These smoky lentil and sweet potato tacos come together quick and easy for a vegetarian weeknight meal. Packed inside gluten-free blue corn tortillas, it is healthy and flavorful. Change up the sweet potatoes for any vegetable that is in season to make this any time of year!

Recipe Snapshot

  • Prep time: 5 minutes
  • Cook time: 50 minutes
  • Total time: 55 minutes
  • Yield: 8 tacos
  • Category: Entree
  • Cuisine: Indian Fusion

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup dry lentils
  • 1 1/2 cups water
  • 1 sweet potato or yam (cubed (1 - 1 1/2 cups))
  • 1 Tbsp olive oil
  • 1/2 medium red onion (chopped (3/4 cup))
  • 1/2 tsp garlic powder
  • 1/2 tsp chipotle chili powder (or 1 chipotle chili in adobo sauce, chopped)
  • 1/4 - 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
  • 1/2 tsp cumin powder (or cumin seeds)
  • 1 tsp coriander powder
  • 1/2 tsp dried oregano
  • 1/2 tsp dried basil
  • 3/4 tsp salt (or more, to taste)
  • a generous dash of black pepper
  • 1 Tbsp tomato paste (or 1/2 large ripe tomato, finely chopped)
  • 1 tsp sriracha sauce
  • 1-2 tsp lime juice
  • a dash of liquid smoke (optional, for extra smokiness)

Assembly

  • hard or soft tacos (I used gluten-free blue corn tortillas)
  • lettuce or cabbage (finely chopped)
  • salsa of choice (I used pico de gallo)
  • avocado, jalapenos, cilantro, lime juice

Method

  1. Soak the lentils for half an hour. Chop up the potatoes, get the ingredients ready. Drain the lentils, wash, and keep ready.
  2. In a deep pan, add oil and heat on medium heat. Add onion and cook until golden (5 to 6 mins).
  3. Add all the spices, herbs, salt, pepper, tomato paste/tomato, and mix well. Cook for a minute (2-3 minutes if using a tomato).
  4. Add the washed lentils and water. Mix, cover, and cook on low-medium heat for 15 minutes.
  5. Add the cubed sweet potato, Sriracha, mix, and cook covered for another 15-25 minutes until lentils and sweet potato are tender and all liquid is absorbed.
  6. Add lime juice, taste, and adjust for salt and spice. Add a dash of liquid smoke for extra smokiness.
  7. Warm the taco shells, then load them with the warm lentil mixture, lettuce/cabbage, fresh salsa, avocado, jalapeno, cilantro, and lime juice. Serve immediately.

Kiyaan Singh’s Kitchen Note

Keep this recipe as a working base: cook once as written, then adjust spice, texture, and serving style for your own table.