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!
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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.
daniel says
nice veg recipes .thanks for the post.
Iosune says
You're so welcome Daniel 🙂
Andrea says
I tried the recipe and I really did like it, it´s so simple! I only changed few small, but maybe importnant details:
1. when the onion and garlic were almost cooked enough, I added the spices and let them fry for a minute or two. Then I added the tomato sauce etc.
2. I had the coconut milk AND some coconut CREAM, which I added too and the result was really smooth with soft coconut flavour.
3. I MIXED a half of the mixture.
Perfect!!!
Iosune says
Hi Andrea! Sounds great, thanks a lot for your ideas 😀 Have a beautiful day!
Mikkel Magnuson says
Hi ! This looks so beautiful and delicious and I kept fingers crossed as I made this for dinner vegan lentil curry. It tasted good. It just tasted AWESOME! It is also easy to cook. Thanks for all ur efforts to make every thing easy for us.
Iosune says
Hi Mikkel! Yay!!! I'm so glad you enjoyed it 😀 Thank YOU for your kind words 😉 Have a nice day!
Jan arrick says
I made this last night and it was easy and delicious!
I didn't have coconut milk but had coconut oil, so I added a little of that and soy milk in an attempt to get that flavor.
My husband loves it, he likes milder flavors than me. Next time I might divide it up and add more curry powder and a spicy kick of some kind to my portion. Any suggestions?
Iosune says
Hi Jan! I love paprika and dried herbs, especially oregano and thyme 😉 Hope you like it!
Jen says
I hate recipes that call for less than a full can of something (I know I'd put the remaining coconut milk in tupperware in the fridge only to throw it out a week later) so I doubled the recipe to avoid that. Also used the full bag of lentils which was probably 2 1/2 cups dry. I did not double the tomato sauce though, left that at 16 oz. Also added 2 sweet potatoes as per another commenterc's suggestion. It is very good and very simple to make! I'm looking forward to having this for lunch all week.
Iosune says
Hi Jen! I'm so glad you liked it 🙂 Have a nice day!
courtney says
I'm 19 and ! just made this recipe and wow it was amazing!! I subbed brown rice for the white and it was still soo good.
I'd never cooked with lentils before so it was a bit difficult gauging when they were done, but I read somewhere that they really suck up seasoning and sometimes you have to over season a bit to taste them, so i did so with this recipe.
So glad with the results and thank you for posting! I've only been vegan for a few months but recipes like these really help!
Iosune says
Hi Courtney! Thanks a lot for your kind words 🙂 I'm so glad you enjoyed the recipe!!! Being vegan is easy if you find recipes you like 😀 Have a nice day!!!
Karley says
Amazing! I'm always aprehensive about curry recipes because I always manage to ruin them. This came out perfect and will become a regular dish for my husband and me. Do you have any recommendations for how to make this in the crock pot?
Iosune says
Hi Karley! I'm so glad you liked it! I've never used a Crock pot (it's not very common here in Spain), so I can't help you, sorry!
Olg says
Amazing ! I made this tonight, it turned out absolutely delicious. The only tweak was that I just added a courgette that I didn't know where else to put. I served it on pilau rice. Many thanks for a successful dinner party 🙂
Iosune says
Hi Olg! Thank YOU for making the recipe 😉 So glad you enjoyed it!
Tayla says
This was amazing...just so yummy and tasty! Curries are my favorite and this one is certainly at the top of the list..thank you!
Iosune says
Thanks a lot Tayla!! I love curries too 😀
Jessica says
I've had this saved for over a year on "my dinners this week" board lol. We are in the process of moving and trying to use up all the things in my cabinets. My husband was walking around not so excited I was making a vegan dish. Every one I make from Pinterest ends up a major fail. This was amazing! I'm super shocked! I didn't have some of the spices so I did as you suggested and added cinnamon, coriander, etc. Thank you!! Yummy and free 🙂
Iosune says
Hi Jessica! I'm so glad you liked it!!! Thank YOU for making the recipe 😉
Rebecca says
What kind of lentils do you use? Red, green, the little black ones?
Thanks!
Iosune says
Hi Rebecca! I used a typical Spanish brown lentils called "Pardinas", but you can make this recipe using any kind of lentils you want 😀
Simone says
This recipe was absolutely amazing - 5 stars!!
I am new to veganism and this is the first recipe i have tried, i love it and will definitely be adding it to my vegan recipe collection.
I didn't have coconut milk on hand, so i added water as you suggested. I also did not have any garam masala, so I omitted that.
Thank you Iosune, I cannot wait to try out your other recipes 🙂
Iosune says
Hi Simone! Thanks a lot for your kind words 🙂 If you have any doubt about veganism, please feel free to ask, I'll be happy to help. Have a nice day!