Spring Lentil Salad Recipe
A delicious, healthy spring lentil salad recipe with veggies, lemon, and mint served over optional tahini yogurt sauce. Vegan adaptable and Gluten-Free.
How to Make the Best Spring Lentil Salad
This Spring Lentil Salad is the perfect dish to celebrate the arrival of warmer weather. Packed with protein-rich lentils and your choice of vibrant spring vegetables, it’s both satisfying and incredibly nutritious. The combination of fresh mint, bright lemon, and tangy sumac creates a flavor profile that’s refreshing and light—exactly what you crave when the days start getting longer.
What makes this salad truly special is the creamy tahini yogurt sauce that serves as the base. It adds a luxurious, silky element that perfectly complements the earthy lentils and crisp vegetables. Whether you’re serving this as a main course for a light lunch or as an impressive side dish at your next gathering, it’s sure to be a crowd-pleaser.
The beauty of this recipe lies in its flexibility—use whatever spring vegetables look best at your local market. Snap peas, asparagus, radishes, and English peas all work wonderfully. It’s also easily adaptable for vegan diets by simply swapping in plant-based yogurt, making it a versatile option for feeding a diverse group of guests.
Spring Lentil Salad
A delicious, healthy spring lentil salad recipe with veggies, lemon, and mint served over optional tahini yogurt sauce. Vegan adaptable and Gluten-Free.
Ingredients
Lentil Salad
Tahini Yogurt Sauce
Instructions
Prepare the Lentils and Veggies
- Cook the lentils in salted water until tender but not falling apart. Drain, rinse with cold water, and drain again.
- Lightly blanch asparagus, snap peas, green beans, or English peas until tender-crisp. Chill immediately.
- If adding radishes, keep them raw and crunchy. If using chard, finely chop and wilt in a pan with a little olive oil, shallot or garlic, and salt and pepper.
Assemble the Salad
- Place the lentils, veggies, onion, garlic, and mint in a bowl. Toss with the olive oil, lemon zest, and juice from half a lemon.
- Season generously with salt, pepper, and optional sumac. Adjust salt and lemon to taste—if it's bland, it most likely needs more salt.
Make the Tahini Yogurt Sauce
- Whisk all the sauce ingredients together in a small bowl until smooth.
- Smear the yogurt sauce on a platter or individual plates, then top with the lentil salad and optional microgreens.
Notes
- Do not use split lentils—Black Caviar or French Green lentils hold their shape best.
- For a vegan version, substitute the Greek yogurt with your favorite vegan yogurt.
- The sumac adds a lovely tangy, citrusy note but can be omitted if unavailable.
