Crockpot Coconut Lentil Curry
This delicious crockpot coconut lentil curry is a slow cooker version of the most popular recipe on the blog. Throw everything into your pot, set the timer, and come home to a tasty vegetarian (and vegan!) dinner. You will LOVE it!
Here it is, my friends! This is the recipe you have been asking for. This is the crockpot version of the most popular recipe on the blog.
If I were the betting type (I'm totally not) I would put down money that you've tried the coconut lentil curry recipe. I shared that recipe with you back in July 2016, and it quickly rose to the #1 spot. Many tens of thousands of people visit that recipe every month.
It's still a go-to recipe for me at home because it is super easy to make, 100% no need to measure ingredients fail-proof, and crazy delicious.
Since I published the original recipe, I've had so many requests for a crockpot coconut lentil curry version. When you reach out to me with special requests I can't help but get a little giddy. That's what friends do; they reach out to each other. Knowing that you feel comfortable asking me for specific recipes makes me all kind of happy.
So here it is, my friends. A crockpot coconut lentil curry recipe, just for you.
This slow cooker version couldn't be any easier to make. Honestly, it almost seems too easy. ā That's the truth!
I'm talking about dump all the ingredients into the pot, pop on the lid, turn it on, and walk away. Super easy. Ridiculously easy.
You can even put all the ingredients in your crockpot in the evening. Store it in your fridge overnight, then turn it on in the morning before you head out the door. When you come home 8-10 hours later, dinner will be waiting for you.
That's the beauty of this recipe: it cooks while you play. Or while you work, but let's not think about that.
Easy Slow Cooker Lentils
The original coconut lentil curry recipe is also easy to make, but after a long day, no cooking is better than a little cooking. That's where a bag of lentils and your slow cooker come in handy.
Once the lentils are cooked, all you need to do is add a can of coconut milk, a few cherry tomatoes, and a handful of cilantro and you've got dinner. If you want to get fancy, you can serve this with rice. I like it just as much on its own.
Bonus points if you pick up some naan on the way home. š
Healthy vegan lentil recipes:
- Coconut Black Lentil Curry
- Deliciously Rich Lentil Bolognese
- Curried Vegan Shepherd's Pie
- Revitalizing Ginger Coconut Lentil Soup
- Coconut Red Lentil Peanut Soup
- Lentil Curry with coconut milk
Crockpot Coconut Lentil Curry
If you love this recipe as much as we do, let us know with a 5-star rating!
Ingredients
- 1 Ā½ cups dried brown lentils
- 2 tablespoons ginger, chopped
- 1 tablespoon EACH: cumin, coriander, turmeric
- Optional: 1-2 teaspoons cayenne powder
- 28 ounce can of crushed tomatoes
- 1 head garlic, chopped
- Ā½ medium onion, finely minced
- 3 cups water
- 15 ounce can coconut milk
- 2-3 teaspoons sea salt
- 1 cup chopped cilantro
- A few handfuls of cherry tomatoes
- Optional: cooked rice for serving
Instructions
- Add the dried brown lentils, ginger, cumin, coriander, turmeric, if using the cayenne, crushed tomatoes, garlic, onion, and 3 cups of water in your crockpot. Put the lid on and set the timer for 4 hours on high or 8 hours on low.1 Ā½ cups dried brown lentils, 2 tablespoons ginger, 1 tablespoon EACH: cumin, coriander, turmeric, Optional: 1-2 teaspoons cayenne powder, 28 ounce can of crushed tomatoes, 1 head garlic, Ā½ medium onion, 3 cups water
- Stir the coconut milk, 2 teaspoons of sea salt, cilantro, and cherry tomatoes into the curry. Taste and add extra salt to taste.15 ounce can coconut milk, 1 cup chopped cilantro, A few handfuls of cherry tomatoes
- Serve on its own or over a bed of rice.
Can’t wait to make this but noticed the ingredients listing does not include the 3 cups of water.
We’ve added it to the ingredient list now!
