This lentil rice pilaf is one of myall time favorite comfort meals. I brought in the recipe home with me when I returned from india and have been making lentil rice pilaf exactly the way I learned from my friends mom.

The first snowstorm of the season raging outside of my window. Pouring white blanket over everything. For a reason I can’t get into it I couldn’t stop thinking about Lentils rice pilaf today. I learned to make this dish when I was a college student in Pune, India. It is among my favorite dishes today.

You just need basmati rice, seasoning, and red lentils to make it. But if you choose to you can also add carrots, peas and green beans or your choice of greens to make it a healthy plant based one pot meal.

Lentils pilaf comes together easily. I am using red split lentils today. I like that flavor combination better. But you opt for whole lentils too. Just make sure to soak and par boil beforehand, because whole lentils take longer to cook and might make rice for mushy.

How to make Lentils rice pilaf?

Ingredients

• 2 Cups of red split lentils
• 3 cups of basmati rice
• One whole red onion
• Teaspoon of ginger garlic paste
• One dry red chili
• One green chili
• Teaspoon of whole cumin
• Teaspoon of mustard seeds
• Handful of curry leaves
• 2 cloves
• 3 pods of Cardamom
• 2 blades of Mace
• One inch thick cinnamon
• One tomato
• Half a teaspoon of turmeric
• Half a teaspoon of chili powder
• Bunch of spinach cleaned and chopped fine
• Tablespoon of Ghee
• Indian bay leaf
• 7 cups of water
• Salt to taste

Preparation

1. Start by heating ghee in the pan. When the oil is hot adding mustard seeds and let fry. Then fry onions until golden brown.
2. Add cumin seeds, bay leaf, mace, cloves, Cardamom and stick of cinnamon. Fry for two minutes.
3. Add ginger garlic paste, curry leaves, green chili, and tomatoes. Fry until tomatoes are soft and release its juice.
4. Add lentils, turmeric, chili powder, dry red chili. Add two cups of water to cover the lentils and add salt to taste. Allow the curry to come to boil.
5. Cook rinsed basmati rice until it’s cooked about seventy percent.
6. Add par cooked rice and mix in with cooked lentil curry sauce.
7. .Cover and turn the heat to medium low and cook the rice completely. Add little extra water or coconut milk if you think it needs it. I just go by the feel.
8. Once rice is cooked, turn the heat off, cover and allow everything to rest for 15 minutes. (I added chopped spinach on top to steam at this stage)
9. Remove bay leaves before serving.
10. Enjoy with a sliced onion Raita or salsa.

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