Urad Dal Lentils made into a batter and baked to make a soft flavorful nutritious Lentil bread. This Lentil Sandwich Bread is Free of dairy, egg, soy, gluten, nut. Can be made corn-free. Can be made grain-free by omitting the rice flour. Paleo Vegan Glutenfree Recipe.
The amazing thing about Urad dal (split and dehusked black gram) batter is that it aerates by itself really well. Hence, the dal is the mandatory ingredient in the southern Indian crepes(Dosa) and steamed cakes(idli). Urad dal is also used to make Vadas(fried dumplings) which have just one main ingredient- urad dal.
Another feature of urad dal is that it keeps the final product moist and soft. All of these properties make it a great candidate to make today’s bread.
There really isn’t a substitute for Urad Dal. No other lentil works as the batter will not ferment. You can buy the urad dal lentils online on amazon Urad Dal Matpe Beans, Split
or from an Indian store (much cheaper). This bread also obviously has the strong taste of the dal. If you have tried South Indian food, then you might know and its taste.
This bread might seem like it has a hard crust right after baking but it gets softer as it sits because the dal leaks moisture. The photos do not do justice to how soft and delicious this bread is. There is no gluten or gum or nuts or added yeast in this bread.
Welcome to my world of experimentation 🙂
The lentil batter can also be left at room temperature to ferment for a few hours for a more leavened bread. The dal attracts wild yeast and ferments. I am not sure if that would be technically called yeast-free after fermentation.
Things to know before jumping into this recipe, this bread is going to taste like urad dal lentils. This bread is denser than a usual sandwich bread. /the bread is also very moist. So if you slice it before it has cooled, it will feel like it has not cooked through, but it has. If the bread doesn’t turn out right, just add the chopped bread into any of the indian sauces or sambhar(split pea stew) to soften and serve.
Or make a mini loaf with 1/2 cup lentils in a mini loaf pan to try first. You can also make fat pancakes with the batter and use them as burger buns.
This bread is full of protein, so make some grilled sandwiches with this one for a hearty snack!
Urad Dal pictured below.
More gluten-free breads on the blog
GLUTEN-FREE FLAT-BREAD BURGER BUNS
GLUTEN-FREE OAT RICE FOCACCIA STYLE PIZZA CRUST
GLUTEN-FREE VEGAN WHITE BREAD LOAF Mini
GLUTEN-FREE STRAWBERRY SANDWICH BREAD
Recipe Card
Lentil Bread - Gluten-free Vegan Sandwich Bread
Ingredients
- 1.5 cups (300 g) urad dal (split and skinned black gram- Urad Dal Matpe)
- 3 tbsp rice flour
- 3 Tbsp corn starch or tapioca starch
- 1.5 tsp baking powder
- 2 tsp flaxmeal or psyllium husk
- 1/4 tsp (0.25 tsp) cumin seeds
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp (0.25 tsp) black pepper
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1 Tbsp oil
Instructions
- Soak the urad dal overnight. Drain and add to a food processor. Process the dal until it is just slightly gritty. Process for 30 to 45 seconds then move the dal with a spatula. It will take 3 to 4 minutes to break the lentils down into a batter type consistency. Add just a little water (3 to 6 Tablespoons) to help with the processing. Add the rest of the ingredients and process for a minute to combine. Check the batter for aeration. (drop a half tsp of batter in a cup of water. The batter should float on the top). If not aerated well , transfer the thick batter to a bowl and whip with a large spoon a few times, then check again. the batter should be thick and pasty but also slightly bubbly.
- Drop batter into parchment lined bread pan. Spray oil on top and even it out using a light hand so the air in the batter is not pressed out.
- Preheat the oven to 395 degrees F / 200ºc. Bake for 45 minutes. Cover the bread with another parchment after first 15 to 20 minutes by placing the parchment on the loaf pan. Reduce temperature to 375 degrees F / 190ºc after 45 minutes, remove parchment and bake for another 10 to 15 minutes or until it sounds hollow when tapped.
- Cool completely before slicing. (about an hour). The bread slices more easily the next day. Refrigerate the bread for upto 5 days in an airtight container. The bread crust is crusty the first day and gets softer as it sits because of moisture. Moisture in the storage container after a day is normal. I like to use to bread with chutney toppings or simple sandwiches.
Notes
Nutrition
Malini Vittal Rao
Amazing. For last five years I have tried different recipes for making gluten-free bread but this one is the best. I thank you for thinking of using urad dal in this recipe .
