Curried Lentils and Rice

The other night I made one of my favorite veg recipes of all time, one that I've been making for over 10 years - Curried Lentils and Rice.

Since going vegan and becoming all-around more health-conscious, however, I began to make this dish less and less often.  It's not that it's an unhealthy dish by any means but it uses white rice and white rice isn't exactly the nutritional powerhouse that brown rice is.  (I joked to Brian that if we were going to eat it with white rice we might as well be eating "Curried Lentils and Candy".  Slight exaggeration?  Perhaps.)  I had never made the switch because I wasn't sure about the amount of liquid to use to allow for a longer cooking time.  Finally I decided to just experiment with it and see what happened.  

Amazingly, the texture turned out perfectly and the brown rice dish made the even better than the original!  I think the longer cooking time really allowed the flavors to meld together better.  I used brown basmati but any type of brown rice would work well.   

Served with a side of Smokey Sauteed Collards (sauteed in water, not oil, for slightly healthier version)

Curried Lentils and Rice
(printable recipe)

Ingredients:

1 tbsp. olive oil

1 cup finely chopped green pepper

1 cup finely chopped sweet onion

1 clove minced garlic

1 tsp salt

1 tsp curry powder

1 cup green lentils

1 cup brown rice (any variety)

4 cups vegetable stock

2 cups water

Fresh lemon juice

Directions:

1. Heat oil in 12-inch skillet over medium heat.  Add green pepper, onion, and garlic; cook until softened but not brown.  

2. Add salt, curry powder, lentils, and rice.  Stir and cook 1 minute.

3. Add vegetable stock and water and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 50 minutes, or until rice and lentils are tender and liquid has been absorbed.  (No need to stir; do not lift the lid until you are nearing the end - just let it cook!)

4. Season to taste with lemon juice.

Makes 4-5 servings.

What healthy recipe have you made even healthier?