Lentils and quinoa with coconut curry

Like everyone else, I've been doing a lot more pantry cooking these days (you know, pandemic living and all). I've found that making a big pot of lentils on the weekend is perfect for weekday lunches.

This recipe for lentil soup with lemon and mint is probably my all time favorite, but I've got some other good recipes on the blog, including creamy lentils (sans cream), sausage and swiss chard soup, Indian-spiced lentils, and one I made with black lentils (no real recipe).

Well here's another lentil dish to add the list. It's Thai-inspired and adds another source of shelf-stable protein: quinoa.

Forgive my semi-sad photos, as I didn't have cilantro on hand to make this extra colorful and flavorful. But like everyone else, we're just getting by with what we have!

Lentils and quinoa with coconut curry, adapted from Half Baked Harvest
The original recipe takes it up a few extra notches with mango and kale and cilantro/basil and yogurt. I kept mine simple, but check out the original for her fancy meal.

For the curry paste feel free to use homemade (check out my recipes for red and green) or a supermarket jarred/canned paste. The brand Maesri makes the best kind, and they have alllll the types (yellow, green, red, massaman, and panang). I actually used the panang one for my recipe:

Ingredients
2 TBSP coconut oil or olive oil
1 onion, sliced
3 carrots, chopped
2 red bell peppers (or orange/yellow), chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced or grated
1 TBSP fresh ginger, peeled and grated
3 TBSP Thai curry paste (see note)
½ TBSP curry powder (or more to taste)
1 (14 ounce) can coconut milk (preferably full fat)
4 cups chicken stock (vegetable stock, water, or coconut water can all be used)
1 TBSP fish sauce
1 cup lentils, rinsed
1 cup quinoa, well rinsed (I prefer red quinoa, but any variety)
juice + zest from 1 lime (optional)

serve with herbs (cilantro or basil), lime wedges, and yogurt if you'd like

Directions
  1. Heat coconut oil over medium heat in a dutch oven (or large heavy bottomed pot). Add onion and carrots and cook for 2-3 minutes. Add the red pepper and cook for an extra few minutes, until softened. Add the garlic and ginger and cook for 30 seconds to 1 minute. 
  2. Add the curry paste and curry powder, continue cooking for another minute or until the curry is fragrant. Slowly pour in the coconut milk, chicken stock, and fish sauce. Stir to combine and then bring the mixture to a boil.
  3. Once boiling, stir in the lentils and quinoa. Reduce the heat to a simmer, cover, and cook for 20-30 minutes or until the lentils are tender and the quinoa soft. Remove from heat and stir in the lime juice and zest, if using.
  4. If you want your curry to be a bit more stew-esque, add a bit of water until the desired consistency.
  5. Serve the curry with herbs, lime, and yogurt. Or not, and keep it simple like I did. :)

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