directed but in a 8x4 in pan, baked for 60 minutes, came out very similar to whole wheat bread and quite tasty. I recommend using 1.5 cups lentils and not 300 grams, I made a similar lentil bread recipe on this site using weight in grams instead of volume that came out gooey, but when I measured volume vs grams the recommended volume was much heavier.

Camilla

Thursday 3rd of November 2022

So glad you like the bread, Tim! And thanks, too, for sharing your tips, much appreciated :)

Shirley

Tuesday 4th of October 2022

Would regular corn starch work instead of tapioca starch?

Camilla

Tuesday 4th of October 2022

Hi Shirley, Yes, that should work fine :)

Mare

Thursday 26th of May 2022

Hi! I'm very happy with this bread, lentils are so cheap and gluten free flour is not so it's a huge win for me.

Peter Piper

Sunday 3rd of April 2022

Can this be made into waffle bread (without sweetener)? I gotta tell ya, this loaf looks horrendous and I'd much rather eat waffle bread anyway. Do I need to change the recipe in any way to make waffle bread?

Camilla

Monday 2nd of May 2022

I think you could probably just place the batter in the waffle iron. You could try a smaller test waffle and then add more water, as needed.

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