Casey Jade

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Green Lentil & Coconut Curry

green lentil curry

Lentils are one of my most favourite things to eat. Not only are they delicious but they are incredibly easy to cook, versatile, nutritious and economical. I could eat lentils every day and be one happy girl!

The lentils I ate in India took my love affair to an all new level. It made me realise that pumping up the spices was what was needed in my lentil recipes. That combined with a different cooking method and a lot more love resulted in a lentil dish that is packed with flavour.

Despite spending the last 12 months healing my body from the illness that I picked up in India, I no longer have any resentment or regrets about going there. I was always going to go to India at some point in my life. I feel a deep connection to the culture through my love of yoga and meditation. Yoga is so much a part of me that to travel to the birthplace was an honour. It was difficult for me to accept that I’m not likely to go back to India, but that’s ok, it just means I’ll have to spend my time trying to perfect the Indian cuisine from the comfort of my home.

This lentil curry makes a regular appearance in my weekly meal plan. I always make a big batch so that I have lunch already prepared for the next couple of days. I’m not sure any other food gives my body the same level of satisfaction that a bowl of lentils does, so it’s a good thing I love them as much as I do!

green lentil curry

green lentil curry

Green Lentil & Coconut Curry
 
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Serves: 4
Ingredients
  • 2 cups of green lentils, rinsed
  • 1.5 litres of vegetable stock (or 1.5 litres water with 1 stock cube)
  • 1 white onion, diced
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 tablespoons of fresh ginger, minced
  • 1 chili, finely chopped
  • 1.5 tablespoons of curry powder
  • 1 tablespoon of white mustard seeds
  • 1.5 tablespoons of garam masala
  • ¾ cup of tomato paste
  • ½ cup of coconut milk
  • 2 handful spinach leaves
  • Coriander to garnish
Directions
  1. Rinse lentils well until the water runs clear (this step is important)
  2. Cover lentils with the stock in a large pot and bring to the boil. Turn heat down and simmer for around 15 minutes
  3. At the same time that the lentils are cooking, dice onion, garlic, chilli and ginger and fry in a little oil on a low heat until the onion begins to turn translucent (around 10 minutes)
  4. Add the spices to the onions and cook for a couple of minutes to form a dry spice mixture
  5. Add the coconut milk and tomato paste to the onions and spices and stir. This will help lift all the spices from the bottom of the pan.
  6. Pour into the saucepan with the lentils and simmer for a further 20 minutes
  7. Add spinach about 5 minutes before the end of the cooking time
  8. Serve with brown rice and garnish with coriander

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  • kirri May 15, 2013, 3:11 am

    I love lentils! Luke makes me a big batch every week. He has his own signature lentil dish which I am always devouring. I’m going to surprise him by cooking yours …they better be good!

    • Casey May 15, 2013, 8:07 am

      Another lover of lentils! I hope you enjoy them and the surprise for Luke goes well! How can I get my hands on Luke’s secret recipe :)

  • Sarah June 28, 2013, 1:49 pm

    This looks so delicious. Looking for some yummy meatless dinners for our family. My husband and I love a coconut curry combo. To round out dinner, I think I would add some garlicky naan. :)

    • Casey June 28, 2013, 2:26 pm

      Thanks Sarah. I love garlic naan! I can never resist it when I go out for Indian food. Hope you enjoy the curry :)

  • Richard October 2, 2013, 6:24 pm

    This looks lovely just a few questions, what curry powder do you use, just mild?? Also what’s the idea of rinsing the lentils?

    • Casey October 3, 2013, 11:17 pm

      I use a mild curry powder which works perfectly as there is already chilli used in the recipe. Rinsing the lentils is basically just to give them a good wash. When they are packaged they often haven’t been washed so it just gets rid of the dirt etc. I also find that it makes them taste better! Hope this helps :)

  • Laura October 24, 2013, 2:00 pm

    What do you with the stock? Cook the lentils in it? and you don’t drain when you are done cooking the lentils, right? Thanks.

    • Casey October 24, 2013, 6:33 pm

      Hi Laura,
      Yep, you cook the lentils in the stock. I’ve just updated the recipe to make it clearer. No need to drain the lentils, as it cooks the liquid will thicken.
      Hope you enjoy :)

  • Daniel February 12, 2014, 4:45 am

    I will make this recipe i love curry and i love lentils i hace a question: can i use natural tomatoes?
    or maybe a mix of both paste + natural?

    • Casey February 12, 2014, 6:52 am

      You sure can, that will work perfectly!

  • Randy February 23, 2014, 6:27 pm

    recipe askes for a chili. What kind of chili? green lentil and coconut curry
    Thank you

    • Casey February 23, 2014, 6:53 pm

      Hi Randy,

      I use a standard red chilli that has a mild to medium heat. Hope this helps!

  • Karyn Reis July 3, 2014, 9:27 am

    Fantastic green lentil coconut curry
    Delicious, will definitely add to my favs collection
    Thanks

    • Casey July 3, 2014, 11:44 am

      You are so welcome! Gald you love it :)

  • Anna September 18, 2014, 5:58 pm

    This was excellent, especially on a cool day and the whole family loved it.
    Thank you!

  • Cat October 17, 2014, 5:19 am

    Oh wow these turned out sooo amazing. The only thing, I realized a little too late make sure to test that the lentils were completely softened before adding the tomato mixture to the lentils. Mine turned out a little al dente but all the flavors were so delicious… A+

    • Casey October 17, 2014, 2:50 pm

      Awesome! So glad you enjoyed it!

  • Jo December 29, 2015, 9:48 am

    Hi,
    I stumbled upon your blog looking for a green lentil curry recipe.

    The curry was very nice – I’d never cooked with lentils before and the recipe was easy to follow. I used a cup of coconut milk instead of half a cup and added some extra seasoning to compensate but should have added double. Also added some chicken thighs that were very tender.

    Thanks for sharing the recipe :)

    • Casey December 30, 2015, 12:17 pm

      So glad you loved it!

  • Toni January 19, 2016, 7:09 pm

    The difference in consistency of coconut milk in a can and the kind that is cartons is quite different. Which do you recommend for this recipe?

    • Casey January 21, 2016, 3:24 pm

      Choose whichever one has a thicker creamier consistency. That’s the way I like it anyway :)

  • Carolina March 5, 2016, 1:28 am

    This is an awesome recipe!! Even my slightly pickier daughter of 7 will eat it and I LOVE IT! and so amazingly healthy. Thank-you so much for posting recipes. Since I’ve found this just over a month ago, I know I’ve made it at least 3 times and shared it with others. Sincere thanks.

    • Casey March 5, 2016, 4:04 pm

      SO pleased to hear this! Love that your daughter loves it as well. Thank you for your kind words.

  • Molly September 15, 2016, 6:45 pm

    Can I cook this in a crockpot? If so, do you have a suggestion to modify the cooking time? Thank you!

    • Casey September 16, 2016, 7:52 am

      I think it should work well in the crockpot Molly. I’m not sure of exact times but I would go for 3-4 hours on high. I’d love to know how it turns out.

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