This lentil recipe is an eye opener – an incredible creamy coconut Lentil Curry made with just TWO spices! It’s a streamlined version of Indian Dal, delivering a similar intoxicating curry flavour but a whole lot less complicated. Make this with any type of dried lentils, canned, or even split peas!
Don’t let the simplicity of this recipe fool you. This is knock-your-socks-off good, and proof that you can eat amazing food on a budget.
“I’ll be honest and say I thought this would be lacking in flavour because I’m used to trying curries from scratch rather than with curry powder……How wrong was I?? I apologise wholeheartedly Nagi!! Amazing recipe, please try this people. Tasty, easy, mind blowingly awesome. xx” – Emily, 10 April 2020
Lentil Recipe – easy – mega flavour!
I know it’s childish of me to complain, but this Lentil Curry took an irritatingly long time to create.
I wanted simple. Minimal ingredients. And meat-free. Not like, say, this more complex (but equally delicious) Beef and Lentil Soup.
Quick to make. Very little chopping, very few ingredients.
A “go to” lentil recipe I could make any night that didn’t sacrifice flavour for speed.
And it had to stack up to real Indian Dal. I love it. I just don’t always have the time or everything I need to make it.
I knew it was a pretty high benchmark. Creating kapow! flavours out of plain lentils without going crazy with a list of spices.
But finally, I’m happy – and ready to share. Here it is!! (And just TWO SPICES!!)
Two little steps make all the difference…..
The key to cooking amazing food with bare minimum ingredients is good produce and knowing what to do to extract the most flavour out of what you have.
For this recipe, we’re going for the latter. We take our time sautéing the onions, ginger and garlic so they transform from raw harshness to a sweet, savoury flavour base. Then we cook off the two spices to make the flavour bloom.
These two little steps make all the difference so we only need water for this curry, no stock!
What goes in Lentil Curry with Coconut Sauce
Here’s what you need:
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Lentils – use any dried lentils or canned here. Brown, green, red, yellow, whether split or whole OR any type of dried split peas. Green split peas will result in an an interesting colour in your pot, but it will still be phenomenally delicious. Just avoid French lentils (Puy lentils / black lentils) as they don’t soften as well as other lentils so you won’t get the same creamy, thick texture.
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Curry powder – This is the main shortcut, The beauty of this is that you don’t need any fancy curry powder, just your run-of-the-mill jar from the grocery store. I’ve made this with Clives of India, Keens, and a generic brand and they all tasted just as good. Just be mindful of using SPICY curry powder – check the label!
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Garlic and ginger – while fresh is ideal (followed by jarred), powder is a sufficient substitute;
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Coconut milk – if you use low fat instead of full fat, you are not allowed to complain if your sauce isn’t as good as you hoped!😂
How to make this lentil recipe
And here’s how to make it. It takes about 50 minutes start to finish, but the active effort is only around 10 minutes – and there’s a nice flow to it because you can gather and measure ingredients while you stir the onions every now and then.
The Secret to an amazing Lentil Recipe
The key step here is sautéing the onions, garlic and ginger over a low-ish heat until tinged with gold, and they transform into a sweet, savoury flavour base for the sauce so we only need water instead of stock or broth.
Then we also cook off the curry powder and turmeric which lets the spices bloom before adding the lentils and everything else in to simmer away.
Just LOOK at that incredible sauce! So creamy! Loaded with flavour! (There are not enough exclamation marks in this world!!!)
What to serve with lentil curry
A sauce this good demands rice to soak it up, though if you’re on a low carb kick then cauliflower rice will work a treat. Basmati is on theme (being a curry and all) though plain white rice or brown rice is just fine too.
And if you really want to go all out, add a side of flatbread: Either real-deal naan or my general-purpose flatbread (an easy, no yeast recipe and I serve it as naan all the time with Indian curries).
Now, go forth and experience the greatness that is lentils!! Economical, filling, nourishing – the world’s greatest source of plant based protein, all wrapped up in a coconut curry sauce. YESS!!! – Nagi x
Watch how to make it
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Lentil Curry - mega flavour lentil recipe!
Ingredients
- 50g (3 tbsp) butter , unsalted (sub 2 tbsp neutral oil)
- 4 garlic cloves , finely minced (Note 1)
- 1.5 tbsp ginger , finely minced (Note 1)
- 1 onion , finely chopped (white, yellow, brown)
- 2 tbsp curry powder , mild or spicy (your choice!) (Note 2)
- 1/2 tsp tumeric powder
- 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper , optional
- 1 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1 cup dried lentils , green or brown (or any other dried lentils or split peas, Note 3)
- 400 ml / 14 oz coconut milk , full fat
- 400g/ 14 oz canned tomato , crushed or diced
- 3 cups (750 ml) water
Serving:
- 1/2 cup coriander/cilantro , finely chopped
- Yogurt , optional
- Basmati rice (or other rice)
Instructions
- Saute onion: Melt butter in a pot over medium heat. Add onion, garlic and ginger. Slowly cook, stirring every now and then, for 10 minutes until tinged with gold and the onion is sweet.
- Cook off spices: Turn heat up to high, add curry powder and turmeric, stir for 1 1/2 minutes.
- Add everything else: Add remaining ingredients and stir. Bring to simmer, then place lid on and adjust heat to low / medium low so it's simmering gently.
- Simmer: Simmer for 30 minutes, then remove lid and simmer for a further 10 minutes to reduce the sauce. {Note 2 for cook times of other lentils}
- Lentils should be soft, sauce should be thickened and creamy. Too thick, add water. Too thin, simmer with lid off - thickens quickly.
