Brown lentils and rice with cinnamon and cumin

Just to keep up with recently acquired superstitions, the first post of the year is a lentil dish. It may sound a bit too healthy, too sensible and maybe even bland, but it is far from it. The few spices it has, make it fragrant, flavourful and delicious… For bonus points, it has something bright red on it, for an extra bit of good luck.

Lebanese rice and lentils (adapted from Bill Granger‘s Easy)

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons of olive oil
• 2 onions, halved and sliced
• 3 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 200g lentils
• 100g of long grain rice
• 800 mL vegetable stock
• 2 tomatoes quartered
• plain yoghurt mixed with ground cinnamon and cumin
• vegetable sto
• freshly ground salt and black pepper

Method

Heat the oil in a large saucepan until it is pipping hot. Drop in the sliced onions and add salt and pepper. Cook for about 10min, until soft and golden. Add the garlic, the cinnamon and cumin. Cook for another 2min until fragrant.

Add the lentils and the rice. Mix until they are covered with the spices and the onion. Poor in the stock and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat. Let it simmer for about 30min until the water is absorbed and the lentils are soft. Season to taste with salt and ground black pepper.

Serve with the quartered tomatoes and a dollop of yoghurt.