Creamy Coconut Lentil Curry
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This easy-to-make creamy coconut lentil curry is a healthy vegan recipe that makes a perfect meatless Monday dinner recipe. It takes less than an hour (mostly hands-off time) to make and is packed full of delicious Indian flavors. Make extras and you'll have a giant smile on your face at lunch the next day.
If you love lentils, also try our black lentil curry and our crockpot lentil curry!
You guys, this is what curry dreams are made of. This beauty is made in one pot and it'll be less than an hour until you are in coconut curry HEAVEN!
We eat this curry year-round. It doesn't matter how hot it is outside, it's always a good time for a bowl of hot curry. It's stinkin' hot in India and peeps there eat curry all the time. They must be onto something.
Years ago while backpacking around India for a few months, the locals would always say that eating hot food on a hot day would cool you down. Whether or not that's true, if you put a bowl of hot curry in front of any one of us and it's a bazillion degrees outside, we'll still eat it. And really, how could you not?
Ingredients needed
- Coconut oil ā for sautĆ©ing the flavor components.
- The flavor ā cumin seeds, coriander seeds, garlic, ginger, turmeric, cayenne, and sea salt.
- Crushed tomatoes ā just open a can and pour it in!
- Lentils ā the star of the show! We use brown lentils, but green lentils work just as well.
- Coconut milk ā this is what makes the lentil curry wonderfully creamy.
- Cherry tomatoes and cilantro ā these get stirred in at the end for even more flavor.
This coconut lentil curry recipe is ridiculously simple to make. Five bucks says that you're going to look at the recipe and think, āNo way THIS recipe could be one of the BEST curry recipes.ā But it is. For real. It's so simple to make that we made you a video so you can see just how easy it will be for you to sit down in front of a big bowl of lentil curry.
Watch the lentil curry video
The original recipe
The original recipe comes from a well dog-eared cookbook called, Vij's at Home. We've made a few changes to the original recipe so it suits our taste:
- Coconut oil replaces the cooking oil (and we use MUCH less of it)
- Coriander seeds replace ground coriander as we love the little pop of crunch they give.
- Crushed tomatoes replace fresh tomatoes (so we can be lazy and not blend them)
- Harder to find mung beans take a hike and are replaced withĀ brown lentils
- Cilantro gets piled on high.
- Cherry tomatoes get thrown in during the last few minutes of cooking (because heck, why not?)
Storage and freezing
This is one recipe that tastes even better the next day AND it freezes excellent. We'll often make a double batch just so we can freeze half of it. And if you have little ones at home, freezing small portions of this curry is a great way to have quick and healthy meals on hand.
In the fridge ā This curry will keep well for up to 4 days in a sealed container in your fridge.
In the freezer ā Transfer the cooled curry to freezer proof containers and keep it in your freezer for up to 4 months.
To reheat ā We like to reheat this curry on the stove over low heat, adding a splash of water as it thickens overnight. But you can also warm this up in the microwave.
What to serve with lentil curry
Like most curry recipes, this one is great served with basmati rice. You can also serve it with cauliflower rice to get some extra veggies on your plate!
And while this is absolutely a one-pot dinner, if you'd like a side dish, try one of these:
Recipe FAQs
Can I use red lentils to make this curry?
Red lentils cook much faster than green lentils. If you'd like to use them instead, reduce the water to 1 cup and simmer the lentils for half the time.
Can I use canned lentils?
Since canned lentils are cooked, you can simply add them to the recipe, omit the water, and warm them up.
What do the whole cumin and coriander seeds taste like?
We don't notice the cumin seeds, but you can definitely taste the coriander seeds. They give a little pop of flavor in your mouth when you bite into them. If you're worried that the flavor will be too strong, you can use ground cumin and ground coriander instead.
Can I make this in a slow cooker?
After getting several requests, we've now created aĀ crockpot coconut lentil curryĀ recipe for you! While this original version still wins (in our books) the crockpot version is delicious and so great to come home to after a long day at work.
Can I add some vegetables to the curry?
Absolutely! Many people who have made this recipe have commented that they've cooked their favorite veggies right in the pot of lentils. You can try potatoes, sweet potatoes, broccoli, carrots, cauliflower, or spinach.
Creamy Coconut Lentil Curry Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- 1 tablespoon each: cumin seeds and coriander seeds
- 1 head garlic (chopped (10-12 cloves))
- 28 ounce can of crushed tomatoes
- 2 tablespoons ginger (chopped)
- 1 tablespoon turmeric
- 2 teaspoons sea salt
- 1 cup dried brown lentils
- 1-2 teaspoons cayenne powder (optional)
- 2 cups water (see notes)
- 15 ounce can coconut milk
- A few handfuls of cherry tomatoes
- 1 cup chopped cilantro
Instructions
- Heat the coconut oil in a large pot or skillet over medium-high heat. Add the cumin and coriander seeds and toast until they start to brown, about 45 seconds. Add the garlic to the pot and let it brown, about 2 minutes.1 tablespoon coconut oil, 1 tablespoon each: cumin seeds and coriander seeds, 1 head garlic
- Add the can of crushed tomatoes, ginger, turmeric, and sea salt to the pot and cook, stirring the pot a few times, for 5 minutes. Add the lentils and, if using, the cayenne powder, and the water to the pot and bring it to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover the pot, and let it simmer for 35-40 minutes, or until the lentils are soft. Stir the pot a few times to prevent the lentils from sticking to the bottom. If the curry starts to look dry, add an extra Ā½ ā 1 cup of water.28 ounce can of crushed tomatoes, 2 tablespoons ginger, 1 tablespoon turmeric, 2 teaspoons sea salt, 1 cup dried brown lentils, 1-2 teaspoons cayenne powder, 2 cups water
- Once the lentils are soft and the curry is thick, add the coconut milk and cherry tomatoes and bring the pot back to a simmer. Remove the pot from the heat and stir in the cilantro.15 ounce can coconut milk, A few handfuls of cherry tomatoes, 1 cup chopped cilantro
Video
Notes
Nutrition
We have thoroughly tested this recipe for accuracy. However, individual results may vary. See our full recipe disclosure here.
