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NST kitchen · dinner

Lentil and chickpea curry with rice

Red lentils in a coconut-tomato sauce, served with rice and lightly browned chickpeas. Finish with coriander, pistachios or sesame if you like.

  • vegetarian
  • vegan
Prep (est.)
15 min
Cook (est.)
35 min
Total (est.)
50 min
Base servings
2
Jump to recipe
White rice beside orange lentil curry, topped with chickpeas, green pistachios, sesame seeds and coriander leaves.
Serving illustration, not a photograph of this NST recipe.Pistachios and sesame are pictured as optional toppings. Sauce and quantities may differ.Photo: Alesia Kozik / Pexels · Pexels licenceDisplayed crop; original linked above.
Get everything ready

Ingredients

Original recipe: 2

Quantities adjust; cooking times do not. Choose a suitable pan and check doneness. Small spice amounts are approximate; weigh fractional whole ingredients where needed. Changing servings clears the ingredient checklist.

Ingredients for 2 servings.

You will need

  • Kitchen scales
  • Measuring jug and spoons
  • Saucepan with lid
  • Rice pan with lid
  • Small frying pan
  • Sieve
  • Knife and board
  • Fine grater
  • Clean kitchen paper
  • Wooden spoon

Let's make it

The method

0 of 6 steps marked

Keep your place for this page visit. Ticks do not confirm doneness or food safety; follow every cooking and storage instruction.

  1. Step 1. Get everything ready

    Rinse the lentils as their pack directs. Prepare the onion, garlic and ginger. Drain, rinse and dry the ready-to-eat chickpeas.

  2. Step 2. Start the curry

    Warm half the oil in a saucepan over medium-low heat. Stir in the onion and cook until soft, about 8 minutes. Add the garlic, ginger and ground spices, stirring briefly without letting them burn.

  3. Step 3. Simmer the lentils

    Add the tomatoes, lentils, coconut milk and lentil water listed in the ingredients. Bring to the boil, then simmer gently, partly covered. Follow the lentil pack's cooking advice and stir the bottom regularly. Add water in 50 ml splashes if needed. Cook until the lentils squash completely with no hard centre, allowing longer than the estimated time if necessary.

  4. Step 4. Cook the rice

    While the curry simmers, cook the rice in a separate pan using the water and method on its pack. Aim to serve it freshly cooked, without leaving it at room temperature. See the rice-specific storage instructions for leftovers.

  5. Step 5. Brown the chickpeas

    Warm the remaining oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Carefully add the dried chickpeas and stir until hot and lightly coloured, keeping clear of any spluttering oil. Use cooked, ready-to-eat chickpeas, not dried uncooked ones.

  6. Step 6. Fill the bowls

    Check that the lentils are tender. Divide the rice and curry between your bowls and add the hot chickpeas. Finish with the optional coriander, pistachios or sesame only if suitable for everyone eating.

Make it work for you

Swaps & variations

  • Toppings: Leave out the pistachios and sesame if unwanted. For allergies, check all labels and prevent cross-contact; leaving them out is not a safety guarantee.
  • Accompaniment: Try bread instead of rice, checking its allergens separately.
  • Pulses: Ready-to-eat tinned beans are a possible separate variation. Dried pulses need a different cooking method and are not a direct swap.

Before you cook

Allergens & ingredients

  • Pistachio/tree nuts if optional garnish used
  • Sesame if optional garnish used
  • Check all pack ingredients and precautionary statements; spice cross-contact and additions may introduce other allergens

Check the labels of the exact ingredients you use, including any substitutions.

Recipe notes & sources

Sources support the points stated below; they are not evidence that NST has cooked or tested this recipe.