Serves: 6
Difficulty of recipe preparation: Easy
Preparation time: 25 min
Cooking time: 40 min
Ingredients
- Lentils, whole uncooked 1 Cup
- Olive oil 1 Tblsp
- Onion, medium 1
- Carrots, medium unpeeled 2
- Celery stick including leaves 1
- Red capsicum, seeded 1/2
- Potatoes, medium unpeeled 2
- Garlic cloves, chopped 3
- Sweet paprika, ground 1 1/2 tblsp
- Caraway seeds, crushed 1 1/2 tsp
- Tomato paste 1 1/2 tblsp
- Bay leaf 2
- Water 5 Cups
- freshly ground black pepper to taste
- If wished Salt to taste
- Yoghurt, plain, low fat 1 1/2 tblsp per serve
- flat leaf parsley or chives, chopped -garnish on yoghurt
Method
- Pick over lentils and discard any soil, stones or discoloured seeds.
- Wash lentils and place in bowl
- Cover lentils with boiling water and leave stand while dealing with other ingredients.
- Put a saucepan on the stove over low heat and add the olive oil
- Trim any bad bits from the vegetables, wash them and cut into 1cm cubes and add to the saucepan as you get them ready, being careful not to let them burn and stirring as you go.
- Stir in paprika and caraway seeds.
- Stir in tomato paste.
- Drain lentils and add to the saucepan and stir.
- Add 5 cups of water and bring to a simmer.
- Do NOT add salt until after the lentils are cooked.
- Simmer until lentils are soft and taste cooked, about 30-40 minutes.
- Season to taste with black pepper and salt if you wish
- Serve in bowls with a dollop of yoghurt and some parsley or chives on top.
Additional information/tips
This dish is suitable for vegetarians and those with gluten intolerance. If the yoghurt were replaced with a little lemon juice then the recipe would be suitable for vegans.
Add the celery leaves near the end of cooking so they look fresh.
Some wholemeal bread is rather good with this recipe but not for those with gluten issues.
The dish fits the new Australian food pyramid rather well. 72% vegetables and pulses, 15% cereal if served with bread, 11% milk product, 1% good oils and low in salt.
Only 292Cal/1222kJ/serve