Thai Coconut Lentils

This was a meal that came out of a need to use up various odds and ends in the fridge, and I wanted to see if I could put off going grocery shopping for another week. Though this was anything but a traditional Thai curry, I determined it to be delicious enough to count as a success. These lentils are super fragrant, filling, and of course full of fibre. I feel like lentils get a bad rap, and this is a great way to show just how versatile they are. If you wanted to make the dish stretch, you could serve it over rice, but the leftovers absorbed any juices pretty well by the next day. I found them satisfying just by themselves.

After spending several years learning how to cook for one (fortunately I already loved leftovers, which is very nearly a necessity to effectively cooking solo. Thanks, mom!) I have a couple tricks up my sleeve. For example, I will buy a few stalks of lemongrass, wash, and slice the stalks into two inch pieces or so, and keep them in the freezer. That way I always have it on hand, and its ready to be grated or thrown whole into a soup. I also stumbled on powdered coconut milk at the Asian supermarket - it works a lot like regular powdered milk and is a more frugal option than cans of coconut milk (which I stock up on when they go on sale).

I've gone ahead and labeled this recipe as both vegetarian and vegan - though fish sauce is a core component of Thai cooking, it can easily be substituted for vegetarian soy sauce if desired. If you've never used fish sauce, don't be scared to try it! It smells terrible but works magic in small amounts. I really can't explain it. It's unami in a bottle. And if you aren't able to find kaffir lime leaves (I cook enough Thai food to warrant always having them on hand), the zest of one lime will work in a pinch.

Recipe: Thai Coconut Lentils
Difficulty: easy
Author: Amanda
Serves: 4-6

Ingredients

• 1 cup dry green lentils
• 2 medium potatoes
• 1 bell pepper
• 1/4 head of green cabbage
• 1 yellow onion
• 1 can of coconut milk
• 1 inch fresh ginger
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 2 inches lemongrass stalk
• juice of one lime
• 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander seed
• 1 tablespoon fish sauce or vegetarian soy sauce
• 3-4 kaffir lime leaves
• 1/2 teaspoon dried red pepper flakes
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 15 cranks fresh ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons coconut oil, for frying

Directions

Rinse lentils and simmer with 2 cups of water for approximately 25 minutes, or until tender but still retain their shape. Rinse, and set aside until ready to use. Dice small the onion, potatoes, and bell pepper. Shred the cabbage using a large-holed cheese grater. Mince the garlic, and use a microplane or small-holed cheese grater for the ginger and lemongrass. On a pan over medium heat, add the onion, garlic, ginger, and lemongrass to the coconut oil and stir often, until onions are translucent. Add the potato, and continuing stirring often for approximately five minutes. Add the bell pepper and shredded cabbage. After 2-3 minutes, add the cooked lentils, coconut milk, lime leaves, lime juice, and the rest of the seasonings. Simmer dish, covered, on medium-low heat for 20-25 mins, stirring occasionally. Remove the lime leaves before serving.

Step-by-Step Photos

First, you'll want to get started on those lentils. Green lentils are very firm and should mostly retain their shape even when cooked, unlike red lentils, which cook quickly and can sometimes be a little mushy. I'm more partial to green lentils myself. Rinse them off, put them in a pot with about two cups of water, and simmer covered for approximately 25 minutes.

While the lentils are simmering, dice up the onion, potato, and bell pepper. Shred the cabbage.

Mince and grate the garlic, ginger, and lemongrass. Garlic and ginger together is one of my favourite things, and I make a point to use them often. The lemongrass really brightens up the heady garlic and ginger, so they all work quite well together.

By now, the lentils should be pretty much done and should look like this. Rinse them off, and set aside until ready to use.

In a pan over medium heat, melt the coconut oil and add the garlic, ginger, lemongrass, and onion. Stir often to prevent sticking for 2-3 minutes, or until onion is translucent.

Add the diced potatoes, and continue to stir often so the potato pieces don't stick to the pan.

Add the bell pepper and cabbage, and stir to mix.

Add the lentils, lime leaves, ground coriander, crushed red pepper flakes, ground black pepper, brown sugar, and fish sauce.

Also add the coconut milk...

...and the lime juice.

Stir well, and lower the heat to medium-low. You'll want to stir it occasionally for the next 25-30 minutes.

Once the dish is done simmering, pull out those lime leaves before serving. They are very flavourful, but are not edible (like bay leaves).

Serve, and enjoy lentils like you've never had them before.