Curried Red Lentils with Flatbreads and Cilantro Mint Chutney

At the end of a busy day, the last thing you want to do is make an elaborate meal. You want something quick, something healthy and something flavorful. This meal of curried red lentils, flatbreads and a cilantro mint chutney checks all the boxes. It’s simple to make, too. You may even have everything you need on hand.

The entire meal was inspired by a pin that led to this post from Minimalist Baker. If you’re a regular reader, you know I’ve been featuring recipes from fellow bloggers during the ongoing Pinterest Challenge. I’ve been focussing on recipes that fit in with the flexitarian style of eating. Minimalist Baker is chock full of gorgeous photos and easy to prepare plant based and gluten free foods. I have more than one of her recipes curated in my pinterest account. Dana, the owner of the blog, also has an extensive section dedicated to food blogging, photography and video making that I’ve found to be very helpful, especially when I changed my blog theme to Foodie Pro.

Despite being a meatless meal, there’s plenty of protein. The lentils provide the most, but the flatbreads and the yogurt used to make the chutney will pitch in some more. Lentils are a great choice for quick meals because they don’t need to be soaked– although you’ll want to rinse and sort through them before cooking– and they take anywhere from 20 to 40 minutes to cook, depending on their type and age.

Red lentils are a good choice for soups, stews and curries. The only downside to them is a tendency to disintegrate, which can be overcome by choosing whole instead of split red lentils and by cooking at a steady simmer instead of a boil.

The recipe below is really more of a meal plan in that it lays out all the steps to make the chutney, flatbreads and the red curry lentils. Don’t let the list of ingredients and many steps lead to discouragement. You have options.

If you’d rather serve store bought flatbreads, go for it. If the sound of the cilantro mint chutney doesn’t appeal, go with plain Greek yogurt or another, already prepared choice.

One last word on the spices used to make this curry. The amounts listed are what I started with. I adjusted the seasoning as the lentils cooked. You’re always free to tailor the seasoning to suit your family’s tastes.

Curried Red Lentils with Flatbreads and Cilantro Mint Chutney

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Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes minutes

Total Time: 45 minutes minutes

Servings: 4 servings

Author: LydiaF

Ingredients

For the Cilantro Mint Chutney

• 1 cup 250 grams plain yogurt (I used Greek style)
• 1 generous handful cilantro leaves and tender stems
• 1 generous handful mint just the leaves
• 1/2 teaspoon minced ginger the stuff from a tube is fine
• 2 tablespoons minced green chile optional, I used 1/2 a seeded jalapeno
• juice of one or two limes
• salt and pepper to taste

For the Curried Red Lentils

• 2 tablespoons olive or vegetable oil
• 1 - 2 carrots peeled and diced to make about 1/2 cup
• 2 - 3 cloves garlic minced
• 1 tsp minced ginger I used the stuff in the tube
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
• 2 tablespoons curry powder I used a Madras blend, but whatever you like will be great
• 1/2 - 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne powder adjust to your taste and the heat in your curry blend
• 1 can tomato paste mine was 170 grams/6 ounces
• 2 cups vegetable broth I reconstituted a bouillon cube
• 1 cup water plus more as necessary
• 1 cup dry red lentils rinsed well, drained and picked through
• salt and pepper to taste

For the Flatbreads

• 1 cup all purpose flour plus more for dusting
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup 125 grams plain yogurt
• softened butter or oil for the pan and brushing on the flatbreads

Instructions

Make the chutney

• Place all the ingredients in a food processor and pulse until well combined. We like ours spoonable as opposed to spreadable. Adjust the texture by adding more herbs to thicken. Additional lime juice or water (just a teaspoon at a time) can be added to thin out the chutney. Taste and adjust the seasoning as desired. Transfer to a bowl and refrigerate until needed.

Start the curry

• On medium high, heat the oil in the bottom of a 4 quart pot. Saute the carrots for several minutes then add the garlic, ginger, cumin seeds, curry powder, turmeric and cayenne. Stir briefly to cook the spices in the remaining oil.
• Add the tomato paste and stir to combine with the carrots and spices.
• Pour in the broth. Stir until no lumps of tomato paste remain.
• Add the lentils and the water. The lentils should be covered by about an inch of water.
• Bring the pot to a vigorous simmer, then reduce the heat to low and put the lid on. Simmer for 20 - 30 minutes or until the carrots and lentils are tender. While cooking, adjust the seasoning and add more water as necessary to prevent the lentils from getting too dry. Keep warm.

Make the flat breads

• After the lentils are simmering measure the flour, baking powder and salt in a large bowl.
• Make a well in the center and spoon the yogurt into it. Use a spoon to mix the flour into the yogurt until a loose dough forms, then use your hands to knead it until it forms a smooth mass (you can knead it right in the bowl). Cover and let rest until the lentils are finished.
• When ready to cook the flat breads, dust your work surface with a little flour and turn out the dough. Knead it for a couple minutes, then portion it into 6 or 8 pieces.
• Use a rolling pin to shape the pieces into thin rounds or ovals (about the thickness of a nickel), adding more flour as needed to prevent sticking.
• Transfer the flatbreads to a tray and keep them covered to prevent them from drying out.
• Heat a grill pan until very hot. Brush with oil or melted butter.
• Transfer one or two flatbreads to the grill pan and cook. When the edges look a little dry and small blisters form on the top (one or two minutes), flip the flatbreads over to cook the other side. They may puff up when you turn them over. This is a good sign.
• When cooked through, remove the flatbreads to a plate and brush with melted butter. Repeat for the remaining flatbreads.

Serve

• We put the chutney in the lentils at the table and spread it onto the flatbreads.

Like this recipe?Be sure to Pin It for later!

The Minimalist Baker served her lentils with slices of raw onion. We had some pickled red onions on hand and chose to use them. If you want to try them make them first so they have time to become pickle-y. Alternatively you could saute a half cup of chopped onions at the same time as the carrots.

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As mentioned above, this post is part of a larger Pinterest challenge. The idea is to motivate us to actually try some of the things we’ve pinned. In the link up below you’ll find recipes, crafts, DIY and other types of posts. I hope you’ll enjoy browsing through them.

To join next month’s #pinterestchallenge, click here to sign-up ⇒ December Pinterest Challenge

Now let’s see what other things Pinterest inspired! Head over and visit the other hosts to see what they crafted, cooked, built, or tried!

Erlene – My Pinterventures • Alexandra – Eye Love Knots
Joanne – Our Unschooling Journey • Laurie – My Husband Has Too Many Hobbies
Jenny – Cookies Coffee and Crafts • Kristie – Teadoodles
Beverly – Across the Boulevard • Sam – Raggedy Bits
Debra – Shoppe No. 5 • Gail – Purple Hues and Me
Chelsea – Making Manzanita • Susan – Suzer Space
Julie – Sum of their Stories • T’onna – Sew Crafty Crochet
Michelle – Our Crafty Mom • Lisa – Blogghetti
Marie – The Inspiration Vault • Kelley – Simply Inspired Meals
Debbee – Debbee’s Buzz • Shirley – Intelligent Domestications
Roseann – This Autoimmune Life • Terri – Our Good Life
Lydia – Lydia’s Flexitarian Kitchen • Emily – Domestic Deadline
Rebecca – Hello Central Avenue • Lynne – My Family Thyme
Toni – Girl, Just DIY! • Lauren – Mom Home Guide