This Moroccan-inspired lentil stew is one of my go-to vegetarian dishes and one I incorporate regularly into my weekly meal planning. It combines plant-based proteins with rich and warming spices such as ras el hanout. It is served with with crispy sumac chickpeas, and topped with a fresh tomato and sultana salsa. Delightful!

This recipe is enough to serve 2 people.

Ingredients

• 1 brown onion, finely sliced
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons ras el hanout
• 50 grams solid creamed coconut, roughly chopped
• 1 (11 grams) vegetable stock cube
• 100 grams red lentils, rinsed
• 1 can (400 grams) chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 1 teaspoon ground sumac
• 30 grams sultanas*
• 250 grams baby plum tomatoes, chopped in half
• 10 grams mint, finely chopped
• ½ lemon
• Olive oil
• Salt, to taste

Garnish

• ½ lemon, cut into wedges

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 220 degrees Celsius (or 200 degrees Celsius when using a fan oven).

2. Add the sultanas to a small bowl, cover them with boiled water and set them aside.

3. To cook the lentil stew: Heat a large, wide-based pan with a drizzle of oil over a medium heat. Once hot, add the onion with a pinch of salt and cook for 5 to 7 minutes or until softened. Once the onion has softened, add the garlic and ras el hanout and cook for 1 to 2 minutes or until fragrant. Dissolve the creamed coconut and vegetable stock in 750 milliliters of boiled water. Add the stock and the red lentils to the pan. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook for 25 to 30 minutes or until the lentils are cooked and the sauce has thickened.

4. To roast the chickpeas: Add the chickpeas to a baking tray with a drizzle of oil (I use avocado oil) and a pinch of salt. Sprinkle over the ground sumac and give everything a good mix up. Put the tray in the oven for 15 to 20 minutes or until golden and crispy.

5. To make the tomato and sultana salsa: After the sultanas have had a few minutes to soak, drain them and chop them roughly. Combine the sultanas with the tomatoes, mint, the juice of ½ a lemon, a drizzle of olive oil and a pinch of salt.

6. Cut the remaining lemon into wedges.

7. Serve the lentil stew in in bowls, topped with the roasted chickpeas and tomato and sultana salsa. Garnish with a lemon wedge.

Notes

*when detoxing, I omit the sultanas and the dish remains just as delicious

Did you make this recipe?

Leave a comment below or tag me @mselizabethpepler to let me know how it turned out for you.

_{Recipe by Gousto}