red lentil and sweet potato curry with basmati rice
i had red lentils and sweet potatoes lying around, so i tried the original of this recipe, from fresh food fast by peter berley. it sucked big time, although with only about a micron of oil i'm sure it was much healthier. anyway, i did some tinkering and came up with this instead, which got rave reviews from my roommates.
3.5 cups water
1/4 cup olive oil
1 large onion or 2 smaller, chopped
Coarse sea salt or kosher salt
1 medium sweet potato, peeled and cut into small chunks
1 (1 inch) piece fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
2 large garlic cloves, chopped
Curry powder
1 bay leaf
1.5 cups red lentils
2 cups basmati rice
3 cups cold water
2 tsp vegan butter
1. In a saucepan or kettle, bring water to a boil.
2. In a large saucepan over high heat, warm the oil. Add the onion and a few shakes of salt and sauté, stirring occasionally, until the onion softens, and 3 to 4 minutes.
3. Add the sweet potato, ginger, garlic, 3 tbsp curry powder, and bay leaf and sauté until fragrant, about 1 minute. Pour in the boiling water and stir in the lentils.
4. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover and simmer until the lentils break down and the sweet potatoes are tender, 18 to 20 minutes.
5. Once the lentil mixture is on, put cold water, butter, and basmati in a large microwave-safe bowl or casserole dish (the dish must have a lid). Nuke lidless for 15 minutes, with lid for 5, remove from microwave, fluff, replace lid, and allow to stand.
6. The lentils should be cooking down and getting to be a sort of porridge rather than looking like individual beans. Sample a bit and check your spices and oil. I needed a lot more curry than the 3 tbsp mentioned above, and more oil and salt as well, but you can tweak it to your taste.
7. Get your rice and curry together and eat!
3.5 cups water
1/4 cup olive oil
1 large onion or 2 smaller, chopped
Coarse sea salt or kosher salt
1 medium sweet potato, peeled and cut into small chunks
1 (1 inch) piece fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
2 large garlic cloves, chopped
Curry powder
1 bay leaf
1.5 cups red lentils
2 cups basmati rice
3 cups cold water
2 tsp vegan butter
1. In a saucepan or kettle, bring water to a boil.
2. In a large saucepan over high heat, warm the oil. Add the onion and a few shakes of salt and sauté, stirring occasionally, until the onion softens, and 3 to 4 minutes.
3. Add the sweet potato, ginger, garlic, 3 tbsp curry powder, and bay leaf and sauté until fragrant, about 1 minute. Pour in the boiling water and stir in the lentils.
4. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover and simmer until the lentils break down and the sweet potatoes are tender, 18 to 20 minutes.
5. Once the lentil mixture is on, put cold water, butter, and basmati in a large microwave-safe bowl or casserole dish (the dish must have a lid). Nuke lidless for 15 minutes, with lid for 5, remove from microwave, fluff, replace lid, and allow to stand.
6. The lentils should be cooking down and getting to be a sort of porridge rather than looking like individual beans. Sample a bit and check your spices and oil. I needed a lot more curry than the 3 tbsp mentioned above, and more oil and salt as well, but you can tweak it to your taste.
7. Get your rice and curry together and eat!