- Coriander: Stir through half the coriander, then taste and add more salt if needed.
- Serve over basmati rice, sprinkled with more coriander and a dollop of yogurt. (Low carb option - cauliflower rice).
Recipe Notes:
- Green and brown lentils - most common & cheapest, cook per recipe
- Canned lentils (2 cans drained) - 25 min, uncovered the whole time
- Red split lentils - 25 min, uncovered the whole time
- Yellow or green split peas - 25 min, uncovered the whole time
- Any dal (Indian lentils) such as channa dal, toor dal or moong dal - per recipe
- French lentils (Puy lentils / black lentils) - not recommended as they don't soften as well as other lentils so you won't get the same creamy, thick texture.
Nutrition Information:
Life of Dozer
Dozer in lockdown mode. This is what passer byes see.
(Don’t worry, he still gets out once a day to the dog park! He just doesn’t go out as much as he used to. Like all of us. 😩)
This is so delicious. I threw in some sad spinach and frozen peas to up the veg. The perfect meal on a dreary day. I served your naan with it. Yum!
This is a big favourite in our home. I usually add mushrooms and whatever suitable left over veg is in the frig. Today it was capsicum, pumpkin and spinach in addition to the mushrooms. It is so quick for such a delicious meal, especially if using tinned lentils. Served with basmati rice and yoghurt. Yum!
I have made this dish multiple times for meal prep and it was become one of my great comfort foods. I recently added chickpeas to bulk it up too. Indian cooking has been quite daunting but Nagi’s recipes make it very approachable. Thank you!
I absolutely love this dish, it’s very versatile. It’s my Wednesday night catch all, whatever veg I have goes into it and everyone is happy to get curry once a week or every other week. Can anyone help me convert it to an Instant Pot friendly recipe? I think I only need fo reduce the water amount but I’m not sure.
Dear Nagi, I made this for my daughter and myself last night (both vegetarians) and it was not only very easy but very delicious and full of flavour. This will be a staple and the left overs will be great to take to work for lunch. I actually didn’t have any garlic in the kitchen and used sambal instead (not a direct swap of course) but the flavour was great. Thank you for your fabulous recipes, I have come alive in my kitchen thanks to you. xo
I’ve made this 4 times and I’m about to make it again tonight. It’s so amazing and such a cheap meal which is so important at the moment with the price of food. I add bacon to mine (that I cook in the oven) for extra protein as well as a huge bag of spinach. It makes so much so I freeze it and it freezes really well. I’ve also substituted coconut oil instead of butter when my husband eats it as he is on a diet. It’s still good but not as good when I make it with butter. I don’t bother with the rice but I always eat it with naan. I highly recommend this recipe.
Lizzie – great idea with adding the spinach. Shall give this a try next time I make it.
Absolutely yummo. I like mine quite thick so I watched and waited and cooked it 20 minutes more… red split lentils… it’s absolutely delicious.
Wow, this is seriously delicious and so very easy to do. It also makes loads and the leftovers were just as delicious after 3 days in the fridge. Thank you Nagi – your fantastic recipes with their thorough instructions, videos and so many helpful tips have given me the confidence to finally become the cook I’ve always wanted to be.
Hi Nagi i havent made this yet but i most definitely will i just wanted to tell you i find you hilarious with your comments and not one of your recipes has failed me all outstandingly delicious so no doubt this will be too!! absolutely love your work and your humour !!
Heck yes!! Got my (very fussy) 8yo nephew to help make this and he ate it all!
I on the other hand- I absolutely loved it 💥
Heavenly, Thank you
The ultimate dahl recipe that tastes incredible and is so simple!
Dahl is my absolute favourite dish and after years of searching, have finally found a recipe that I can make. I used a slow cooker after frying off the onions and spices then towards the end fried up cherry tomatoes in butter and added those together with spinach=Lentil heaven !
Thank you Nagi.
Another 5 star recipe! Very versatile recipe. I made it vegetarian for the first time trying the recipe. I will add cooked bacon or cooked sausage to the leftovers. You could really modify it according to what you have on hand. I didn’t have enough fresh ginger, so I used 1/2 teaspoon fresh ginger and 1/2 tsp. ground ginger, and it worked fine. Thank you for yet another outstanding recipe, Nagi!
Incredible recipe! I have made the yellow dal from this website too; though I must say this recipe is more to my liking. Instructions were easy to follow and tastes very delicious. The lentils were a bit undercooked, but my husband and I almost mopped up the entire pot for dinner. Thank you Nagi for this beautiful recipe.
Amazing. 5+ star! Made without onions as I can’t have them and it was still incredible. Used Keen’s curry powder. Will be making again and again. Thank you!!!!
I just made this recipe for the first time and it is amazing, so easy and simple and seriously good! I’m so glad I made double! 😁
Has anyone made this in the slow cooker? Wondering how to adjust to slow cooking method.
I made it in my slow cooker. Cut the water to 2 cups and added 1/4 cup more dried lentils. Cooked on low for 4 hours or more. Delicious!
Budget but super delish! This meal only costs 5 Canadian $$ and feeds two hungry adults at dinner table + leftover for lunch? heck yeah!
I am making this now and am wondering if I use canned lentils do I still add 3 cups of water.
Delicious. I live at altitude, so my lentils weren’t fully done, even cooking 10 minutes over the cooking time. So next time I will make better adjustments. I did add smoked paprika and a little chicken broth instead of water. Yummo. We will make this again!
Super simple and absolutely delicious.