I’ve been trying to brain storm up some easy plant-based meals lately, and this week’s creation was these Creamy Coconut Curried Lentils with Spinach, which are kind of like the creamy cousin of my Curried Chickpeas with Spinach. I swapped out the canned chickpeas for quick cooking lentils, and instead of a tomato-based curry sauce, I went with a super rich creamy coconut sauce, that pairs oh so well with the earthy lentils and heady curry spices.
As you can see in the photos, I paired these Creamy Coconut Curried Lentils with my Curry Roasted Carrots and some naan. The sweetness of the carrots balances perfectly with the earthy lentils. If you’re not up for making an entirely separate side dish, you can even just slice up a few carrots and let them simmer along with the lentils in the skillet!
Make it Spicy or Mild
This recipe is really easy to make either spicy or mild and tastes fantastic either way. Curry powder can be either hot or mild, so make sure you know which type you’re buying. If you have a mild curry powder and want your coconut curry lentils to be spicy, simply add a little cayenne pepper, or top the cooked dish with a few red pepper flakes. Or, if you’d like to try to make your own curry powder, try this recipe for Easy Homemade Curry Powder from Spiceitupp.com.
What Type of Lentils Should I Use?
Brown lentils are the best for this dish because they hold their shape through simmering, unlike red or yellow lentils, but still cook really quickly, unlike green lentils. Brown lentils are sometimes just labeled “lentils” in the U.S., so just check the recommended cooking time on the package. If it says simmer for about 20 minutes, you’ve got the right type of lentil!
Is There a Substitute for Coconut Milk?
Heavy cream or half and half can be used in place of the coconut milk in this recipe, although you probably won’t need quite as much as the coconut milk used. Stick to about 1/2 cup for the heavy cream or 3/4 cup for half and half.
Creamy Coconut Curry Lentils with Spinach
Servings 4 1.25 cups curry lentils + 1 cup riceIngredients
- 2 Tbsp olive oil ($0.24)
- 2 cloves garlic ($0.16)
- 1 tsp grated fresh ginger ($0.10)
- 1 small yellow onion ($0.21)
- 1 Tbsp curry powder* ($0.30)
- 1 cup brown lentils (dry) ($0.67)
- 2 cups vegetable broth** ($0.26)
- 1 13oz. can coconut milk ($1.99)
- 3 cups fresh baby spinach ($1.61)
For Serving (optional)
- 4 cups cooked rice ($0.60)
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro ($0.15)
Instructions
- Mince the garlic, grate the ginger, and dice the onion. Add the olive oil, garlic, and ginger to a deep skillet, Dutch oven, or soup pot. Sauté the garlic and ginger over medium heat for 1 minute, or just until the garlic becomes soft and fragrant.
- Add the diced onion to the skillet and continue to sauté over medium until the onion is soft and translucent. Add the curry powder and continue to sauté for about one minute more to toast the spices.
- Add the dry lentils and vegetable broth to the skillet. Stir to dissolve any browned bits from the bottom of the skillet. Place a lid on top, turn the heat up to medium-high, and bring the broth to a boil. Once boiling, turn the heat down to low, and let it simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- After simmering for 20 minutes the lentils should be tender and most of the broth absorbed. Add the can of coconut milk and stir to combine. Turn the heat back up to medium and allow the skillet to come back up to a simmer. Let it simmer without a lid for an additional 10 minutes, stirring often, to thicken the mixture.
- Once thickened, turn the heat off. Add the fresh spinach and stir gently until the spinach has wilted. Taste the mixture and adjust the salt or curry powder to your liking, if needed.
- Serve over a bowl of rice, and top with chopped cilantro if desired.
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Notes
Nutrition
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Scroll down for the step by step photos!
How to Make Creamy curried lentils – Step by Step Photos
Mince two cloves of garlic, grate about 1 tsp fresh ginger, and dice one small onion. Add 2 Tbsp olive oil, the minced garlic, and grated ginger to a deep skillet (a Dutch oven or soup pot will also work). Sauté for about one minute, or just until the garlic is soft and fragrant.
Add the diced onion and continue to sauté until the onion is soft and translucent. Once the onion is softened, add 1 Tbsp curry powder. Continue to sauté for one minute more to toast the spices.
Add 1 cup dry brown lentils to the skillet…
Along with 2 cups of vegetable broth. I use Better Than Bouillon, which contains a fair amount of salt. If your broth doesn’t have a lot of salt, you may need to add some to the dish at the end to help the flavors pop.
