You know how every family has their go-to meal for those busy weeknights? Well, meet ours! Lentils are in our weekly rotation for our kids meals because of their amazing health benefits– and this is an easy way to make that happen. You can make this delicious comfort meal, loaded with nutrients and antioxidants, in a minimal amount of time. Simple, quick and healthy–definitely up my alley as a busy mom to growing young kids. We filmed a video several months ago on how to make this simple dish, with the amazing Minimo Productions. It will see the light of day eventually, but I couldn’t wait to share our recipe!
Derived from a childhood favorite that’s typically made with mung beans, we make this with the base of french lentils, coconut milk, onions and garlic. I always joke that I “Americanized” this dish, since I ate the Filipino version of it growing up. And when I discovered that my children loved it too, I was able to replace our soccer/piano/fill-in-the-blank nights with with a dish that is even more nutrient dense than the typical quick go-to pasta.
If you want to make it even quicker, you can use frozen rice, which can be heated up in minutes. I always keep boxes of organic frozen rice that come in a 3-pack from Trader Joe’s on hand, for quick meals. They come in both brown and white rice options. I also use Trader Joe’s ready-to-eat steamed french lentils, which is something I also typically keep on hand in our fridge. Doing this ensures that we pack in those nutrients, even when our schedules are crazy. You can easily make the lentils yourself and it’s probaby a tiny bit cheaper–so if you do, adjust the spices to your preference. Hope you enjoy our family’s favorite weeknight meal!
Coconut Braised Lentils
A delicious weeknight favorite...
Ingredients
- 1/2 tsp olive oil, or water if avoiding oil
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 5 mushrooms, sliced
- 1 pkg steamed French Lentils (about 18oz) We buy ours from Trader Joe's
- 1 can coconut milk (about 13oz)
- Handful fresh spinach, chopped
- Garlic Powder, to taste
- Salt, to taste
Instructions
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Sauté onions in a sauce pan (with oil or water, as preferred) for about a min on medium heat, until translucent.
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Add sliced mushrooms and continue to sauté for about one more minute.
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Add minced garlic and sauté for about 30 seconds, ensuring that it doesn't burn.
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Add cooked french lentils and stir all ingredients together. Use premade lentils or cook your own--if cooking from scratch, adjust the seasonings to taste.
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Add can of of coconut milk and bring to boil over medium heat. Depending on the thickness of your coconut milk you can add water to thin out as desired. Cook for about 3-5 minutes over med heat on a low boil.
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Add garlic powder and/or salt to taste.
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Stir in freshly chopped spinach and remove from heat. Serve immediately over white or brown rice. Enjoy!
I love to be tagged in stories and posts when you make any of our recipes or try anything that we’ve shared! Please tag us and we’ll reshare our faves too. 🙂 @plantbasedmomma
It sounds delicious!