Brown Lentils Recipe

Method8 steps · about 45 min

1. 1

   Step 1: Rinse the brown lentils (1 cup) and optional red lentils (0.5 cup) with fresh water. Put in a large pot with 4 cups cooking water, or 3 cups if omitting red lentils. Bring to a boil, reduce to medium and simmer 20–25 minutes, until the brown lentils are tender but hold their shape and the red lentils break down. Older lentils may need more time and extra water.

   Cook lentils · 25 minUses 1 cup brown lentils · 0.5 cup red lentils · 4 cup water · water for rinsing lentils · extra water only as needed if older lentils take longer to cook

   
2. 2

   Step 2: While the lentils simmer, finely chop the onion (1 cup), ginger (1 tbsp), garlic (1 tbsp) and tomatoes (1.5 cup). Chop 4 tbsp coriander leaves with tender stalks, keeping some leaves aside for the final garnish.

   Uses 1 cup onion · 1 tbsp ginger · 1 tbsp garlic · 1.5 cup tomatoes · 4 tbsp coriander leaves

   
3. 3

   Step 3: Heat 3 tbsp oil or ghee in a large pan over medium heat. Add 1 tsp cumin seeds, optional 1 tsp fennel seeds and the deseeded dried red chilies (3). If using ½ tsp chili flakes instead of whole chilies, keep them for the ground-spice phase.

   Uses 3 tbsp oil · 1 tsp cumin seeds · 3 dried red chilies · 1 tsp fennel seeds

   
4. 4

   Step 4: When the seeds sizzle and chilies turn crisp without burning, add the chopped onion and sauté until light golden. Stir in the minced ginger/garlic and chopped coriander stems/leaves, keeping the reserved garnish aside. Sauté 1–2 minutes until aromatic.

   Uses onion and minced ginger/garlic prepared while lentils simmer · cumin, optional fennel and dried chilies sizzling in oil or ghee · part of 4 tbsp chopped coriander, reserve some leaves for serving

   
5. 5

   Step 5: Stir in turmeric (0.25 tsp), sea salt (1 tsp), chili powder, garam masala (1 tsp) and optional coriander/cumin powders (0.5 tsp), followed by the chopped tomatoes. If replacing dried chilies with chili flakes, add them here. Add ¼ cup masala water and cook until the tomatoes break down completely.

   Uses 0.25 tsp turmeric · 1 tsp Kashmiri chili powder · 1 tsp sea salt · 1 tsp garam masala · 1 tsp coriander powder · 0.5 tsp cumin powder · 0.25 cup water · golden onion, ginger-garlic and coriander stems/leaves

   
6. 6

   Step 6: Add the tender lentils with their retained stock to the cooked onion-tomato masala. Add about ½ cup hot water only if needed for consistency, bring to a boil and simmer 5 minutes until thick with traces of fat on top.

   Simmer lentils · 5 minUses 0.5 cup hot water · whole brown lentils tender, optional red lentils broken down, retained cooking liquid · spiced tomato mixture cooked until tomatoes break down

7. 7

   Step 7: Optionally mash some lentils in the curry for a creamier texture. Stir in dried fenugreek and amchur (1 tbsp), omitting amchur if using acidic canned tomatoes or serving with lemon juice instead. Taste and add extra salt, chili flakes (to taste) or garam masala (to taste) only if needed.

   Uses 1 tbsp dried fenugreek leaves · 1 tbsp amchur · extra salt only to taste · extra chili flakes only to taste · extra garam masala only to taste · lentils combined with masala and simmered 5 minutes until thick

8. 8

   Step 8: Garnish the finished cooked lentils with the reserved coriander leaves. Add optional lemon juice if amchur was omitted. Serve with cooked rice, quinoa, flatbread or cucumber salad.

   Uses optional serving lemon juice instead of amchur · cooked curry with amchur and fenugreek, adjusted to taste · some leaves from 4 tbsp chopped coriander, withheld from masala