Vegan Richa Support
thank you Malini
Jenny F
I used mung daal, it worked perfectly. Thanks for the recipee
Vegan Richa Support
thanks for popping in
Jo
Hi Richa
Does it have to be the black urad Dahl or will it also work with the white urad dhal too ?
Thank u
Stacy
Hi 🙂
I’m making this right now, can’t seem to get the batter to aerate ….Iv tried using the spoon as you’ve suggested and even tried whipping with an electric whisk….it’s still won’t float. What am I doing wrong?
Any help appreciated!
Richa
Are you using the right kind of lentils ?
Stacy
Yes Urad Dal 🙂
Stacy
I pricked the batter with a fork to get air into it…, it’s in the oven now so we’ll see what happens lol
Neetu
Stacy – whip it only in one direction
Vernita
I love this recipe, no other home made gluten free recipe is as clean, easy or good as this one! Thank you for this recipe. As a former bread lover/connoisseur now trying to go gluten free, this recipe really helps when I am craving just bread and butter.
I do have one question is fermentation supposed to make the batter rise even more?
Richa
Yes it does make the batter rise more
Vernita
Thank you for the info. I do have one more question. Is this a recipe I could add yeast to?
Affia Wahab
Hello, wonderful recipe I tried it, firstly got a bit confused with the cup measurement i used 1 & 1/2 cup of lentil but it didnt rice much. Batter dod float on water and sounds hollow upon knocking.
But not has high as yours
Vegan Richa Support
sorry it didn’t turn out for you – maybe the lentils were a little old. also, If not aerated well , transfer the thick batter to a bowl and whip with a large spoon a few times, to incorporate air in the batter then check again.
Meghna
Dear Richa ,
Thanks for this great recipe.
I made the bread but with split black urad dal instead . It was a little moist and pretty crusty .
I used tapioca flour instead of rice flour .
Is that alright to use?
I didn’t cover it with parchment paper , as I didn’t have one.
If you could please let me know the reason why we need to cover it and then bake ?
Thanks much
Richa
Covering keeps the moisture in and reduces the drying out of the top crust. The crusty top should soften as the bread sits.
Meghna
Thanks for your prompt reply and clarifying this for me .
Instead of parchment paper is it possible to cover it with a steel lid ?
Aly
I have to be honest, I was a little nervous after initially smelling the batter. It was very sour and potent smelling. But the final baked bread is incredible, tastes like regular white bread but just a little denser. Mine passed the float test, but did not rise at all so I need practice. Going to try again tomorrow. But I just had to say thank you for this, you deserve a medal!!
Vegan Richa Support
How did it turn out the 2nd time?
Rani
Hi Richa.
lovely recipe I been looking for gf bread recipe. If I reduce urad dhal quantity what shall l replace it with, rice or something else guide me thanks a lot..
Rani
Richa
Rice makes it dryer so I’d stick with Urad dal. Don’t reduce it
Lu
I have whole black gram – can I just bliz them in my thermomix and then use that for the bread?
Vegan Richa Support
It’s not recommended in this recipe.
manvi
Thank you for wonderful recipe. A clarity on fermentation of the batter, like dosa/idli batter should the dal be fermented and then other ingredients are added or fermentation is done with everything mixed.
Vegan Richa Support
no just Soak the urad dal overnight. For a fermented batter, Make the batter without baking powder and let it sit covered in a warm place to ferment for about 6 hours. You can mix in the baking powder if you like or omit it, and bake.
Chase
Hi,
I followed he recipe as written, but substituted the urad dal for what I had on hand (chana dal). My loaf never rose much and looks much shorter than the pictures of your loaf, is it not supposed to rise at all?
Thanks.
Vegan Richa Support
Urad Dal is necessary as it aerates on its own as the chana dal doesn’t. There really isn’t a substitute for Urad Dal. No other lentil works as the batter will not ferment. You can buy the urad dal lentils online on amazon Urad Dal Matpe Beans, Split or from an Indian store (much cheaper).
Richa
I mention on the post that other lentils /beans don’t work as they don’t ferment 🙂 . You can probably slice up the loaf and pan fry into lentil fries to use it up
Gayle
We don’t have a grinder and want to use dry store bought swad flour. How do you convert the recipe to use milled flour ingredients.
Richa
Flour doesn’t ferment as well. You can use a regular blender. The soaked lentils blend well even in my tiny nutribullet. You might need to add a few tsp more water. Transfer to a bowl and Adjust rice flour so the batter is really thick