Lentils (boiled, cooked)
Dry lentils grow roughly 2.5x in weight when cooked, and they need no soaking.
1 Amount
How it fits your macros
Get your daily targets with the macro calculator to see what share of your day this portion covers.
Lentils for gym-goers
Per 100 g, lentils (boiled, cooked) provides 116 kcal, 9 g protein, 20.1 g carbohydrate (7.9 g fiber, 1.8 g sugars) and 0.4 g fat (0.1 g saturated). With 7.8 g of protein per 100 kcal, it adds a useful amount of protein on top of its other nutrients.
A typical serving (1 cup cooked, about 198 g) comes to roughly 230 kcal and 17.8 g protein.
These are typical averages. Brand, variety, ripeness and cooking method all shift the numbers, so weigh food in the same state (raw or cooked) as the entry you log.
About Lentils
This entry covers lentils, the small dried legumes, boiled and cooked without salt. Per 100 g you get about 9 g of protein and nearly 8 g of fiber, a low glycemic index of around 32, and more iron than almost any other legume in this category.
In a gym diet
Lentils sit somewhere between a protein and a carb source. A cooked cup has around 18 g of protein plus plenty of slow-digesting carbohydrate, which suits a meal several hours before training. Their protein is low in methionine; rice or bread over the day rounds out the amino acids. On a cut, the fiber and volume keep hunger down, and they're one of the cheapest proteins you can buy. On a bulk, add rice and olive oil and the calories pile up without much effort.
Preparation and cooking
No soaking needed. Dry lentils cook in 15 to 30 minutes depending on the variety: red ones collapse into a purée, green and brown hold their shape. Cooking multiplies their weight by roughly two and a half, so log cooked weight against this entry, or use a dry-lentil entry if you weigh them dry. Oil, butter or coconut milk in a dal changes the totals a lot.
Buying and storage
Dry lentils last a year or more in an airtight container, though very old ones take longer to soften. Canned lentils save time but are often salted, so rinse them or pick no-salt-added cans.
Things to watch
Lentils contain fermentable carbs that can cause gas, especially if you don't eat legumes often. Rinsing canned lentils and building up portions slowly may help. The iron is non-heme, which you absorb better with vitamin C-rich foods.
Meal ideas
- Red lentil dal with spinach and tomatoes, served with basmati rice and yogurt.
- Warm lentil salad with roasted peppers, feta, red onion and a lemon vinaigrette.
- Lentil bolognese with mushrooms and carrots over whole-wheat spaghetti for meal prep.
Nutrient highlights
Good source (10–19% DV per 100 g): Iron (18%) and Zinc (12%).
How it ranks among 16 Plant Protein
| Protein per 100 kcal | 7.8 g | #10 of 16 |
| Protein per 100 g | 9 g | #8 of 16 |
| Fiber per 100 g | 7.9 g | #6 of 16 |
| Lowest calories per 100 g | 116 kcal | #3 of 16 |
Ranked within this category of the gym.diet food database (1 = best for that measure).
Similar foods
Split peas (boiled, cooked)
118 kcal · P 8.3 · C 21.1 · F 0.4
→Kidney beans, red (boiled, cooked)
127 kcal · P 8.7 · C 22.8 · F 0.5
→Black beans (boiled, cooked)
132 kcal · P 8.9 · C 23.7 · F 0.5
→Soy milk, unsweetened (fortified)
33 kcal · P 2.9 · C 1.7 · F 1.6
→Pinto beans (boiled, cooked)
143 kcal · P 9 · C 26.2 · F 0.7
→Navy beans (boiled, cooked)
140 kcal · P 8.2 · C 26.1 · F 0.6
Source
Approximate per-100 g values compiled from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy / Foundation Foods), rounded. Daily Values are the U.S. FDA reference amounts for adults (2,000 kcal diet).
Frequently asked questions
How many calories are in lentils?
Lentils (boiled, cooked) has about 116 kcal per 100 g, or roughly 230 kcal per 1 cup cooked (198 g).
How much protein is in lentils?
About 9 g of protein per 100 g and 17.8 g per 1 cup cooked. That works out to 7.8 g per 100 kcal, so it's a moderate protein source.
Is lentils good for cutting or bulking?
It works in either phase. What matters is how it fits into your total calories and protein for the day.
Do lentils need to be soaked before cooking?
No. They're small and thin-skinned, so they cook fine unsoaked. Rinse them and pick out any small stones before boiling. Some people soak them anyway hoping for less gas, though the evidence for that is limited.
Are lentils good for iron on a vegetarian diet?
They're among the better plant sources, as this entry's mineral values show. Because the iron is non-heme, you absorb less of it than you would from meat. Eating lentils with peppers, tomatoes, citrus or other vitamin C-rich foods may help.
Nutrition Facts
* The % Daily Value tells you how much a nutrient in a serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice. Values approximate.