A vegan dish.

Now that the weather is getting cooler, I’m finding that my family is craving dense food rather than light leafy salads. That means soups and stews are back on the menu… starting with this hearty lentil stew.

Lentils are delicious. If you haven’t cooked these before you’re missing out. I have an amazingly easy lentil soup recipe that is my usual go-to recipe with lentils. However, I wanted something a little different. Growing up in the 80’s, lentils were synonymous with brown cardi wearing hippies. Today, you can find lentils in Mediterranean and Indian cuisine giving it an exotic connection.

Looking at recipes available online, I settled on adapting one from Cookie & Kate. Her one is a soup but I wanted something more hearty than a soup. So I turned it into a stew with a few changes to the ingredients.

As a family we love meat. I think that’s pretty evident from the recipes I have on this website. But we also love vegetables. We do eat the odd vegetarian recipe but I’ve consciously made a vegan one before. What I’ve found with this meat-free dish is that the lentils create a hearty and filling meal. If you want something with meat, this lentil stew could be accompanied by roast pork or even sausages. Well, my husband made this comment once he devoured two bowls of this.

Lentils are often used in both vegetarian and vegan cuisines. Now I have to say, just because this is a vegan meal, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t give this meal a go! If my family, especially my meat-loving kids, would eat this then anyone would. Besides, it’s good to not eat meat all the time. I have to admit, the flavour in this lentil stew is amazing with the added cumin and curry powder. I’m sure you and your family will love it too.

Hearty Lentil Stew

This lentil stew is a vegan dish that is so full of flavour you'll forget that there isn't meat in it.

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 1 hour hr

Total Time 1 hour hr 15 minutes mins

Servings 4 people

Ingredients

 

• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 2 medium carrots, peeled and diced
• 2 stalks celery, diced
• 5 cloves garlic cloves, crushed
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1.5 teaspoon curry powder
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• 1.5 cups brown or green lentils, picked over and rinsed
• 4 cups vegetable stock
• 1 cup water
• salt
• Pepper

Instructions

 

• Warm the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat then add the onion, carrot and celery. Cook, stirring often, until the onion has softened and translucent, about 5 minutes.
• Add the garlic, cumin and curry powder. Cook until fragrant while stirring constantly, about 30 seconds. Pour in the diced tomatoes and cook for a few more minutes, stirring often, in order to enhance their flavour.
• Pour in the lentils, stock and the water. Raise heat and bring the mixture to a boil, then partially cover the pot and reduce the heat to maintain a gentle simmer. Cook for 50 minutes, or until the lentils are tender and the liquid has reduced.
• Season to taste with both salt and pepper.
• Serve while hot with fresh bread.

Notes

• Depending on the temperature you have the pot at when cooking the lentils, you may need to add 1/2 cup of water part way through the cooking time.
• If you would like a spicy stew, add a couple of pinches of chilli flakes.
• You can substitute the vegetable stock with beef stock if you prefer a slightly meaty flavoured stew.
• If you have leftovers, they will keep well in the fridge for about 4 days. You can also freeze leftovers for up to 3 months.