Curry Red Lentil Stew features tender lentils, tomatoes, onion, ginger and flavorful spices mixed with chickpeas and kale for healthy weeknight meal that’s easy to make!
Coming to the end of fall and I thought a nice lentil stew was in order.
I happen to have all the ingredients on hand for this vegan Red Lentil Stew and decided to put them all together. And so glad I did because it was a delicious success!
This hearty lentil stew is packed with vegetables and spices for tons of flavor, and will keep you warm and fully satisfied in the cold winter weather!
What I love so much about this recipe is that, thanks to quick cooking red lentils, it also comes together relatively fast. And leftovers taste even better!
Ingredients You’ll Need
Brightened with lemon and infused with garlic, ginger, and spices, the red lentils cook down into a hearty puree creating a quick and easy lunch or dinner.
Here’s everything you’ll need:
- onion
- garlic
- fresh ginger
- curry (yellow)
- cumin
- turmeric
- red pepper flakes
- fire roasted tomatoes
- red lentils
- garbanzo beans (chickpeas)
- water or vegetable broth
- kale
- lemon
What If I Don’t Have All The Spices?
There are a few spices here which include turmeric, curry, cumin and red pepper flakes. Feel free to simplify by just using curry and maybe another spice or two. You can still pull off a flavorful lentil stew with simply using curry alone as well.
How To Make Curry Red Lentil Stew
This curry red lentil stew is easy to make and on the table in about 45 minutes!
- Rinse the lentils and remove any that are odd.
- In large pot or stock pot, heat your oil over medium heat, saute onion and garlic until onion becomes transparent.
- Add spices, tomatoes, lentils, garbanzo beans and 6 cups of liquids.
- Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat and simmer for about 30 minutes.
- Add in the kale and lemon juice, continue to cook for 10 minutes or until kale softens and wilts.
How To Store Leftovers
Refrigerator: Leftovers will keep for 5 – 6 days in the refrigerator, stored in a covered container.
Freezer: This curry lentil stew is freezer friendly and freezes well for up to 2 – 3 months. To freeze, let cool completely and store in freezer safe containers (affiliate link), leaving 1/2 inch for expansion. Let thaw before reheating. You can also freeze larger portions in large ziplock bags or containers.
Reheat: Simply re-warm on the stovetop over low heat until warmed through. Alternately, reheat in the microwave using 30 – 45 second intervals, stirring after each, until warm. It makes a great meal prep for the week with homemade Naan on the side for soaking up the juices.
Serving Suggestions
Serve alone, or over white rice, brown rice or quinoa. It would pair well with this flavorful Lime Cilantro Rice. And for soaking and swiping this vegan naan bread is just what you need. Enjoy!
More Easy Curry Recipes
- Chana Masala
- Chickpea Tikka Masala
- Curry Sweet Potato & Red Lentil Soup
- Golden Tofu Curry + Black Rice
- Curry Roasted Cauliflower Quinoa Salad
- See all vegan curry recipes on TSV!
If you try this curry red lentil recipe, please let me know! Leave a comment and rate it below. I love to hear what you think, or any changes you make.
PrintCURRY RED LENTIL STEW WITH KALE & CHICKPEAS
A flavorful Indian spiced curry red lentil stew with chickpeas and kale. Serve with rice or quinoa for a healthy lunch or dinner.
- Prep Time: 10 min
- Cook Time: 30 min
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: Serves 6 1x
- Category: Soup, Entree
- Cuisine: Vegan
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil or 1/4 cup water/veg broth
- 1 large yellow onion, diced
- 5 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 1/2 inch knob fresh ginger, minced
- 1 – 2 tablespoons curry (yellow), to taste
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- himalayan salt to taste
- 1 – 2 teaspoons red pepper flakes, optional
- 1 can (15 oz) fire roasted tomatoes or 1 cup fresh tomatoes, diced
- 2 cups dry red lentils, rinsed and picked over
- 1 1/2 cups cooked chickpeas or 1 can (15 oz) garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
- 6 cups water or vegetable broth, + more as needed
- 4 cups kale, julienned
- juice of one lemon, optional
- cooked basmati rice (brown or jasmine ok too), to serve
Instructions
In large pot or stock pot, heat your oil over medium heat, saute onion and garlic until onion becomes transparent, about 5 minutes. Add spices, tomatoes, lentils, garbanzo beans and 6 cups of liquids, bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat and simmer for about 30 minutes. Add in the kale and optional lemon juice, continue to cook for 10 minutes or until kale softens and wilts.
Serve alone, or over white rice, brown rice or quinoa. It would pair well with this flavorful Lime Cilantro Rice. And for soaking and swiping this vegan naan bread is just what you need. Enjoy!
Serves 6
Notes
As with all recipes, adjust spices to taste adding anything more or less to your liking.
Store:
- Refrigerator: Leftovers will keep for 5 – 6 days in the refrigerator, stored in a covered container.
- Freezer: This curry lentil stew is freezer friendly and freezes well for up to 2 – 3 months. To freeze, let cool completely and store in freezer safe containers (affiliate link). Let thaw before reheating. You can also freeze larger portions in large ziplock bags or containers.
- Reheat: Simply re-warm on the stovetop or the microwave. It makes a great meal prep for the week with homemade Naan on the side for soaking up the juices.
