This vegan lentil curry is absolutely amazing. It's simple, exotic, spicy, tasty, creamy and has an intense coconut flavor. I like to serve it with rice.
I'm in love with this vegan lentil curry, it's my favorite lentil recipe, I eat it almost every week. Besides, it's a super easy and flavorful dish. If you love Indian cuisine as mush as I do, you need to try this awesome lentil curry.
I usually eat lentils with rice, it's a satisfying and nutritious meal, and also a great combination, so delicious! This recipe is diet-friendly, especially if you don't add any oil.
I love coconut milk, it has fat, but if you include it in moderation in a healthy, balanced diet, it's not a problem and you can make it at home, it's so easy, you only need water and coconut (fresh or shredded). Anyway, if you don't like coconut milk or if you prefer a lighter version use water or any other plant milk. The rest of the ingredients are pretty light and nutritious. It's a flavorful recipe because we added so many spices (feel free to add other spices or remove any).
Garam masala is a mixture of spices very popular in Indian cuisine. If you can't find it, just make it at home or use the spices you have on hand. The composition of garam masala differs regionally. The components of the mix are toasted, then ground together. A typical Indian version of garam masala contains: turmeric, black pepper, cinnamon, cloves, cumin seeds and cardamom pods, but you can also add other spices such as garlic powder, ginger, sesame seeds, mustard seeds, coriander, nutmeg, fennel or cayenne powder.
I eat legumes at least 3 or 4 times a week and I'm always trying new legume recipes. This vegan lentil curry is a staple for me, it's a pretty simple recipe, but it takes time, although it's totally worth it. If you like curry, lentils and coconut, you need to try it.
If you like this vegan lentil curry, check out these lentil recipes: low-fat vegan Shepherd's pie, lentil salad, easy lentil curry and vegan sloppy joes.
Did you make this recipe? Please leave a comment below, share it, rate it or tag a picture @simpleveganblog on Instagram and hashtag it #simpleveganblog. We’d love to see what you cook!
Vegan Lentil Curry
Ingredients
- 1 cup uncooked lentils
- 1 cup uncooked basmati rice
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 2 cloves of garlic
- ½ onion
- 16 ounces tomato sauce
- ⅔ cup full-fat coconut milk
- 2 teaspoon curry powder
- 1 teaspoon garam masala
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon turmeric powder
Instructions
- Cook lentils according to package directions (we cooked them for 40 minutes over medium-high heat). Drain and set aside.
- Cook basmati rice according to package directions. We cooked them for 12 minutes over medium-high heat. Drain and set aside.
- Heat the olive oil in a frying pan, add the garlic and the onion (finely chopped) and cook them over medium-high heat until golden brown.
- Add the tomato sauce, coconut milk and spices and cook for about 5 minutes. Stir occasionally.
- Add cooked lentils, stir and cook for at least 15 or 20 minutes.
- Serve the lentils over the basmati rice. You can add some chopped cilantro on top.
- Store in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Notes
- I like brown lentils, but any type of lentils will do.
- Use your favorite type of rice or even other grains like quinoa or buckwheat.
- If you want to make this recipe oil-free, just sauté the veggies in some water or oil-free broth.
- Chopped tomatoes can be used instead of the tomato sauce.
- If you don't like coconut, add water or any plant milk instead of the coconut milk.
- Use your favorite veggies and spices.
Russell Henderson says
I just made this for the first time today, and it is amazing! It's definitely going into my rotation of go-to meals.
Iosune says
Great!!!! I'm glad you liked it! Have a nice day 😀
shelley says
Hi, Iosune! I am so what new to eating lentils. I can't wait to try this recipe! Do you use the red or green lentils?
Iosune says
Hi Shelley! I use brown lentils, but you can use green or red lentils too 🙂 Have a nice day!
shelley says
Thanks! I had green on hand so I used them. Absolutely amazing! Probably the best thing I have eaten in years! Thanks for sharing.
Iosune says
Yay!!!! I'm glad you liked it!! 😀
Gina says
Made this for dinner tonight. Great flavor. Threw in a half a bag of kale that was going bad and the rest of a pack of mushrooms. Very filling and will be lunch for me and my carnivore husband tomorrow. He's coming around one great meal at a time.
Iosune says
Hi Gina! I'm so glad you liked it!!! 🙂
Ruth says
I can't buy Tomoto Sauce where I live so I'm just wondering what are the listed ingredients on a tin?! I'm going to try this recipe using a tin of tomoto puree and I'm just wondering what needs to be added to that to substitute for the sauce?!
Iosune says
Hi Ruth! The tomato sauce is usually made with extra virgin olive oil, garlic, onion, tomatoes, salt and sugar, but you can also use tomato puree or chopped tomatoes 🙂
Amy says
Just made this during my little guy's nap. So easy and delicious! Always looking for ways to use turmeric because of its many health benefits. I also added about a cup of diced sweet potatoes to the onion and garlic mix. This is exotic and delicious but still mild enough to please even the kiddos. Thanks for always sharing your awesome vegan recipes!
Iosune says
Hi Amy! I'm happy to read that! 🙂 I've never added sweet potatoes, thanks for the idea!
Michelle says
This looks amazing. I will try it this week.
Iosune says
Thanks Michelle! 😀
Audrey says
Hi Iosune!
We loved this recipe! So simple and yet creative. Would you mind if we featured it on our Facebook page? We will of course credit you back and link to your website.
This is our Facebook page and website: https://facebook.com/IndianDining https://indiandining.ca
Thank you,
Audrey
Iosune says
Hi Audrey! Of course you can 🙂 Thanks for asking!
Katie C says
Wow. I am eating this dish right now, and it's got great flavor and creaminess. I happened to have leftover coconut milk, cooked lentils and rice, so it whipped together in a flash AND helped me to use up leftovers. I added broccoli to get some extra veggies in today and it tastes delicious!
Thanks for an awesome and versatile recipe. Totally pinned!
Iosune says
Yayyyy! I'm so glad you liked it 😀 Thanks for making the recipe!!!
Katie C says
I thought I had clicked the 5 STARS before, but it didn't show up in the comment. Anyway! I gave it five stars!!
Also, I ate leftovers the next day, and it held up awesome! Flavor intensified.
Iosune says
Thank you so much!!!! 🙂
Heather says
So delish! I made with pureed tomatoes since I them on hand. So so so good.
Iosune says
Thanks Heather! Happy new year! 🙂
Des says
I made this last night for dinner and it was lovely, I added a vegetable stock cube in but that was the only alteration. I wasn't sure what to use for tomato sauce and used pasata which needed some "zhushing" up hence the stock cube.
Iosune says
Hi Des! I'm glad you liked it! Pasata is great and you can use tomato puree too 🙂
Lauren says
Thank GOODNESS I found this recipe! This is my first time cooking with both curry and garam masala and I have completely fallen in love. Thank you thank you!
Iosune says
Hi Lauren! I love curry and garam masala, they taste amazing and there are hundreds of recipes you can do 🙂 Thanks a lot for your comment!!!
matthew says
in my opinion, a whole can of tomato sauce makes this taste pretty bland. id recommend about half the suggested, or tinker with it.
or if you want to add a whole can, use way more spice. i tried it first with a whole can and it came out pretty good but it lacked a punch of a good, authentic, indian curry.
still a great recipe tho!
Iosune says
Hi Matthew! Thanks a lot for the ideas 🙂
David says
Hi,
Just wondering... your ingredient list calls for "curry". What kind of curry do you mean? And are you talking about a powder, paste, or something else?
Sorry, I don't know much about cooking.
Thank you,
David
Iosune says
Hi David! I use yellow curry powder 🙂