Lentil Sweet Potato Coconut Curry on Quinoa

Day 121: Part 2 - Supper

I had this recipe bookmarked for awhile, so I thought I would finally try it. It's definitely health food but don't let that scare you, because it tastes fantastic.

Lentil Sweet Potato Coconut Curry on Quinoa

White Quinoa

Unlike the last quinoa dish I made, this time I used white quinoa. Actually, it was Laura's sprouting quinoa. A few went down the sink drain when I was washing it because they're so small they slipped through the mesh. Do you think quinoa will sprout in our pipes?

Quinoa

So, like any grain it's pretty easy to prepare. You do have to wash it, as mentioned, until the water runs clear. But then, it's just a matter of adding 2 parts water to 1 part quinoa and simmering about 15 minutes.

Quinoa, uncooked

Fluff with a fork and it's ready to eat. Sorry, I know that's not exciting.

Lentil Sweet Potato Coconut Curry

The sauce was super easy to make too. Peel and chop the onions, carrots and sweet potatoes. Melt the oil in a saucepan and add the onions. Cook until clear.

Onions in coconut oil

Ingredients

I followed this recipe exactly
1½ tbsp coconut oil
1 cup diced onion
1 cup dried red lentils
1 medium sweet potato, cut into 1-inch cubes
1 large carrot, sliced lengthwise and chopped
½ tsp ground turmeric
1 tbsp mild curry powder
1 tsp ginger powder
½ tsp sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
3½ cups vegetable broth or water
½ cup coconut milk

Some of the curry ingredients

Measure out the lentils and spices. Add the carrots, sweet potatoes, lentils and spices to the onions, give them a stir to incorporate everything and then add the vegetable broth. Bring to a boil, then turn down and cook on medium-low for 25 minutes.

Lentil sweet potato curry

Add the coconut milk. The sauce will lighten and turn creamy.

Coconut milk

Lentil sweet potato coconut curry

Serve over a grain. Although we used quinoa, this sauce would be good on rice, bulgur wheat, couscous, barley, maybe even orzo.

Lentil Sweet Potato Coconut Curry on Quinoa

Reviews/Comments

I thought this was really good and I even had seconds. I'm rating it an 8 as a side dish and a 7 as the whole dinner. I liked the texture as much as the taste, probably because I love the texture of lentils. In fact, I think it would even be good as a soup instead of a sauce. I plan to take some in my lunch tomorrow...if there's work.

Laura was pleasantly surprised that she liked it at all since it's flavored with 2 spices she typically doesn't enjoy: turmeric and curry powder. However, she did like it and she especially appreciates that it was vegan, which is how she prefers her diet.

Spice drawer