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If you’re looking for easy yellow lentil recipes to add to your rotation, start with this easy vegan yellow lentil stew.
This might be one of the tastiest lentil stews I’ve ever made. The flavors were absolutely delicious and, best of all, you don’t need a ton of ingredients for it!
Let’s set the stage for this recipe. Last night, I went out to eat for a quick happy hour bite. I had a couple of cocktails (my first espresso martini!) and the cocktails did their job a little too well. The food portions, however, were tiny, so when I got home, I was still a bit peckish. Enter this amazing lentil stew. It’s so easy to make even a tipsy person can make it.
- 2 yellow onions, peeled and diced
- 4 carrots, peeled and diced
- 3 potatoes, peeled and cubed
- Garam masala
- Yellow lentils, though you can also use red or brown
- Water or vegetable stock
If you want to make it even more flavorful, you can make the toasted spices. Here’s what you need for that:
- Vegan or dairy butter
- Dry fenugreek leaves
- Black mustard seeds
- Cumin seeds
How to make this easy vegan yellow lentil stew:
The stew is so easy to make but loaded with flavor!
First, sauté the onions until they just begin to soften. Next, add the carrots and potatoes. From there, I like to create a well in the middle of the vegetables and add a drizzle of neutral oil. Once the oil is hot, add the garam masala and let it sizzle in the hot oil for 30–45 seconds.
From there, toss to coat the vegetables in the bloomed spice mixture and season liberally with salt and pepper. You can add a healthy shake of cayenne pepper if you like it spicy! Add the yellow lentils and then pour in the water or vegetable stock. Bring it to a boil and let it simmer for 20–30 minutes or until the lentils are tender.
If you want to add the sizzled spices, you can begin them right as you start to let the lentil stew simmer. Simply heat vegan butter in a small pot. Once bubbly, add the fenugreek, cumin, and black mustard seeds and cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute. Once the mustard seeds start popping, turn off the heat and immediately pour it into the lentil stew. You’ll hear lots of beautiful sizzling noises!
From there, you can serve the lentils over rice or with naan. I served it with gorgeous saffron rice that you will absolutely love.
Easy Vegan Yellow Lentil Stew
Equipment
- Large pot
- Small saucepan
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon neutral oil, divided
- 2 yellow onions, peeled and diced
- 4 carrots, peeled and diced
- 3 potatoes, peeled and cubed
- 1 tablespoon garam masala
- ½ teaspoon cayenne powder optional
- 1 cup yellow lentils
- 6–8 cups water or vegetable stock
Spice mixture:
- 2 tablespoons vegan or dairy butter
- 2 teaspoons black mustard seeds
- 2 teaspoons cumin seeds
- 1 teaspoon dry fenugreek leaves
Instructions
Sauté the vegetables:
- Heat 1 tablespoon neutral oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the onions and sauté for 5–6 minutes or until they begin to soften. Next, add the carrots and potatoes and sauté for 5–6 minutes.
- Create a well in the middle of the vegetables and add the remaining 1 teaspoon of oil. Once the oil is hot, add the garam masala and cayenne powder, if used, and let it sizzle in the hot oil for 30–45 seconds.
- Toss coat the vegetables in the bloomed spice mixture and season liberally with salt and pepper.
Simmer the yellow lentils:
- Add the yellow lentils and then pour in 6 cups of water or vegetable stock. Bring it to a boil and then reduce heat to low. Cover the stew and simmer for 20–30 minutes or until the lentils are tender. Add the remaining 2 cups of water or stock if the liquid absorbs too quickly while simmering.
Sizzle the spices (optional):
- Melt the vegan butter into a small saucepan. Once bubbly, add the fenugreek, cumin, and black mustard seeds and cook, constantly stirring, for 1 minute. Once the mustard seeds begin to pop, turn off the heat and immediately pour it into the lentil stew. You'll hear lots of beautiful sizzling noises!
To serve:
- Divide the stewed lentils between bowls and serve with cooked basmati rice or naan and cilantro leaves.
I get it now. I finally get how veganism is possible. As a meat eater who was hungry but didn’t want to go the fast food route I decided to make this for dinner and it didn’t “feel” like an appetizer or side dish I’m stuffed off of 600 calories of veggies that tasted like a legit savory meal. I can’t say I have too much of a passion for the animal cruelty factor of the diet but I’m already planning my next vegan meal because of how filling and low-calorie it is.
Thanks for the heads up!