This lentil curry features red lentils, brown rice and split peas, mushrooms, spinach & spices. This vegan combination creates a super delicious and comforting meal that you can enjoy any season...

Lentil curry with rice & split peas is a comfort meal that outgoes any season. You can have this spicy dish in the middle of scorching summer as well as a comforting warm meal on a cold winter day.
This lentil curry is vegan and healthy with easy-to-find ingredients. And the best part, my friend, it's really so easy to make it, and I can tell you, it is sooo delicious.
Lentil Curry made easy for you!
While you think of curry dish, it sounds all challenging, It's Indian with a heap of spices that-you-obviously-don't-have-at-home! And you have no idea how to use some of them after unless you make curry quite often.
I made this lentil curry with rice and split peas out of coincidence.
Yes, I am guilty! You need to plan way ahead to make a good curry, right? Not necessarily; if you have a handful of awesome ingredients and a few spices, then I guarantee you that you'll make a one-pot lentil curry within less than half an hour!
I want to show you that you can make a great, easy and tasty curry dish.
This lentil curry with rice and split peas took me 35 minutes to cook! You see, real quick?
As I said, it was out of some gathered circumstances that this recipe was born, hahaha.
I had soaked one cup of lentils, one cup brown rice and one cup split peas yesterday morning to make some pancakes, however, I got home late in the evening, as I'd taken my girl out for a walk.
Just at the moment, I got home, my lovely new friend stopped by with a bag of fresh spinach; thank you, J.
And guess what? I had a handful of fresh mushrooms in the fridge, waiting eagerly to be eaten!
Since I couldn't make the pancakes, I opted for a quick dish for the evening, and I made this lentil curry with split peas!
You see, making lentil curry should not challenge you anymore. And if you have some coconut cream sleeping somewhere in your house waiting for the-when-will-you-use-me moment, then you'll be making yourself the best curry dish ever!
Using soaked lentils, peas, and rice made this dish cook faster than when using dry ingredients.
Make your lentil curry right
However, would you agree that there's no curry without spices? Get some pepper, ginger, and turmeric; I normally use fresh roots, but be free to use powdered.
I have some dried herbs in my kitchen, which you can substitute with fresh herbs according to the season or just use cilantro, fresh or seeds, either will do.
Though fresh cilantro smells so good and will obviously add more flavor.
To make this lentil curry with rice and split peas a great meal, the secret lies in letting the spices cook alone for about ten minutes so that they can release all their flavors.
Another important rule of thumb is to stir this curry so gently, if you go too fast, the lentils will turn in a purée! And we don't want that, do we? The puree is for another day, lol!
Make sure to cook at moderate heat after adding the lentil+rice+peas and the boiling has taken up.
Please do not cook the mushrooms and the spinach, just add them at the end, put off the heat, fold them in gently this will preserve the color and also the vitamin C in spinach, that's destroyed by high heat and prolonged cooking.
This lentil curry is so deliciously spicy; it's healthy with great flavors, and you can even keep the remaining for the following meal. Your family will often ask for some more of your lentil curry…
There you go, my friend. You have a comforting lentil curry meal that is also full of healing properties. What a beautiful way to enjoy a dish that's spicy and healing!
Make your lentil curry, and let me know what you added to it by commenting here below. Thank you for pinning and sharing this recipe.
I love you, Githu.
Enjoy more recipes with lentils
- Red Lentils recipe with fresh tomatoes
- Fluffy vegan pancakes with red lentils
- Brown rice & red lentils gluten-free pancakes
- Split pea & oats pancakes
- Mung bean vegan pancakes
- Millet recipe with beluga lentils
📖 Recipe
Lentil curry with rice & split peas
Ingredients
- 1 cup red lentils
- 1 cup brown rice
- 1 cup split green peas
- 1 tablespoon cilantro seeds
- 1 tablespoon fennel seeds
- 1 tablespoon cumin seeds
- 1 tablespoon dried basil
- 1 tablespoon dried chives
- piece fresh ginger root
- piece fresh turmeric root
- 3 bay leaves
- 2 medium onions
- 3 cloves garlic
- 2 tablespoon coconut oil olive oil or any healthy oil
- 5 cups boiling water
- 4 tablespoon yummy creamy carrot sauce: use any cream or coconut cream
- pinch of salt
- pinch of ground pepper freshly ground will be the best
- pinch of cayenne pepper
- handful fresh spinach
- handful fresh mushrooms
Instructions
- Wash and soak your lentils, split peas, and rice in a single large bowl of at least 10h. Make sure to add a lot of water as these are going to swell and double the volume.
- Place a big saucepan on medium heat and bring all the dry spices and leaves, cover and stir now and then for about 5 mins.
- Meanwhile, chop the onions, mince the ginger, turmeric, and garlic. Bring them in the pan and give them a stir for 2 mins before adding the coconut oil and stir again. cover them and let them cook for 8 mins on medium heat as you keep on stirring.
- Rince the legumes and drain the water.
- Bring them in the pan, stir everything together, then cover with some boiling water. The water should be covering about 2 cm above the legumes.
- Increase the heat till the boiling takes place then reduce to medium high heat
- Cover and let this cook for about 12 minutes on medium heat, you keep on stirring now and then, BUT YOU MUST BE VERY GENTLE when STIRRING.
- In between, add any cream of your choice, I added my yummy creamy carrot sauce.
- During this time, rinse out your spinach, cut them into halves if you've big leaves. wipe your mushrooms with a kitchen paper to wipe off any soil. Cut them into desired size.
- Add salt, peppers and turn off the heat.
- Add the mushrooms and the spinach, fold them in GENTLY, Cover, and leave the meal to cool for about 10 mins then serve and enjoy your lentil curry with rice & split peas.
- NOTE; since the legumes are already soft and swollen, they're not going to take long to cook, so don't overload them with water unless you want a lot of sauce which we can say soup!