Place a lid on the skillet, turn the heat up to medium-high, and let it come up to a boil. Once it reaches a boil, turn the heat down to low and let it simmer for 20 minutes (with the lid on). After 20 minutes the lentils should be tender and most of the broth absorbed.
Stir in one 13oz. can of coconut milk.
Turn the heat back up to medium and let it come back up to a simmer. Let it simmer for 10 more minutes, without a lid, stirring often. This will break down the lentils a little more and reduce the coconut milk a little, making it thicker.
Turn the heat off and add about 3 cups (or three handfuls) of fresh spinach to the skillet.
Gently stir and allow the residual heat to wilt the spinach. Once wilted, give it a taste and adjust the curry powder or salt if needed.
And then it’s ready to serve! I like to serve my Creamy Coconut Curry Lentils over rice to soak up all that delicious creamy curry, but it’s also great with Naan and Curry Roasted Carrots.
And of course I meal prepped this. :)
Can I use green lentils and frozen spinach in this recipe? We are in quarantine and can’t go to the grocery store
Yes you can use what you have on hand :)
This was a huge hit at my household – even the picky eaters and curry snobs loved it.
I’ve made this multiple times and love it so much! One question, given that grocery stores are running low on certain items, would this work with red lentils?
A previous reader noted: This was great! I added a squeeze of lemon and subbed in red lentils, since that’s what I had on hand. Using red lentils meant the cooking time was decreased and made the dish more on the mushy side, but still so, so, delicious. This will definitely be a go-to recipe.
Loved this recipe. I had some red curry paste on hand so i used 2. Tbsp of that instead of curry powder. I also added some sugar, sriracha, soy sauce, and fish sauce when i added the coconut milk and it really deepens the flavor. So good!
So happy with the way this recipe came out! It was so flavorful and filling. I think I’ll add more curry powder next time, but otherwise it was phenomenal. I paired the lentils with rice, the Curry Roasted Carrots, and some garlic naan for a really happy meal. Can’t wait to eat the leftovers!
This was so easy to make and tasty, so five stars. The only quibble we had was putting in the garlic and ginger so early. We sautéed the onions and then added the garlic and ginger, so as not to risk burning.
We doubled the curry powder and ginger. Otherwise by recipe. We found the lentils took longer to cook than listed, about 15 mins extra.
Do you use regular or lite coconut milk? Would Trader Joe’s canned coconut cream work? This recipe looks delicious and so simple!. Can’t wait to try it.
Hi Alice! Regular coconut milk will work. The coconut cream from Trader Joes is a bit thicker than coconut milk itself. If it’s what you have on hand though you can certainly try it!
So easy and delicious!
I added lime juice for some brightness
This paired perfectly with your curry carrots! First lentil recipe I really, really liked. Added a little garam masala and a little cayenne for additional flavor and heat, and am looking forward to eating leftovers later this week.
This was super good. I made it as written. My meat-loving husband liked it and 2 of my kids tried it. ( A win in my book, haha). We really liked it. Thanks for the recipe. So flavorful and easy to make!!
I saved this awhile ago but just got around to making it today! WOW! Love the flavors! I’ve never used fresh ginger before today either. Made it for my vegan husband for lunch but I kept scooping out bite after bite lol! Thanks for a great recipe, I’ve already shared w my brothers who love curry and are vegetarian!
This was SO good! Doubled the curry powder and added extra garlic and less onion for taste preferences. Adding to my veggie meal rotation!!!
This curry is INSANE! If I ordered this in a restaurant I’d be impressed… I couldn’t believe my boyfriend made it for me at home!
I love this recipe so much! So easy to make, so delicious! Thank you!
This recipe was fantastic and easy to adapt to the ingredients I had on hand. I didn’t have coconut milk, garlic or ginger so I used coconut oil and half and half with dried ginger and garlic powder. It was still delicious!!
Is the nutrition info provided just for the lentils, or lentils + rice?
The nutrition data provided is calculated using all ingredients listed on the recipe card, including any ingredient listed as optional. Keep in mind that recipes that involve marinades, breading, salad dressings, oil for frying, or salt for cooking pasta and potatoes may be skewed because some of these ingredients will be discarded and not included in the final edible portion.
This is a great recipe! I made it in the Instant Pot and cooked it 15 mins on High Pressure then did a 10 minute NPR. I also added 3/4 tsp turmeric, 2 tsp chilli, frozen veggies, and one chopped potato.
Great idea. Can you tell us step by step how you made it in the instant pot? I just bought one.