More delicious curry recipes
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This delicious Black Chana Masala is an easy to make chickpea curry made with black chickpeas. It's bursting with flavor and is a healthy vegetarian dinner recipe.
Acorn Squash Curry
This coconut acorn squash curry is a feel-good fall and winter dinner recipe that is so delicious. It reheats great so make extra for lunch!
Vegan Butter āChicken'
This delicious vegan butter chicken recipe has tofu, peas, and corn cooked in a creamy, rich, vegan butter chicken sauce with the perfect amount of curry spice.
For more inspiration, check out all of our curry recipes!
Omg this was so easy, so cheap but tasted amazing. All 4 kids and hubby asked for seconds. This being our first lentil meal gives me the confidence to try more lentil recipes.
I absolutely love CURRY & LENTILS! I have made similar recipes, but this one by far is the simplest…. I make it every Sunday for my lunches for the week with a good serving of Greek yogurt and some mini Naan AMAZING! Thank you so much, the attributes to my healthy meal planning and if I cut back on the Cayenne pepper my kids enjoy it just at much as me. š
That is so great to hear!!!
Made the lentil curry & yam fries. Both easy & fabulous
What a great idea to serve yam fries with the curry!
Amazing recipe! Can it be frozen?
It freezes very well!
Wow- so stinkinā good! Followed recipe pretty much exactly and it came out perfectly. Definitely a keeper. I never write reviews but I had to for this one.
Awww well thank you so much for coming back to review the recipe! I appreciate it!
I don’t usually like curry but my husband loves it. I made this recipe tonight for him however I had to make a couple of changes since I didn’t have everything I needed. I didn’t have seeds so I used powdered cumin and cilantro and only used half. And since it’s powdered, I opted not to try to toast it. (I burned it the first time). I didn’t have any cherry tomatoes so I just chopped up an heirloom tomato. Oh, and I only used 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne pepper. My husband absolutely loves it. And me, I loved it too. Thanks. It’s a new favorite.
I’m so happy to hear you both enjoyed the recipe!
So this is one of my new favorite recipes. I used red lentils instead of brown, and subbed veggie broth for the water. I also browned my ginger after my garlic bc I like to make my curry kind of like a base. So I put the seeds in, then the garlic, then the ginger, then the cayenne and turmeric. I let it toast together just a bit then I added the tomatoes and let that reduce a bit. Then I added the lentils, cooked it til pretty done, but still not quite there. Added the coconut milk. Reduced it another 20 minutes or so. Then I added the cilantro and let it steep in for about 5 minutes of simmer. Turned off the heat and added juice of half of a lime bc it seemed like a good idea. It was really good and Iām making it again tonight, this time with the cherry tomatoes I forgot last time. ? Thank you again!
I’m so happy it was a hit!!!
Loved it, thanks for the recipe
You’re so welcome!
I was very excited to make this recipe, but now that I’m eating it, I have to say it’s disappointing. I’ll see what I can do to fix it because I don’t want to waste it.
First off, I read other reviews and I noted to add the salt at the end (plus my Trader Joe’s lentils note as well to add salt at the end), which I did. My lentils cooked up nice and tender in 35-40 mins, no problem!
I had coriander seeds, but only powdered cumin, so I used both. I really with I would have crushed the coriander because now I keep crunching on them in the finished product – I wish they were more integrated. I would suggest grating the ginger, same issue – I chopped them (not minced) and so I’m getting big bites of ginger. I didn’t have tumeric, so I used curry powder.. it’s a curry right, so it should have curry in it?! I would call this recipe a work in progress that needs more testing.
I’m sorry to hear you didn’t like the coriander seeds. The little crunch is my favorite part of this curry!
Recipe was very watery (more like soup), lentils completely overcooked, hardly any structure left. Quite dissappointing.
I’m sorry to hear you didn’t love the recipe.
Delicious!!! Thank you for the recipe!
You are so welcome!
can you use red lentils? if so, cook for how long?
You can. They cook a little faster so you’ll want to reduce the cooking liquid and time.
This was amazing!!! I did feel like a little something was missing at the end so I added about a 1/2 tsp. more salt and about 1.5 tbsp. of curry powder. That did the trick and now itās perfect! Thanks so much for sharing, Kristen! Definitely going to be making this again.
Yay!!
This recipe is so simple, healthy and DELICIOUS! I’ve made it a number of times and actually have a double batch bubbling away right now! This has become a regular in our house. Thank you for sharing such a wonderful animal/dairy/nut free recipe!
You are so welcome!!
Fabulous recipe
Thank you so much!
This recipe is AMAZING! I used ground coriander, to taste, because I couldn’t find the seeds. I also used one tsp of cayanne pepper. So, so good!
That makes me so happy to hear! Hooray!
This was really a party in my mouth. I loved it so much that I could not help myself and drove 40 minutes to take some to my daughters to try. I shared the recipe with them so they can make it any time they wish. I can tell this recipe is gonna be one of our very favorites. Delicious, satisfying and nutritious. What else can we ask for? Thank you so much for sharing this with the world ?
I love it! Hooray!
This turned out great! The flavors all went so well together. I love that this is simple and didn’t require a lot of prep work but it tasted so wonderful and complex. I also threw in some kale!
Good call on the kale!