Lentil Enchiladas for Two

closeup of lentil enchiladas with homemade enchilada sauce on a white plate

This vegetarian date night dinner recipe is as easy as it is tasty. Lentil enchiladas in a homemade sauce is hearty, satisfying and layered with aphrodisiac ingredients for a romantic meal.

Course Main Course

Cuisine Mexican-inspired

Cooking Style vegan, Vegetarian

Diet and Health gluten-free, healthy-ish

Ingredient lentils

Prep Time 40

Cook Time 15

Servings servings

Calories 839

Author Delahna Flagg

Ingredients

2 cup cooked brown or black lentils at room temperature
1 red bell pepper
1 pasilla pepper
1 jalapeno
2 garlic cloves finely chopped
1 green onion
1/2 tsp cumin
1 lg egg optional
1/2 tbsp oil grapeseed or avocado oil recommended
2 flour tortillas**
sea salt to taste

Get Recipe Ingredients

Instructions

Roast peppers on open flame, rotating as they char.
Remove peppers and seal them in a container for 15 minutes so the steam will loosen the skin.
Once the peppers have cooled a bit, remove the outer layer of roasted skin.
Deseed and dice the roasted peppers. Reserve the seeds.
Add the chopped garlic and a pinch of salt to the peppers, mix and set aside.
In a medium sauté pan, lightly toast the cumin over low heat. Heat till aromatic then remove from the pan. (You will use the pan again later.)
Combine the cumin with the cooked lentils.
Thinly slice the green onion into rounds and add it to the lentils.
Take 3/4 of the pepper mixture and mix it into the lentils (the other quarter of the peppers will be used as your enchilada topping).
Scramble the egg in a small sauté pan and add to the lentil mixture, thoroughly combined. (Skip this step if making vegan enchiladas.) Taste the lentil mixture and season with salt if necessary.
Heat a saute pan you used to toast the cumin with the cooking oil. Sauté the lentil mixture. Aim to achieve a golden brown coating on all sides to give the enchiladas their crispy texture.
Lightly cook tortillas directly on the stovetop if you use a gas stove to achieve a light toasted flavor. Cook both sides. If you're using electric or induction, use a pan and cook the tortillas over high heat to toast the outside without drying them out.
Cover the bottom of a medium sauté pan with a thin layer of water. Turn on the stove for the steam to build.
Fill each of the the tortillas with 2 tablespoons of crisped lentil mixture. Roll tightly and place into the pan.
Combine the reserved pepper mixture and seeds (optional--see notes) and pour over the top of the enchiladas.*
Cover with a tightly-fitting lid for 2 minutes to steam.
Serve immediately.

Notes

*If you're sensitive to spice, discard the seeds. See the explanation in the introduction to learn more about how pepper seeds can intensify spice.

**To make gluten-free enchiladas, use gluten-free tortillas made from alternate flours that do not contain gluten.

To make these enchiladas vegan, simply skip the scrambled egg.

A note on the provided nutrition information

The nutrition information provided has been estimated by an online nutrition calculator and is not a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

Nutrition