Lentil Stew | Laurel On Health Food

This post was originally published as Curry-Spiced Lentil Stew by Laurel on Health Food. 

I’ve been meaning to post these pictures of a lentil stew I made a few weeks ago. It was a quick crock-pot meal that I threw together before dance class. I let all the ingredients simmer in there for about 5 or 6 hours and was happy to have a hot stew waiting for me when I got home. Yes, here in NY it was and is still cold at night, so I eat soups and stews even at this time of year. This stew is great with a piece of toasted whole grain bread or a scoop of quinoa and a side of green veggies.

Curry-Spiced Lentil Stew

For the stew:
2 cups dried green or red lentils
1 large can diced tomatoes (28 oz.)
6 cups vegetable stock
1 large yellow onion
4 cloves garlic
1 tbsp. coconut oil
1 cup coconut milk
2 tbsp. curry powder
1 bay leaf

For garnish:
Fresh cilantro
Plain coconut milk yogurt

Chop up the yellow onion (diced) and garlic cloves (minced) and put them in a sauté pan with the coconut oil. Cook for about 5 minutes over medium heat, stirring frequently. Remove pan from the heat and scoop all the garlic and onions into a crock pot. Add the vegetable stock, coconut milk, lentils, tomatoes with their juice, curry powder, bay leaf, and a generous pinch of salt and pepper. Stir well. Turn the crock pot up to high heat and cook for at least 4 hours until the lentils are tender. Check the crock pot periodically to make sure you have enough liquid. If it looks too thick towards the end, pour in some extra vegetable stock or water and stir. Serve warm with a scoop of coconut milk yogurt and a sprinkle of fresh cilantro on top.