Mujadara (lentils and rice with crispy onions)
65 min · 33 g protein · 567 cals / serving
Earthy lentils and rice simmered with cumin and allspice, then buried under a tangle of onions cooked slowly until dark, sweet and crisp at the edges. It is humble, deeply savoury Levantine comfort food, served warm with a cold, garlicky yogurt and cucumber salad and a squeeze of lemon.
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 4 large onions, halved and thinly sliced
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 1/4 cups lentils, brown or green, rinsed
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp ground allspice
- 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 4 1/4 cups water
- 2/3 cup jasmine rice, long-grain or basmati, rinsed
Yogurt and cucumber salad
- 1 2/3 cups nonfat Greek yogurt
- 1 1/2 large cucumbers, diced
- 1 clove garlic, grated
- 2 tbsp fresh mint, chopped, or 1 tsp dried
To serve
- 3 large tomatoes, in wedges
- 1/3 cup fresh parsley, chopped
- 2 tbsp lemon juice, lemon wedges
Steps
- Heat the oil in a large, wide pan over medium-high heat. Add the onions and a pinch of the salt and cook, stirring often, 25–30 minutes, lowering the heat as they colour, until deep brown and crisp in places. Lift out a third of them to a plate for the top.
- Add the lentils, cumin, allspice, cinnamon, pepper and the water to the onions left in the pan. Bring to a boil, then simmer 15 minutes until the lentils are just tender but still hold their shape.
- Stir in the rice and the rest of the salt, cover tightly and cook on low 15–18 minutes, until the rice is tender and the water absorbed. Turn off the heat and leave covered 5 minutes, then fluff with a fork.
- Meanwhile, stir the yogurt, cucumber, garlic and mint together with a pinch of salt.
- Pile the mujadara on a platter, scatter the reserved crispy onions and the parsley on top and serve warm with the yogurt salad, tomato wedges and lemon.
Good to know
How dark should the onions go?
Darker than you think: a deep mahogany brown, with some edges almost black and crisp. That is where the dish gets all of its flavour, so give them the full time.
Can I use bulgur instead of rice?
Yes, coarse bulgur is the other classic version. Use the same weight and cook it 12–15 minutes in the covered pan; it scores a little higher, about 72 instead of 67.
Is it vegan?
The mujadara itself is. For a fully vegan plate, swap the yogurt salad for a big chopped tomato and cucumber salad with lemon and olive oil.
Alternative
Per
- Calories
- 84
- Protein
- (25%)
- 5 g
- Fat
- (16%)
- 1 g
- Carbohydrates
- (59%)
- 13 g
- of which sugar
- 3 g
- Fiber
- 3 g
- Sodium
- 192 mg
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Computed from the ingredients with our published formula, not yet kitchen-tested. How
As written, 2269 kcal goes into the pot and 3261 g of ingredients comes out as about 2710 g of food: 84 kcal per 100 g. Cooking moves water and energy density is the score's biggest lever, so the dish is scored as cooked, not as an average of its parts. Every ingredient links to its food page, with the same data and score. The label's percentages are each macronutrient's share of the calories. The full formula.