I’ve been eating this super duper easy brown lentil stew (which so happens to be vegan) for as long as I can remember. It’s always been a staple in my family, and it never gets old. As soon as Autumn creeps in, this meal becomes pretty much a weekly rotation. Quite cheap to make, super easy and relatively quick for how much yield you get. I like to make this meal in bulk and eat it over two days for lunch and dinner. I normally don’t freeze it because there’s potato in it but if you wanted to do so, you can swap the potatoes for carrots and/or celery, and it will freeze really well.
This recipe has been in the back of my mind for a while now to share with you and this week with all this cold and yucky weather, it seemed like the perfect time! It’s a great comforting meal.
You can use vegetable stock in liquid form, vegetable stock cubes (which I have found have palm oil usually) or homemade stock by your sister-in-law that has it ;). I was lucky enough to get two jars of the homemade kind the other day, and I use that diluted with water for the stew. I normally just use water as I never buy stock from the shops. Boiled water will be just fine if that’s all you have. Feel free to experiment and add other veggies in there to make it more of a lentil and vegetable stew/soup.
For a family, this is a cost-effective, healthy meal that you can serve with a fresh salad, or we like it with fermented vegetables like cabbage and carrot. If you ferment your own veggies, I would recommend trying a carrot, turmeric and garlic combination. It is pretty amazing!
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 brown or red onion, diced
- 3 potatoes, washed well and cut into cubes (I like to leave the skin on for extra flavour and nutrients)
- 3.5 cups brown lentils (soaked overnight and rinsed well)
- 1 heaped tbs tomato paste
- 1/4 tsp hot paprika powder
- 3-4 bay leaves (snapped in half)
- Boiling water or stock (I used stock)
- 3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
- Salt to taste
Instructions
- In a large saucepan, on medium heat the oil and onion until it becomes translucent.
- Add in the potatoes and lentils and stir making sure the potatoes don't stick to the bottom. Cook for a few minutes.
- Add in tomato paste, hot paprika powder, bay leaves and liquid enough to cover the lentils. Bring to the boil and reduce to low-medium heat.
- Add in the chopped garlic and salt to taste and simmer for 20-30 minutes until the lentils and potatoes are cooked. I normally top up the water another 1-2 times as it evaporates. Make sure you always have enough liquid to cover the lentils on the top and remember to give it a stir every 5 or so minutes.
- Once cooked, remove the bay leaves and serve with some beautiful Italian bread or on its own.
Voila! It’s that simple 🙂 Let me know what you think of this recipe in the comments below.
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Brown Lentils are a favorite here in India. I love them with the wheat “parathas”.
Thank you for the recipe. I would surely share this with my mom.
You’re welcome Prakash 🙂
This is precisely the way Greek people make lentil soup and I, too, have had it all my life. I’ve only ever used water, not stock, and it’s the most nourishing, nutritious meal. Some people soak the lentils first, some don’t. Some people boil the lentils in a little water for a minute in a small pot and strain them before adding to the soup. I’ve never sautéed the onions before, but I’ll try it. I sometimes cook the soup with very little oil and drizzle a little more oil over it when it’s plated. It gives it a slightly different flavour. For those who are vegetarian, a little feta cheese (and a few olives) on the side with this soup is wonderful.
Thanks for the various suggestions! Sounds great 🙂