Mujadarrah (lentils, onions and rice) (from Canada's food guide)
A Middle Eastern dish that is both delicious and budget-friendly!
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 20 min
Servings: 6
Freezer-friendly
Vegetarian
Ingredients
30 mL (2 tbsp) olive oil
3 onions, sliced thinly
5 mL (1 tsp) ground cumin
560 mL (2 ¼ cups) brown or wild rice, cooked
1 can (540 mL/19 oz) brown or green lentils, drained and rinsed
Directions
In a pan, heat oil in a pan over medium-high heat. Add the onions and cook until they turn dark caramel brown, stirring often. This will take about 15 minutes. Remove half of the onions to a bowl (these are for garnish later). Sprinkle in the ground cumin and cook about 1 minute more.
Add the cooked rice to the onions and stir often for 3 minutes. Stir in the lentils and cook for another 2 minutes.
Serve the rice and lentils with the reserved caramelized onions on top.
Tips
You will know the caramelized onions are done when they have a dark brown colour and are slightly crispy. Add a little water to the onions if they are sticking to the bottom of the pan.
Using dry rice and lentils? Use 190 mL (¾ cup) dry rice and 250 mL (1 cup) dry lentils, and cook according to package directions before adding at step 2.
Serve this for dinner with a side salad or coleslaw.
Time-saver: double this recipe and freeze extra servings for another day.
Source: © All rights reserved. Canada’s Food Guide: Recipes. Health Canada. Reproduced with permission from the Minister of Health, 2022.