Coconut Lentil Curry
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This easy-to-make creamy coconut lentil curry is a vegan recipe that makes a perfect meatless Monday dinner. 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.
One reader, Rae, says, “This is one of my staple recipes. So easy to make and delicious. Everyone likes it! ★★★★★”
This lentil curry recipe has been a reader favorite for years. And with almost 1500 reviews, you can bet it will be your favorite, too! It’s a flavorful vegan recipe made with kitchen-staple ingredients.
You guys, this is what curry dreams are made of. This beauty is made in one pot, and it’ll take less than an hour for you to be in coconut curry heaven!
We eat this curry year-round. No 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 of us and it’s a bazillion degrees outside, we’ll still eat it. And really, how could you not?
The original lentil curry 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 with brown lentils
- Cilantro gets piled on high.
- Cherry tomatoes get thrown in during the last few minutes of cooking (because heck, why not?)
Ingredients to make curried lentils
- Coconut oil – for sautéing the flavor components.
- The flavor – cumin seeds, coriander seeds, garlic, ginger, turmeric, cayenne, and sea salt.
- Crushed tomatoes – just open a can and pour it in!
- Lentils – the star of the show! We use brown lentils, but green lentils work just as well.
- Coconut milk – this is what makes the lentil curry wonderfully creamy.
- Cherry tomatoes and cilantro – these get stirred in at the end for even more flavor.
Lentil curry variations
While my family loves this recipe exactly as written, it’s also very versatile and easy to play with. Here are some additions that we’ve tried, and a few that our readers have tried:
- Add some more veggies: Sweet potatoes, mushrooms, red peppers, or broccoli are great. And spinach stirred in at the end is nice, too.
- More protein: Cubed chicken or tofu is a wonderful addition.
- Skip the coconut: iI you’re not a coconut fan, you can use whipping cream instead.
- Make it into soup: Add some extra water or some chicken or vegetable stock to turn this into soup.
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:
Store, reheat, and freeze
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 meals on hand.
In the fridge – This curry will keep well for up to 4 days in a sealed container in your fridge.
In the freezer – Transfer the cooled curry to freezer-proof containers and keep it in your freezer for up to 4 months.
To reheat – 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.
Watch the lentil curry video
This coconut lentil curry recipe is ridiculously simple to make. Five bucks says that you’re going to look at the recipe and think, “No way THIS recipe could be one of the BEST curry recipes.” 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.
Creamy Coconut Lentil Curry Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- 1 tablespoon cumin seeds
- 1 tablespoon 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 (see notes)
- 1-2 teaspoons cayenne powder (optional)
- 2 cups water
- 15 ounce can coconut milk
- A few handfuls of cherry tomatoes
- 1 cup chopped cilantro
Instructions
- Heat the coconut oil in a large skillet (I love using my braiser) 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 cumin seeds, 1 head garlic, 1 tablespoon coriander seeds
- Add the can of crushed tomatoes, ginger, turmeric, and sea salt to the pot and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes. Add the lentils, the cayenne powder (if using), and water to the pot and bring it to a boil.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
- 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 ½ – 1 cup of 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
Last step:
- After you make this recipe, take a picture with your phone and share it in the comments section below. I love seeing it when you make my recipes!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
We have thoroughly tested this recipe for accuracy. However, individual results may vary. See our full recipe disclosure here.
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 got tired of my French style lentils and found this. It’s a great starting point for me!
The first time I followed the recipe very closely except added 1/2 medium red onion, some curry powder, and finished it with about a tbsp of garam masala just before the coconut milk. I think the cinnamon in the garam masala finishes this dish nicely. Next time I make this I will add ground coriander instead of the seeds, as I find the seeds unpleasant to eat. I might also sub yogurt for the coconut milk to see how it turns out. But this is easy to make for lunches – lentils, rice and either stir fried cabbage or lightly pickled cucumbers. YUM!
This is by far the creamiest curry I’ve ever made! We love it in this household 🙂
So amazing!!!!!! I love this recipe. I cut back the salt in half and the cayenne, otherwise, this was so easy and perfect ❤️ Thank you
I’ve made this recipe about 10 times now, it’s awesome. I’ve done it a few times cooking the lentils first, then adding them in already cooked and adding no water, and it has turned out fine.
But when I’ve made it starting with raw lentils, I find that 3 cups of water is too much, the lentils end up thoroughly cooked but the end result is too watery. I’m trying it right now with 2 cups instead.
love this curry! i make a large batch once a month
Delicious, the only problem I had was that when I added the coconut milk it turned into a soup so I had to keep cooking it for another 30 mins to reduce the liquid, that meant lots of stirring to prevent it sticking on the bottom of the pan…. the curry was nice and thick before I added the coconut milk, any tips as I will definitely remake this as the flavours are lovely. Thanks!
Thank you so much for the recipe!! So delicious, all the flavors blend together……yum!!!
This our go to Lentil Curry. Frequently requested by my 10yr old as it’s her favourite dinner dish.
Have not tried this yet, but am intrigued by BOTH versions. I will ask if you use the WHOLE cumin and coriander in the crockpot version ? I could not tell by video!
Many thanks!
Joni
In the video, we used whole. 🙂
SO delicious 😋 thank you!! Very rarely can you follow a recipe to the letter and it turn out so yummy ☺️ Whole family loved it – served with brown basmati rice, roasted sweet potatoes and roasted cavelo nero. Brilliant 🤩
Is it full fat coconut milk or not ?
Full fat will make it the creamiest!
Absolutely love this recipe. It’s my go-to recipe for a big party or a cozy winter night. Always a crowd pleaser. Like some others, I use half the water suggested.
LOVE LOVE LOVE this dish !!!!
I add sweet potato and I mixed two different kinds of lentils- red and brown. Delicious.
Thank you 😊
First time ever I made a curry: it was GLORIOUS!
Thanks for sharing this
Delicious and easy to follow. Thanks for sharing this recipe!
I LOVE this recipe!!!! I wasnt sure about it at first but my husband had bought like 15-20lbs of lentils so I needed recipes to try. This one is by far my favorite.
I have made this at least 4 times one of which I made solely for myself. Except for breakfast, I had it at every meal that week. I had my husband grab coconut milk yesterday just so I could make this for myself again.
Thank you for such an amazingly yummy recipe.