Lentils are often overlooked, even though they’re made up of over 25% protein, which makes them an excellent meat alternative. They’re also a great source of iron, a mineral that is sometimes lacking in vegetarian diets. I love to make them because they don’t take ages to cook (unlike other dry legumes) so they are a great choice for quick veggie lunch/dinner.
Today I prepared a simple red lentil curry recipe which will all indian food lovers enjoy!
Ingredients for red lentil curry (makes 2 servings):
1/2 cup red lentils, rinsed and dried – I used those from Good Earth
1 small onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
0.5 cm fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
1 tbsp olive oil
Medium zucchini, peeled and sliced into cubes
1 cup light coconut milk
1 tsp of mild curry powder, ground cumin, turmeric, salt
1/2 tsp of black pepper, ground coriander
1/4 tsp of chilli powder
2 eggs (optional)
For potatoes:
2 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed
1/2 tbsp butter (or vegan butter)
1 tsp salt
fresh or frozen parsley, chopped
Directions:
- To prepare hard-boiled eggs, put them in boiling water for 10-12 minutes. Remove from shell and cut in quarters. Skip this step for vegan version.
- Place peeled and cubed potatoes in a small pot, cover with water, add salt. Bring to boil and cook about 10-12 minutes till potatoes are tender.
- Reserve 1 cup of water from the potatoes, remove the rest and stir in cubes of cold butter and fresh parsley. If you let it stand covered, the butter will melt inside 🙂
- For curry, heat olive oil in a large skillet and add onion, garlic, ginger and all of the spices (except salt). Fry about 4 minutes than add zucchini, red lentils and coconut milk with additional 1 cup of reserved water from potatoes. Turn the heat down and let simmer till the lentils and zucchini are tender about 15 minutes. Season with salt.
- Serve altogether preferably in a bowl and enjoy a bit of India in your home 🙂
Nutritional values (for 1 serving):
2255 Kj/ 539 Kcal 20g Fat, 71g Carbs, 8g Fiber, 23g Protein
