What do you say after you’ve eaten a mound of rice? I hope to eat you a-GRAIN. Sorry, I couldn’t resist being corny! I make this naturally vegan dish often. It’s a one pot meal. The base ingredients are naturally protein-rich lentils and rice. This lovely recipe is Lebanese but I believe other counties make their own version too. Typically Egyptian rice is recommended because it's sticky but we do not have that readily available in the United States so I used basmati. This is a wonderful pantry friendly meal that can be put together relatively quickly on nights where you don't have anything planned. A highlight for me are the crispy onions that garnish the top. They add a slightly bitter and sweet balance to the earthy lentils.
In terms of the spices used, I can't say mine is “authentic". It seems different regions use different spice combinations. Some use only cumin, others throw in a bay leaf and others use the blend I list. I’ve seen it drizzled with yogurt and served without it. Most seem to use water to cook everything. However you make it, I like serving it with a copious amount of crispy onions.
This dish is on rotation this week because I found a partially filled bag of beautiful basmati rice from @fanwoodlarder in my pantry. The Larder is such a community friendly small business featuring carefully curated food products.
That leaves me to my last point. Lentils and rice are carbs on carbs. Typically I'd shy away from that but @nutrizionista.in.cucina [a RD] recently mentioned that plant-based meals are often this way and it’s ok, especially whole grain ones pared with healthy fat.
RECIPE NOTES:
🍚When broiling onions, use 2nd rack position. Toss 2-3 times. Remove dark ones and continue cooking the lighter ones. Cut them rather thick to avoid burning. Season with Kosher salt after cooking, not before.
🍚Check the rice at about 20 minutes to see if it’s done. Mine took 30 minutes. You may need more water. It's ok to add more and you can always let it steam or simmer uncovered at the end if you have a little too much moisture.
🍚If you eat dairy you can make a yogurt sauce for drizzling. Make it with some olive oil, minced garlic and Kosher salt. Adding yogurt will add more protein.
RECIPE: Serves 2 generously.
Per Serving: 447 cals/7.7 total fat/1g saturated fat/90g carbs/15.5g fiber/3.5g sugar/17.7g protein
1 large onion, cut into slightly less than 1/4 inch slices and crisped under broil for topping
1 TBS olive oil [extra oil for onions]
1 small onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp ground cumin
1/8 + 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp allspice
14 ounces vegetable broth
1 cup water
6 tbs dried brown lentils, rinsed and picked over
6 tbs Basmati rice [I used @cookdellarice]
Kosher salt
Minced parsley or mint, for garnish
Broil the onions sprayed with EVOO and drizzle with extra oil just until very lightly coated. I used 9 inch @staubusa braiser. Onions took approx. 5-8 mins. Set aside. Keep residual EVOO in pan, spray with olive oil, add the 1 tbs olive oil and chopped onions. Cook onions until translucent, approx. 4 mins. Then add garlic, the spices, and bloom for approx. 2 mins. Add vegetable stock, 1/2 cup of the water and lentils. Bring to boil. Cover, reduce to medium-low and cook 10 mins. Stir in rice, season with Kosher salt, bring to boil. If it looks dry, add 1/2 cup hot water. Cover and cook 25-30 minutes [check rice at 20 minutes, rice cooking times very]. Then mound rice/lentils onto a plate, sprinkle with parsley and garnish with crispy onions.
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