If you’re in the market for a warm vegetable stew with luscious spices which will reheat well, then I’ve got a dish for you. This is a very mild curry (which you could heat up with some cayanne and/or crushed red pepper if that’s your preference) and it has notes of cinnamon from the garam masala. If that’s not your thing, you could use your favorite pre-made curry spice mixture rather than what’s listed here. This dish can easily stand on its own as a vegetarian main, or be served alongside some lovely spiced yogurt chicken (as Neil and I had it).
Ingredients
- 1 cup red lentils
- 1/4 cup tomato puree
- 1/4 cup Greek yogurt
- 1 teaspoon garam masala
- 1/2 teaspoon ground dried turmeric
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon ancho chile powder
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 cup fresh green beans, cut into 1-inch lengths
- 1 cup mushrooms, sliced thickly
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 (1 inch) piece fresh ginger root, grated
- 4 cups loosely packed fresh spinach, coarsely chopped
- 2 tomatoes, chopped
- 4 sprigs fresh cilantro, chopped
- 1 (15.5 ounce) can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
Directions
- Rinse the lentils well and place them in a saucepan with enough water to cover. Bring to a boil
- Reduce the heat to low, cover the pot, and simmer for 20 minutes
- Drain and set aside
- In a bowl, stir together the tomato puree and yogurt. Season with garam masala, turmeric, cumin, and chile powder
- Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat
- Add the onion, green beans and mushrooms; cooking until the onion begins to brown
- Add in the garlic and ginger and stir for a minute- until you really begin to smell them
- Stir in the spinach; cook until it’s dark green and wilted
- Add the yogurt mixture and stir until incorporated
- Mix in the tomatoes and cilantro
- Stir the lentils and garbanzo beans into mixture until well combined and heated through, about 5 minutes
The inspiration for this dish came from this recipe.