Nourish and fuel all of life with this healthy vegetarian lentil bowl recipe.

When I’m in the middle of a training cycle, I am on the constant search for new combinations of filling vegetable based carbs that will fuel me for the road, satisfy with great flavor, and provide a host of vitamins, minerals, and protein to help rebuild and nourish my tired muscles. This healthy lentil bowl with sweet potatoes does just that and more.

Sweet Potato & Lentil Bowl with Lemon Sesame Drizzle and a fork in a wide white bowl.

While wrapping up training for my last marathon, I started seeing different athletes on Instagram share different types of sweet potato bowls and lentil bowls they like to eat during their training. DONE. I pulled sweet potatoes and lentils out of the pantry before I had even closed out of Instagram.

I got to cooking and creating my own versions of sweet potato bowls and lentil bowls and wondered how I hadn't discovered them before. They're an easy and quick -- not to mention super healthy -- way to use lentils. I mean, I even had time to whip up some bowls even after a longer midweek evening run (score!).

It was also an easy vegan way to bring in some more healthy sweet potato recipes into our dinner routine. I built the bowl based on the lentils for their protein, but the sweetness of the potatoes balances out the bowl.

Up close of arugula and vegetables of this healthy lentil and sweet potato bowl.

I can't get enough of it. This lentil bowl is:

Gluten- free
Ready in under 30 minutes
Nourishing
Satisfying
Full of healthy, slow digesting carbohydrates
Vegan
& Completely delicious

I mean really, can you get any better than that?

With the umami of the lemon tahini dressing and the heartiness of the sweet potatoes and lentils, this bowl should prove to be more than satisfying on its own. I also like to add a fried egg, grilled chicken, or baked salmon on top for some extra protein-packed staying power, though. Whatever you are feeling!

Ingredients For Healthy Lentil Bowl with Sweet potatoes: lentils, rice, baby tomatoes, arugula, and more.

The Ingredients

Sweet Potatoes -- a good roast caramelize the sweet potatoes, adding a delicious depth of flavor to this vegan bowl recipe. Bonus points for sweet potatoes too-- did you know they boast a ton of potassium that our active muscles need?
Green lentils and wild rice - I always love finding an easy green lentil recipe because it means that I'll be that more likely to eat this superfood even more. Lentils are packed with fiber, iron, manganese, potassium and more!
Lemon Tahini Dressing - using liquid aminos in this recipe keeps this bowl gluten free. The sesame seeds in this dressing are also a nutritional powerhouse: they bring calcium, selenium, fiber, iron, and more!

White white bowl with lentil salad and sweet potatoes on a black granite counter.

Healthy Lentil Bowl with Sweet Potatoes Cooking Notes:

If you don’t have wild rice on hand, you can sub in another long grain brown or white rice, or you can completely omit the rice entirely. Your call! If cooking with rice, though, just start that rice for however much longer the cooking time is than 20 minutes. For example, if you choose a rice that has a 30 minute cooking time, cook that rice for 10 minutes before adding in the lentils and cooking for the remaining 20 minutes.

If you’re crazy about sesame like I am and already have the sesame sauce on hand, feel free to loosen up the sauce with a few teaspoons of cold water if the sauce thickened up from being cold.

Otherwise, just whip up the Lemon Tahini Salad Dressing while the potatoes and rice are cooking.

Healthy Lentil Bowl with Sweet Potatoes

Name: Healthy Lentil Bowl with Sweet Potatoes
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 55 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 2 medium sweet potatoes, about 2 lbs; peeled and cut into about a ½” dice; 2 T olive oil; 1 ¼ tsp salt, divided; 1 tsp cumin; 3 cups water; ½ c. wild rice; ½ c. green lentils; 3 green onions, light green and white parts thinly sliced; 3 c. arugula, divided; 1 ripe avocado peeled & sliced or diced; 1/2 lemon; ½ c. grape tomatoes, cut in half

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 45 minutes

Total Time: 55 minutes

Fuel for life with whole grains and healthy veggies in this sweet potato & lentil bowl. Make Lemon Tahini Dressing (below recipe card) while the potatoes and lentils are cooking.

Ingredients

2 medium sweet potatoes, about 2 lbs; peeled and cut into about a ½” dice
2 T olive oil
1 ¼ tsp salt, divided
1 tsp cumin
3 cups water
½ c. wild rice
½ c. green lentils
3 green onions, light green and white parts thinly sliced
3 c. arugula, divided
1 ripe avocado peeled & sliced or diced
½ lemon
½ c. grape tomatoes, cut in half

Instructions

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Coat a large rimmed baking sheet with the olive oil and then scatter the sweet potatoes on the sheet. Sprinkle potatoes with salt and cumin and then toss the sweet potatoes around on the sheet to cover all of the potatoes evenly with oil and the seasonings. Add to oven and roast 25-30 minutes, stirring about halfway through, or until the potatoes are getting deliciously brown.
Bring the water and ½ tsp of salt to a boil in a 1 ½ quart saucepan then add in the wild rice and reduce to a simmer over medium-low to medium heat. Cook covered for 25 minutes. Then add in lentils, cover and cook for another 20 minutes, or until most of the water is absorbed and both lentils and rice are tender. If there is extra water when they are done, drain it off.
Serve in large bowls layering the rice and lentils on the bottom followed by the arugula, sweet potatoes, green onions, tomatoes, avocado and sauce. Squeeze fresh lemon, a light sprinkle of salt, cracked pepper or paprika over each dish and serve.

Nutrition Information

Yield

Serving Size

1
Amount Per Serving Calories 354Total Fat 13gSaturated Fat 2gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 10gCholesterol 0mgSodium 807mgCarbohydrates 56gFiber 11gSugar 15gProtein 8g

This nutrition breakdown is an estimate of the nutritional value of this recipe and cannot be taken as facts. The owners of Mae's Menu are not nutritionists or dieticians and therefore cannot be held accountable for this nutrition estimate. Please contact your nutritionist or medical professional for a nutritional breakdown of this food. Furthermore, this food is not intended to prevent, diagnose, cure, or treat any disease.

Healthy Lentil Bowl with Sweet Potatoes