It’s HOT outside, so I’m experimenting a lot with my slow cooker this week. Slow cookers are awesome not only because they’re mostly hands-off, but also because they contain their heat well and don’t cause that dreaded ambient heat rise in your kitchen. So, while I totally could have just boiled these Coconut Curry Lentils on the stove top, I saved myself some steam and sweat by cooking them in my slow cooker.
How to Serve Slow Cooker Coconut Curry Lentils
My only issue with using my slow cooker a lot in the summer is that slow cooker recipes are often warm and heavy, more like winter recipes. To freshen these Slow Cooker Coconut Curry Lentils up a bit, I topped them with finely diced red onion and a liberal sprinkle of chopped cilantro. If you don’t like cilantro, you can add some sliced green onion for a similar effect. For even more freshness, try adding a dollop of plain yogurt and a squeeze of lime juice.
Can I Freeze Coconut Curry Lentils?
This recipe makes a lot but luckily it freezes well–rice and all! Just portion everything out into single-serving freezer-safe containers, chill completely in the refrigerator, then transfer to the freezer.
What Size Slow Cooker Should I Use?
This makes a super big batch of lentils, so I would suggest using a 6-quart slow cooker. I use a very basic slow cooker from Hamilton Beach, which is so old that it’s not in production anymore, but you can find a similar slow cooker here. (affiliate link)
What Kind of Curry Powder Should I Use?
You can use either a hot or mild curry powder, depending on whether you prefer your lentils to be mild or spicy. People often ask me what brand curry powder I use, and I have enjoyed both the 365 brand curry powder and Sharwood’s curry powder. Or you can try making your own curry powder at home with this recipe for Easy Homemade Curry Powder from Spiceitupp.com
Slow Cooker Coconut Curry Lentils
Servings 10 cupsIngredients
COCONUT CURRY LENTILS
- 1 yellow onion ($0.37)
- 2 cloves garlic ($0.16)
- 2 cups brown lentils ($1.36)
- 1 sweet potato (about 3/4 lb.) ($0.98)
- 2 carrots ($0.22)
- 3 Tbsp curry powder (hot or mild) ($0.45)
- 1/4 tsp ground cloves (optional) ($0.03)
- 1 15oz. can petite diced tomatoes ($0.65)
- 1 15oz. can tomato sauce ($0.99)
- 3 cups vegetable broth* ($0.39)
- 1 14oz. can coconut milk (full fat) ($2.47)
FOR SERVING
- 10 cups cooked rice ($0.99)
- 1/2 red onion ($0.40)
- 1/2 bunch fresh cilantro or green onions ($0.40)
Instructions
- Dice the onion and mince the garlic. Peel the sweet potato and carrots. Dice the sweet potato (1/4-1/2 inch cubes) and slice the carrots.
- Add the onion, garlic, sweet potato, carrots, lentils, curry powder, cloves, diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, and vegetable broth to the slow cooker. Stir to combine. Place the lid on the slow cooker and cook on high for 4 hours or low for 7-8 hours. Once cooked, the lentils should be tender and most of the liquid should be absorbed.
- Stir the can of coconut milk into the lentils. Taste and adjust the salt or other spices as needed (the amount of salt needed will depend on the type of broth used and the salt content of the canned tomatoes).
- To serve, add 1 cup cooked rice to a bowl followed by 1 cup of the lentil mixture. Top with finely diced red onion and fresh cilantro.
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Equipment
Notes
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!Video
Want more slow cooker recipes? Check out our Slow Cooker Recipe Archives!
How to Make Slow Cooker Curry Lentils – Step by Step Photos
Dice one onion (it’s under all that stuff) and mince two cloves of garlic. Peel one sweet potato (3/4-1 lb.) and peel two carrots. Dice the sweet potato and slice the carrots. Add the onion, garlic, sweet potato, and carrots to the slow cooker, along with 2 cups uncooked brown lentils.
Also add one 15oz. can of petite diced tomatoes, a 15oz. can of tomato sauce, 3 Tbsp curry powder (mild or hot–your preference), and 1/4 tsp ground cloves. I’ve decided that I really like cloves in my curry, but if you’re not a clove person you can leave it out.
This is the curry powder I use, BTW. It’s just something I picked up at the grocery store, but it has pretty good potency. Curry powders can vary quite a bit from brand to brand in both flavor and potency, so you might have to experiment to find one that you like. I like to buy mild curry powder and then just add cayenne to dishes when I want things spicy.
Finally, add 3 cups vegetable broth to the slow cooker and give everything a good stir.
