Lebanese Mujadara Recipes

LEBANESE MUJADARA

Steps:

• Rinse lentils, strain and place in a large pot with 5 cups of water. Bring mixture to a boil, simmer and cook covered until the lentils are tender but not fully cooked, about 15 minutes. Most of the liquid should be absorbed.
• Rinse the rice, then transfer to the pot of lentils and season with salt. Add 2 cups water, bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook covered until the rice is tender, about 18 minutes. Remove the pot from the heat. Allow the rice to rest in the pot for about 5 minutes, without opening the lid, to absorb all the liquid and steam.
• In a separate large pan, heat two tablespoons of olive oil on medium heat and fry the chopped onions until golden brown, about 10-15 minutes. Transfer on top of the lentils and rice mixture, add cumin and toss to combine.
• In the same large pan used to cook the onions, heat the remaining olive oil on medium heat and fry the sliced onions until golden brown and caramelized, about 15 minutes. In the last couple minutes of frying the onions, you can turn up the heat to high to get a crispy texture.
• Serve the caramelized onions on top of mujadara with yogurt and mint, if desired,

LEBANESE MUJADARA RECIPE

Steps:

• Rinse the lentils and add to the boiling water for about 15 minutes until they are tender; drain;
• In a heavy pan heat up olive oil, add chopped onions and cook until translucent, 3-4 minutes;
• Add cumin and coriander, mix well;
• Add rice and lentils and coat with onion & spice mixture;
• Add cold water to cover the grains, season with salt and pepper;
• Cook for about 15 minutes until the water is absorbed and rice and lentils are soft;
• In the meantime heat up cooking oil, add sliced onion and fry until golden brown and crispy; take out of the pan and dry on paper towel;
• Once rice and lentils are cooked, turn off the heat, add cinnamon, cover and let stand for 10 minutes;
• Place the rice and lentils on a serving dish, top with fried onions and parsley; serve immediately.

LEBANESE MUJADARA

Steps:

• In a skillet, heat one tablespoon of oil with one teaspoon of cumin and finely sliced onions. Cover and cook for 10 minutes.
• Then, remove the lid and let the onions carmelise for 10 more minutes while stirring.
• Meanwhile, heat the remaining oil and spices in a large pan. Add the lentils, rice, and sizzle until well coated.
• Then, pour in the stock and simmer for 25 minutes until the water has been absorbed.
• Stir in the caramelized onions and serve with fresh coriander.

MUJADARA (LEBANESE LENTILS AND RICE)

Steps:

• Over high heat olive oil in pot and add finely sliced onion, fry until dark brown, set onion aside
• In the same pot, using same oil fry finely diced onion until lightly golden
• Add lentils and salt. Submerge in water (covering lentils at least 1cm above), cook on med-high heat until lentils are par boiled
• Add rice and bring to the boil, reduce heat to low and allow contents to cook, stirring no more than three times. This should take around 15 minutes
• Serve topped with caramelised onion

LEBANESE LENTILS, RICE AND CARAMELIZED ONIONS (MUJADARA)

Steps:

• Throw the lentils into a medium saucepan. Fill with enough cold water to cover the lentils by about an inch. Bring it to a boil over medium-high heat, then turn down to a simmer and cook until the lentils are tender but not mushy, about 20 minutes. Drain and set aside.
• Meanwhile, as the lentils cook, grab a large skillet. Pop it over medium-high heat and add the oil. Allow the oil to warm for a minute, then drop in the cumin seeds and cracked peppercorns and cook, shaking the pan once in a while until the cumin seeds darken a touch, about 1 minute.
• Add the onions, sprinkle with a dash of salt and cook until they turn dark caramel brown, stirring often. This will take about 15 minutes. Splash the onions with a little water if they stick to the bottom of the pan. You'll know they're done both by their deep chestnut color and by the slight crispiness developing on some of the onions.
• Using a slotted spoon or spatula, remove about half of the onions to a paper towel-lined plate; these are for garnish later. Sprinkle in the ground cumin, cayenne and then add the cinnamon stick; saute about 1 minute.
• Add the rice and cook, stirring often (but gently so you don't break the rice!) until some rice grains start to brown. Quickly, add the cooked lentils, 3 cups of water and 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt; bring to a boil. Turn the heat down to low so that the pan is at a simmer, cover and cook 30 minutes. The water should be completely evaporated and rice should be tender. (If there's still too much water in the bottom, put the lid back on and cook for another 5 minutes.)
• Turn off the heat, keep the lid on, and allow the rice to steam undisturbed for about 5 minutes.
• Meanwhile, toast the pine nuts, if using, in a small skillet over medium-low heat, shaking often, about 5 minutes.
• Taste the rice for seasoning. Serve with the reserved caramelized onions, toasted pine nuts, if using, and a little squeeze of lemon juice. I also like to serve this with some dollops of Greek yogurt.

LEBANESE-STYLE MEATBALLS WITH MUJADARA

Steps:

• Tip the lamb into a bowl with ¼ of the chopped onion, the garlic, ½ tsp cumin, the lemon zest and some black pepper. Mix well with your hands, then shape into 16 small meatballs. Chill for at least 30 mins.
• Heat 1 tsp oil in a non-stick frying pan over a medium-high heat. Reserve most of the remaining chopped onion for the salad, then fry the rest for 5 mins until golden. Stir in the remaining cumin, then tip in the rice, bouillon powder, 500ml water and some black pepper. Reduce the heat to a simmer, then cover and cook over a medium heat for 30 mins. Tip in the lentils, cover again and cook for 5-10 mins more until the rice is tender and all the water has been absorbed.
• Meanwhile, heat the remaining oil in a non-stick pan over a medium-high heat. Add the meatballs and sliced onion, cover and cook for 5 mins. Stir, then cook for 5 mins more until the meatballs are cooked through and the onions are golden. Stir the tahini and lemon juice together with 3-4 tbsp water to make a sauce.
• Mix all of the salad ingredients with the reserved chopped onion. If you're following our Healthy Diet Plan, divide half of the mujadara between two plates and top with half of the meatballs and onions. Spoon over half of the tahini sauce and serve with half of the salad, two lemon wedges and a few mint leaves. Cover and chill the remaining portions to eat another day. Will keep for two to three days in the fridge.

LEBANESE LENTILS (MUJADARA)

Steps:

• Heat oil in pan.
• add onions, and cook on medium high heat until they are brown- stir occasionally.
• stir in rice and lentils, mix in with onions.
• add water.
• add salt, mix contents.
• cover and simmer.
• This will take over an hour. The water will be absorbed into rice and lentils. Make sure they are soft. Sometimes you may need to add a little more water. Stir occasionally.
• Best if served in a shallow bowl, and let sit for 10 minutes or so. Enjoy warm or cold.