Are Lentils Gluten Free?

Lentils are gluten-free. Lentils are a legume or bean, which means they are not a grain. All legumes like beans, soy and peas are gluten-free foods!

Lentils come from a plant. You can buy them dry, or in a can! Either way, be sure to check the ingredients to make sure that the only ingredient is either “lentils,” or lentils, water and salt, and any other firming agent used in canned foods.

You will find that most canned lentils are gluten-free.

Once you get your lentils, you can start cooking them! Lentils are a very popular bean in many cuisines, from Indian to Ethiopian.

Are lentils gluten-free if you order them in a restaurant? This will really depend on the restaurant, the chef making the food, the waitstaff and their knowledge of allergens and the recipe itself.

Some recipes with lentils may contain gluten, whether some flour, to thicken something like lentil soup, or other thickening agents that contain wheat products.

Can you cook gluten-free meals with lentils though? You sure can! If you get some lentils and look up a gluten-free recipe online, doing all the cooking yourself, you can make some amazing gluten-free lunches and dinners that feature lentils as the star.

When it comes to eating out and you’d like to order a lentil dish on the menu, make sure to speak directly with your server to determine that the dish is made with gluten-free ingredients only, and that there is no cross-contamination from gluten-containing foods during preparation and cooking!