Lentils and Rice Casserole

My Lentils and Rice recipe is a hearty, delicious and satisfying meat-free family meal. It’s simple to prepare, gluten-free and vegan with only seven ingredients. Five minutes of prep work and you’ll have a delicious and hearty casserole in the oven..

Lentils and Rice Casserole is one of my favorite money-saving family meals. It’s not only affordable but also packed with protein and nutrients. I’ve been making it for my own family for more than 30 years.

I have tweaked the recipe several times over the years, and this version is my favorite for flavor, texture and hearty, inexpensive nutrition.

And if you’re looking for more meat-free and nutritious dishes, check out Rini’s Vegan Fried Rice at the Healing Tomato. It’s delish!

Economical and Nutritious

Ingredients for this recipe, as written, cost less than $6.00 per recipe/batch.

I do buy lentils in bulk, which reduces the cost. But I’m buying premium French green lentils to get the best texture. If you grab a bag of brown lentils at Walmart, three cups will cost only about $0.96, so you’ll save even more. We just prefer the texture of French green lentils. (If you do decide to sub in plain green or brown lentils, the cost is reduced to around $5.34 per recipe.

So, using French Green Lentils and my high-quality homemade chicken bouillon, I’m still keeping the cost per recipe at about $.75 per serving (for eight servings) and $1.00 per serving (for six servings).

How many servings you get will depend on the appetites you’re feeding. For a powerhouse of nutrition like this Lentils and Rice recipe, that is a crazy economical main dish!

Add a house salad or air fryer green beans or broccoli cauliflower salad and you’ll have a full, healthy meal for a fraction of the cost of takeout.

The Ingredients

French Green Lentils _{[affiliate link]}: Plain brown or green lentils will be slightly cheaper, but their texture will be much softer. Red lentils are absolutely not suited to this dish’s long cooking times. They will turn to mush. After using French Green Lentils for a few years, they are now my go-to, especially in this casserole recipe.

Brown Rice: I use long-grain brown rice that I purchase at our local Walmart grocery. (White rice is not suitable for the long cooking time of this recipe.) Here’s a great recipe that uses quick-cooking brown rice!

Red Onion: You only need one small one or half a large one. (cost $.39/per recipe)

Water

Seasonings: I use my homemade chicken bouillon powder. (Store-bought brands have more salt, so start with the smaller recommended amount from the recipe card if you go that route. Taste as you go to get to the flavor you want. ) I also use Italian seasoning since it’s a good blend of the additional spices I would have added anyway.

Spike seasoning _{[affiliate link]}, added to store-bought chicken broth ($3.27), is a flavorful substitution for water, bouillon and Italian seasoning, too. Certainly, the water version is less expensive. Use what you have on hand and what has the flavor profile you prefer. I have made it both ways with great success.

Sharp Cheddar Cheese: Definitely buy cheese in block form and grate it yourself. Melt-ability is very important in this dish. Pre-grated cheese simply does not melt as well because of the anti-clumping ingredients added to it.

What Are French Green Lentils?

Lentils come in brown, green and red varieties. But there is one lentil in the green variety that is very different from those we commonly see on store shelves.

French Green Lentils are much smaller than other varieties. They have a nutty, earthy and peppery flavor and a texture that is hearty and meaty. This variety of green lentils holds its shape better, even in long-cooking recipes.

The French type of green lentils are much darker in color than the plain variety commonly found in local U.S. grocery stores. French green lentils are very low in saturated fat, cholesterol, and sodium.

Plus they’re loaded with nutrients like manganese, thiamine, iron, phosphorus, folate and dietary fiber. French Green Lentils are very high in protein (36%).

When mixed with brown rice, the combination creates a complete protein. When plants combine to create a complete protein, you get all the benefits of eating meat without the saturated fats.

In larger towns and cities, it may be easy for you to find French Green lentils at your local market. They are not available in our small town.

Typically, I *purchase French Green Lentils on Amazon [affiliate link]. They can also be added to my Walmart pick-up order and shipped to me in 2 days, and if you have a Whole Foods near you, you may also find them in-store there.

If you prefer to use sprouted lentils in your recipes, check out Kristen’s awesome post, How to Sprout Lentils.

Why BROWN Rice?

As mentioned previously, brown rice, in combination with lentils, creates a complete protein without the addition of meat to your meal.

That healthy combination makes my Lentils and Rice recipe an easy choice when I’m choosing easy and economical recipes for the week’s menu. But there are other reasons for using brown rice over white, too.

White and brown rice are exactly the same grain. The difference is in the way they are processed.

Brown rice is a whole grain and a source of Calcium, Iron, Manganese, Magnesium, Phosphorus, Selenium, Vitamin B1 and Vitamin B6. It contains fibrous bran, the nutritious germ, and the carbohydrate-rich endosperm.

Brown rice has more fiber and antioxidants than white rice. It’s also high in magnesium, which, along with the fiber, is believed to help control blood sugar levels.

White rice is the same grain as brown, but has the fiber-rich bran and nutrient-filled germ removed. This allows for a quicker cooking time, lighter color and softer texture.

However, many of rice’s health benefits are gone. White rice has also been shown to quickly elevate blood sugar. You will need to add many more vegetables and fiber-rich foods to help balance meals utilizing white rice.

How to Make this Lentils and Rice Recipe

The beauty of this recipe is its simple prep, which leaves you free to accomplish other tasks while it cooks in the oven. Five minutes of prep will net you a hearty, flavorful and nutritious supper.

Preheat your oven to 300°.

Mix all the ingredients except the cheese in a 4-quart baking dish (9×13 pan) that has an oven-proof lid or that you can seal tightly with foil.

Cover the dish and place in the oven to bake for 2 hours.

Remove the lid, sprinkle with freshly grated cheese and place back in the oven for 5 minutes to melt the cheese.

If desired, serve garnished with chopped parsley, sour cream and chopped fresh tomatoes.

The Recipe

More Easy & Economical Family Dinner Ideas

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If you’re looking for another economical and hearty meal with bold flavor, you have to try this scrumptious Gigi Hadid Pasta recipe, over at Splash of Taste. It’s another winner from Mandy and Jane that is completely meat-free and yet, it’s a hearty and satisfying meal.

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