Mujadara 🧅 lentils & rice 🇱🇧

Description

Comforting pilaf of brown lentils and rice crowned with deep-gold caramelized onions—simple pantry food that eats like a feast. 🌿

Hook
Properly brown onions, then steam rice and lentils in the same pot for fluffy grains and creamy lentils. 🔥

Ingredients

• 🫘 Brown/green lentils, dry: 250 g (1¼ cups / 8.8 oz)
• 🌾 Long-grain rice, rinsed and soaked 15 min: 200 g (1 cup / 7.1 oz)
• 🧅 Yellow onions, thinly sliced: 600 g (4 cups packed / 1.3 lb)
• 🫒 Olive oil: 45 ml (3 tbsp / 1.5 fl oz)
• 🧄 Garlic, minced: 6 g (2 cloves / 0.2 oz)
• 🧂 Fine salt: 10 g (1¾ tsp / 0.35 oz)
• 🌶️ Ground cumin: 3 g (1 tsp / 0.11 oz)
• 🌿 Ground coriander or allspice (optional): 1 g (½ tsp / 0.04 oz)
• 💧 Water or light veg stock (hot): 1.2 l (5 cups / 40 fl oz)
• 🍋 To serve: lemon wedges, chopped parsley, black pepper

Preparation

1. 1️⃣ Caramelize the onions — 30 cm sauté pan, oil 30 ml over medium (160–170°C / 320–338°F surface). Add onions + pinch salt; cook 18–22 min to deep golden. Reserve ⅓ for topping.
2. 2️⃣ Par-cook lentils — In a pot add lentils + 800 ml water; boil then simmer 12 min until just tender. Drain if excess water remains.
3. 3️⃣ Build the pot — Return lentils; add soaked, drained rice, cumin, coriander/allspice, garlic, remaining oil 15 ml, salt 10 g, and 400 ml hot water (liquid ~1 cm above rice).
4. 4️⃣ Cook — Bring to a gentle boil, cover tightly, reduce to low; cook 12–14 min until liquid is absorbed and steam holes appear.
5. 5️⃣ Steam & finish — Off heat, keep covered 10 min. Fluff with a fork; top with reserved onions, parsley, pepper, and lemon.

Total Time

⏱️ Prep: 10 min
🍳 Cooking: 40 min
😌 Rest: 10 min
🕒 Total: 60 min

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