Place the lid on the slow cooker and cook on high for 4 hours or low for 7-8 hours. If your slow cooker runs extra hot or doesn’t hold in moisture well, keep an eye on the cooker to make sure the lentils are not drying out. If they begin to look dry or burned on the edges, add more water. After cooking the lentils should be tender and most of the broth absorbed.
Stir in one 14oz. can of full-fat coconut milk. Give the lentils a taste and adjust the salt or other spices if needed. The amount of salt needed will depend on the salt content of your vegetable broth and canned tomatoes. Mine had plenty of salt, so I added none. If you find the lentils to be bland at this point, add a 1/2 tsp of salt or so to see if that makes the flavors pop.
To serve the lentils, add 1 cup cooked rice to a bowl, followed by 1 cup of the coconut curried lentils. Top with finely diced red onion and fresh cilantro (or green onions if you’re not a cilantro person). Other optional toppings include: plain yogurt, a squeeze of fresh lime, or thinly sliced jalapeños.
These Slow Cooker Coconut Curry Lentils are sure to fuel ALL of your summer adventures! :D
How spicy is this? I love curry, but my husband is not a fan of spicy foods. Just want to know if I need to cut back on the amount of curry powder I put in. I see others have said their young kids eat it so I am thinking it must not be too hot? Thanks!
You can actually get hot or mild curry powder, so as long as you buy a mild curry powder it should be just fine. :)
This stuff is amazing! One of my kids favorite recipes is beef curry. Now that I’m cutting down on meat (way down) I thought I’d try this recipe. We used the toppings I use on the beef curry : pinapple, banana, onion, green pepper, and chopped peanuts. ( They also used cheese) It was a winner and one of the recipes they said I had to make again. I definitely will.
Not sure if this has already been answered but I want to make sure my slow cooker is large enough to hold all the ingredients! Mine is about 2 1/2 quarts. Will that be large enough? Thanks!
I don’t think that will be quite large enough, unfortunately. For this one you probably want at least a 5 quart. My 6 quart pot was fairly full.
Thank you!! Ended up halfing the recipe and it turned out great!
I love this recipe. I made it for the second time this Sunday to eat for lunch this week. It’s Thursday, and I am still excited about it. My office is an icebox this time of year, and it is the perfect warm, spicy, nourishing pick me up in the middle of a dark fall day. Also my whole week of lunch cost me less than one order of takeout that my coworkers get, so that’s a big win :)
I made this last weekend and it was delicious! I doubled the recipe, and it just barely fit in my 6 qt slow cooker. Once I added the coconut milk it was at the tippy top and hard to stir. However, I have a ton in my freezer now so I’m happy I doubled! I bumped up the spices at the end with a little garam masala and cayenne pepper to suit my taste. I used a butternut squash instead of a sweet potato and lite coconut milk instead of full fat to lighten it up. Yum!
I want to add some more protein to this – maybe chicken or something. Could I just add chicken thighs or breasts in with everything else in the slow cooker?
Yes, that should work. :)
I am not a fan of curry can I omit it.?
No, that’s pretty much the only seasoning in this dish so it won’t taste like much without it.
I made this last night and it tasted amazing! I mistakenly used cilantro AND green onions. And I put the coconut milk in with everything at once. I also used my Instant Pot (pressure cooker). 4 minute cook time (not including the 15 minutes to get to pressure). The lentils were just slighty under cooked. But it still tasted great. And I’ll be reheating it the rest of the week, so it might not stay that way. Very happy with this recipe. Thank you so much!
Made this last night and it was soooooo good. I had all the ingredients in my pantry so it was perfect. All 3 of my kids devoured it, even my 4 year old. Thanks Beth
Just made this to have cheap and tasty work lunches for the week and it’s good! Instead of curry powder I ground coriander and cumin seeds and added turmeric and chili powder (basically homemade curry powder) and just added some garam masala right at the end (which adds warmth like the cloves would). Thanks!
For freezer meal prep, which ingredients would you put together in advance to freeze and which would you keep out to add when actually putting it in the slow cooker? Veggies and spices could be prepped for freezer-coconut milk, too?
Hmm, I’m not sure what would happen to the coconut milk if frozen ahead of time, so your best bet might be to just add that to the slow cooker when you add the rest of the frozen ingredients. Everything else should be fine, though.
I have red lentils, will these be okay for this recipe? I see you said green ones will cook slow.
Red lentils break down very quickly, so the texture will end up being more like a mush instead of individual lentils.
Could this be substituted with dried green lentils?
Green lentils can take up to twice as long to cook as brown, so they might not soften.
Finally made this and it exceeded all expectations. Thank you for such a fantastic blog.
How would you make this without a slow cooker?
You can simmer it on the stove top until the lentils are tender. :)