Are you looking for a tasty and healthy recipe? Well, you’ve come to the right place! This Jamaican lentil stew is a combination of just that. Lentils are incredibly versatile. They’re also great for making a variety of meals. For this particular recipe, I prefer using green lentils, but brown lentils can also be used.
Cultural Influence
In Caribbean culture, seasoning and flavour are key components to meals. This is something carried through in this Jamaican Lentil stew recipe.
For some who eat meat, there is a notion that meals without meat do not provide enough energy or are flavourless. I once, fell subject to this opinion. However, due to health reasons, I was led to be more conscious of what I was eating. Through this time I’ve come across various healthy food recipes and this Caribbean Stewed Lentils recipe was one of them. This blog post is inspired by this recipe, as well as parts of my more specific, Jamaican heritage.
Lentils properties
Lentils are a good source of fiber, iron, folate and vitamin B1 and are an affordable healthy food.
You could serve this meal with couscous, rice pasta, rice, quinoa, broccoli, cauliflower, and more!
Serves: 6
Ingredients:
Brown or Green Lentils
2 cups Lentils
Springs of Thyme (twigless)
3 whole garlic cloves
Table salt, sprinkle as desired
Black pepper, sprinkle as desired
Scotch bonnet
Sweet peppers, chopped
Onions, diced
Olive Oil
Parsley
Curry Powder
All-Purpose Seasoning
1/2 tablespoon of butter
Directions
For bagged dry lentils, check the packaging to see whether your lentils need soaking before cooking. However, do ensure you wash your lentils with water and sieve through with a fork, checking for any debris.
- Once the lentils are prepped, throw them into a pot of water on the stove, with enough water to cover them by about 2 inches
- Seasoning time! Add the garlic cloves, salt, pepper and whole scotch bonnet to the lentils. Do not chop the scotch bonnet, otherwise, the seeds will scatter inside. Add the thyme and parsley also. Turn the heat to medium-high
- Bring this to a boil, periodically checking to see it doesn’t boil over. Do this until the lentils are tender
- Halfway through the lentils boiling, take out the scotch bonnet, to ensure it doesn’t burst and the seeds don’t scatter in the stew. Extra tip: you can put the scotch bonnet in the freezer to use for next time!
- Get a frying pan and base it with olive oil. Bring the fire to medium heat and add the onions and sweet peppers until the onions are golden
- Once the lentils are tender, very gently, pour all of the lentils into the frying pan. Be careful as some of the water from the stew will transfer to the hot oil in the frying pan
- With a cooking spoon or spatula, begin to break down the lentils to give the stew a thicker consistency, creating more of a sauce, but also leaving some of the lentil texture
- Add butter and stir to soften
- Allow this to cook a little more until your desired consistency is achieved
- Enjoy your meal!
I hope you found this spicy lentil stew recipe helpful! If you do try it out, please feel free to share your results in the comment section below. Stay tuned for more healthy recipes on this blog coming soon.