Keywords: red lentil stew, curry lentil stew, vegan lentil stew recipe
Updated: This Curry Lentil Stew was originally published in March 2013. It has been retested and updated with new photos and helpful tips in January 2020. No changes were made to the recipe – I wouldn’t dare!
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Bev says
Just curious as to what curry you use? I have several in my cupboards/fridge but they all are quite different.
Julie | The Simple Veganista says
Hi Bev, I used an everyday yellow curry by Simply Organics. I know they can all have a slightly different blend, but any yellow curry will do! Please let us know how it turns out for you!
Maddie says
Very easy to make and very delicious! It does make a lot but I wanted to freeze it for future use anyway.
★★★★★
Nidia says
Hello! This recipe sounds incredible! I wanted to make this into a curry not a stew though so how many cups would I need instead of 6?
Julie | The Simple Veganista says
Hi Nidia, start with 4 cups and go up from there as needed. Let us know how it goes for you, so others can know too. Hope you enjoy! Cheers :)
Mary Doyle says
This is one of our favorite recipes. We love the fresh ginger, add very few red pepper flakes (I don’t like much spice), but 2 Tbsp of curry, and some extra kale never hurts. We don’t use the rice because it’s perfect just as it is. Others that I’ve served it to love it, too. Thanks for a great recipe!
★★★★★
Kat says
Hi! I tried your recipe tonight and it turned out really well. I was able to separate it into two batches in the end, with one I added more water and some cream because the tablespoon of red pepper flakes was a little too spicy for my son. My husband and I thought the spices were just right. It’s getting colder here in Finland so this was just perfect ^_^ Thank you!!
Diane Kukla says
I put in half of the optional red pepper flakes and found it to be too spicy. Other members of the family, men, who enjoy spicy foods thought it was fine.
Anonymous says
I loved this recipe! In addition to the recipe ingredients I also added a can of full fat coconut milk, 4 cups of diced butternut squash and about 1/4 cup of cilantro. Can't wait to eat the leftovers! Thanks!
julie@thesimpleveganista says
That sounds delicious! Thank you for the inspiration!
Sophy says
My kale has some growing to do before I can harvest any, {can't wait!} but I had lots of cabbage, so I used it instead, and served it with brown rice. My family of six loved it; even my 2 1/2 yr. old had seconds! I also added some moroccan seasoning. It was wonderful. Next time I'm going to plan dinner further ahead and make some naan bread to eat with it. Thanks! Your blog looks amazing; I'll be back!
Anonymous says
Kind of bland if you ask me.
julie@thesimpleveganista says
You must love lots of spice! As always, my recipes are just templetes, add as much (or as little) of everything as you like. :)
Anonymous says
Just wondering how many calories 1 serve of the stew would be ? Thanks :)
julie@thesimpleveganista says
I'm sorry but I don't do the nutritional values but you can take a look at this post from the Kitchn. It has 3 nutritional data sources for you to calculate any recipe finding calories, carbs, fat, etc…. Hope that helps :)
http://www.thekitchn.com/how-can-home-cooks-calculate-n-91782
Anonymous says
This was delicious! I am so glad I did a search for kale and red lentils! lol Thank you!
julie@thesimpleveganista says
Your so welcome! Glad you gave it a shot and it worked for you. Cheers :)
PoppySeedBread says
Didn't have two cups of red lentils, so I added some black ones first and then 15 min later my split red ones. Added some thinly sliced carrots too. Delicious! Pureed some for my 9 month old and he loved it. Thank you!!
julie@thesimpleveganista says
Wonderful! Your quick thinking worked and you and your little one had a very hearty and healthy soup. :)
Ashley295 says
This is delicious!!
Lauren Ash says
I added zucchini and some quinoa. I have a question though….my red lentils dissolved, unlike yours in the pictures which appear to have a nice, whole shape. Thoughts?
julie@thesimpleveganista says
Zucchini and quinoa sound fabulous! I wonder if your red lentils were split or whole…if they were split the cooking time would be 12 minutes or so instead of 30…other than that I can't think of why they would dissolve. Or maybe it was just that batch you had.
Lauren Ash says
Ahh, I must have bought split instead of whole. It still tastes great, but yours looks prettier! :) Next time I'll look for the whole red lentils. Thanks!
js says
I made this delicious dish for Easter, it was a HUGE hit with everyone!
julie@thesimpleveganista says
Great! Makes my day to know that you feed a crowd and they loved it too. Cheers :)
Anonymous says
I saw this on Pinterest and thought I'd try it. Simple and very yummy. I had some sweet potato and Broccoli which I had to use up, so I added it to the curry and it worked really well. Thank you for this great recipe.
julie@thesimpleveganista says
That sounds like a winner to me! Thank you for sharing. :)
Laloofah says
This is so my kinda meal! I have all the ingredients and a cozy couple of days ahead – this will be perfect. Thanks for sharing it!
julie@thesimpleveganista says
Hope it worked out for you on your cozy couple days!
lysa jordan says
I love curries, especially when they have lentil in them :) I would love to try this very soon ! Looks delicious!
julie@thesimpleveganista says
Enjoy!
Em Kathryn says
Wow!! I try to make a lentil stew most weekends and this a great delicious looking twist to get my lentils!
Excited to try it :)
julie@thesimpleveganista says
Give it a go! Spice your weekly lentils up. :)