Another crock-pot recipe coming your way.
Crock-pots seem to adore dried beans and lentils.
Photos first, words after.
Easy peasy!
Crock Pot Lentil and Tofu Curry
Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 cup dry lentils (I used yellow and pink)
- 1 1/2 cup coconut water
- 1 1/2 cup plain almond milk
- 1/2 cup water/vegetable broth
- 1/2 onion, finely chopped
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp curry powder
- 1/2 tsp garam masala
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- salt & pepper to taste
- 1 block (12 oz) extra firm tofu, cubed
- 1 cup frozen peas
Directions:
- Add every thing to the crock pot except the peas and cook for 4 hours on high (alternatively you could cook this on low for 6 hours).
- Add the peas at the very end or with < 30 minutes to go.
- Serve over brown rice or quinoa.
*Additional options: swap diced carrots for peas (add them in the beginning), try chopped apples (also to be added in the beginning), sub coconut milk for all the liquid, top with golden raisins (at the end), try tempeh instead of tofu, add sweet potatoes or squash, etc. The options are endless!
This recipe makes a TON so after we had both had enough of it in leftover form, we froze the rest for later.
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{ 28 comments… read them below or add one }
For anyone reading out there — I’m a little wary of the sodium content of some veggie broths, and the low-sodium ones are usually more expensive. What I do is water down some pumpkin puree (4 or 5 to one ratio of water-to-pumpkin) and make my own “broth”. Love it!!
Definitely going to need to give this one a shot. It looks SO yummy and it’s been forever since I’ve had peas. They’re fab.
thats so clever!!
you can also soak dried mushrooms aand use that ‘mushroom water’ as the base for broths and gravies!
what a fantastic idea!
Im new to tofu and tempeh….
Whats your recommended tempeh brand:
-westsoy (cultured soybeans and white rice)
Or
-lightlife (cultured soybeans, lactic acid, brown rice)
Which brand digests better for u? Both have drastically different fiber and protein content
Also, which tofu brand do u use? Do u stick to the sprouted type?
Thanks so much! Hope the little hungry hippy is happily growing and getting ready for his worldy debute! =)
i like lightlife. ive actually never tried westsoy’s tempeh. lightlife has more flavors – i like flax and wild rice the best.
i dont have any issues digesting lightlife.
for tofu i use whatever is organic (nonGMO) and cheapest. i do like the sprouted kind, but i rarely use it.
Yay for crockpot recipes!!! Does the tofu soak up any liquid? Because I’d have to try this sans tofu and I just wonder if I need to adjust anything else.
the tofu doesnt really soak up the liquid that much. i dont really know if removing the tofu would mean altering the liquids though since i only made it this way. you could try using tempeh instead?
This looks wonderful! Unfortunately I do not own a crockpot so I am wondering if it would be possible to provide the instructions for an alternate cooking method. Thanks!
hmm…im not really sure about this, maybe others will know and comment?
I make a curried lentil stew similar to this on the stove top but just use canned lentils. It makes it really quick. Might work for you?
Okay, that’s it, I need a crock pot like RIGHT NOW. Everything looks so simple and delicious! How many servings do you think it would make if I halved the recipe? Maybe I could just make it on the stove and let it simmer for a while…
im not a good person to ask about servings. enough for a hungry couple or a disciplined 4-some?
Wow! Looks amazing. Can’t wait to make this.
Do you drain the tofu before you add it to the crock pot? Looks wonderful.
yeah, but not excessive pressing, just a quick draining.
Made this tonight and it was SO GOOD. Elise, you’re a genius!!
Oh, and for reference of servings… I made a half-batch and it fed three people. It was about a bowls worth over some quinoa each.
awesome! glad you enjoyed it
Looked EVERYWHERE for Garam Masala with no luck. Whole Foods is about 40 minutes away from me so I decided just to use curry powder…its cooking now. Hopefully it will still taste similar!
how did it go??
I am not sure what I did wrong but it looked nothing like yours and the taste was rather bland. I blame the stores not carrying garam masala. I also used off brand lentils. I may have overcooked it a bit too. I am going to attempt it again in a few weeks.
well that sucks. if you get deserate im sure you could buy garam masala online. not sure how expensive that will be though.
Garam masala is really just a combination of spices, usually including cinnamon, cardamom, black & white pepper, cumin, cloves, etc. Each commercial spice company makes it a little different, with slightly different ingredients. I’m going to make my own garam masala and try this recipe tomorrow! Yum!
I found garam masala! I followed it perfectly and is almost done! For some reason the color seems off every time! It is much more darker than yours. I wonder why…
its probably just my photography. the food never looks quite like it does on film as it does in person. as long as it tastes good!!
Do you know the calorie count for about a cup or so?
So we made this today & it didn’t come out anything like yours.
the liquid is all gone after only 4.5 hours on low. I’m going to try it again. Any suggestions? I know we must have done something wrong.
Hi, doesn’t this create a lot of gas? because the water used to cook the lentils are not removed. usually I cook dried pulses and discard the water-I know they cause worse gas.