Simple Lentil Salad Recipe for Weight Watchers | Simple Nourished Living (2024)

FAQs

How many points are lentils on Weight Watchers? ›

Filling, highly nutritious, and inexpensive, beans and lentils are so much more than just a basic pantry staple. Plus, on WeightWatchers they are a ZeroPoint food, meaning you don't need to weigh, measure, or track them!

Mix into tuna, egg or potato salads. Add to roasted vegetables hot out of the oven. Make this nutrition-packed Turmeric Lentil Chia Soup. Whip up this 5-minute, fall-inspired Creamy Pumpkin Hummus and serve with raw veggies or sprouted Flackers crackers.

Give them a simmer

(Here's a handy cooking chart for that.) You can also add salt, aromatics like a halved onion, herbs, and spices to the pot before the lentils and the water, like beans, or wait until they're done cooking to flavor them.

Nutrition In Basic Lentil Salad

One serving provides 250 calories, 36 grams of carbohydrate, 10 grams of protein and 8 g fat. It's a great source of fiber, providing per serving. If you use dried lentils, frozen corn and dried beans, as I do, one serving will provide mg of sodium.

Full of fiber and protein, these foods also support overall health, keep you full, and bulk up and add flavor to your meals. And, of course, you can eat as much as you like.

Black Lentils (Beluga lentils)

Thanks to the robust flavor, these lentils pair well with meaty veggies and marinated proteins like mushrooms, tofu, and seitan. Best of all, black lentils are the most nutritious variety of lentils, boasting the highest amount of protein, plus high levels of calcium, potassium, and iron.

Lentils and beans are rich in soluble fiber, which is the single best carbohydrate to help you burn belly fat. "Soluble fiber forms a thick gel when it binds with water in the body," Tracy said. "This gel that forms therefore slows digestion in the body, which keeps you feeling full for longer!

Lentils are rich in a type of fiber that helps your digestive system work as it should and fuels good bacteria in your gut. Fiber may also help reduce the risk of colorectal cancer. “Fiber plays an important role in regulating our bowels and protecting the immune system,” says Homan.

The best side dishes to serve with lentils are roasted vegetables, yellow rice, couscous, caramelized onions, gobi manchurian, tomato basil soup, brown rice, grilled flatbread, Greek salad, cucumber raita, quinoa, and naan bread.

What to eat with lentils for weight loss? ›

French green lentils hold their shape well after cooking so they are great for salads. Serve with brown rice, quinoa, or another grain of choice as you prefer.

However, it's worth bearing in mind – if you are planning on eating lentils every day – that the fibre they contain can be difficult to break down and can potentially cause gas and cramping if you eat too much of it.

Lentils are not suitable for those following a strict low-carb or keto diet. While they are rich in protein and fiber, they contain a high number of total and net carbs, with one cup of cooked legumes having 39.8 grams of total carbohydrates — that's already 50% of the daily carb allowance of a keto dieter.

Since lentils have more fiber, lentils win this round. Lentils contain more protein than Chickpeas. Both chickpeas and lentils are great sources of vegetable protein. However, since lentils have more of this healthy nutrient, lentils win this round.

Brown rice flour, chickpea flour, black bean flour, and whole-grain flours = not ZeroPoint foods. Brown rice, chickpeas, black beans, and whole grains = ZeroPoint foods.

Here's a list of all the ZeroPoint foods in the category. Beans, peas, and lentils are loaded with fiber, vitamins, and minerals. Cook 'em up in a chili, toss them into a salad for a meat-free protein boost, or purée them with garlic and olive oil for a tasty dip.