This is decent, but I had to play with it slightly to make it work. The lentils were not done even after 5 hours on high, but fortunately I was using an Instapot so I just pressure cooked them for 12 minutes. I used a quarter of the amount of turmeric because it can impart bitterness to lentils. The end product was very good. Next time, I would go straight to the pressure cooker and likely up the amount of ginger. Thank you for the recipe.
Hi! So I made this and the consistency of the lentils was perfect. I was surprised it was a bit bland with all the spices and garlic. I added a little extra salt and did use low fat coconut milk which could have affected the taste too. When Iām not dieting Iāll try it again with full fat coconut milk.Ā
Can you swap out the canned tomatoes with something? Iām allergic to tomatoes but this sounds delicious!
Tomatoes make up the bulk of the recipe so I don’t recommend substituting them. You can try making our lentil soup, which doesn’t have tomatoes in it.
water is mentioned as a reply to someones question but no there seems not to be water in the recipe so ???
3 cups of water are added in step 1. It’s in the instructions. š
Love how easy, nutritious, and tasty this meal is.
Loved the stovetop recipe, made it a few years ago and idk why I haven’t made it since!
I am currently about to attempt this version with the slow cook option in my 3 qt instant pot on high/4hr. I will try to come back and update for anyone who wants to know since I’ve never used the slow cook option! *(I did not filter thru all the comments to see if anyone else had done this because there were too many.)
Beautiful recipe, have recommended to friends to try
Can you sub curry powder for tumericĀ
That should work!
Didnāt come put like i thought it would but being busy, i think i miscalculated the recipe it was still amazing tho!
Hi, just wondering if it is freezer friendly?
Yes! This recipe freezes very well!
I just made this tonight and itās so delishā¦should the coconut milk be unsweetened or sweetened? Ā I used un but wonder if itās supposed to be sweetened. š¤·š¼āāļø š¤
Thanks!Ā
We use unsweetened!
THANK YOU!!! This is an incredibly delicious and healthy meal – and this recipe makes a lot! I have crazy teenagers who love this – they have no clue how good it is for them – and I’m NOT telling them! This recipe goes together quickly – I typically use dried ginger (1/2 tsp) subbed in for fresh ginger. My teens put sour cream and cilantro with the lentils. Thank you so much – your recipes totally rock and this one is a fav at my house!
I made this for a shared lunch today and it was amazing!! I would totally make this again annddd was asked by my colleagues for the recipe.
Love this recipe – itās become a go-to favourite! Question: can I omit the turmeric? We love it but it stains my daughters āinvisalineā braces so Iāve avoided making it for awhile. TIA.Ā
Yes you can!
What size crockpot/slow cooker are you using?
The crockpot used in the pictures here was quite small – maybe 3 quarts. It’s not one I have anymore so I can’t tell you for sure. It was fairly small though.
Can I slow cook on low for 19 hours? I’d start it before going to bed and wouldnt attend to it next till I got home from work the next day?
That should work just fine!
I wanted to try this but am unclear on 2 things.
1) is there water added as an ingredient? Or are the lentils just cooking in the spices and tomatoes?
2) does the coconut milk go in *after* the full cook time of 4/8 hours?
You need to add 3 cups of water in step 1. You’ll see it in the instructions. And yes, the coconut milk gets added after the lentils are cooked. If you add it at the beginning, you’ll risk it curdling. š
When did you add the coconut milk?Ā
In step 2 š
Easy and delicious. Definitely the right about of ginger, onion and garlic.
The only issue I had was that it was too acidic from the tomatoes and a bit bitter. Easily fixed with brown sugar.
I used Kashmiri chili powder instead of cayenne and added a lot more for some heat. I also topped with kasoori methi, but it didn’t add much.
If you make this with low-fat coconut milk like me (all I had), I’d add a couple tablespoons of butter or ghee.
Made this recently as Iām trying many new recipes with all the time I now have. Ā Delicious mix of spices and lentils. Ā I did Ā omit the cherry toms and cilantro.
I have the stove top version simmering now. Btw, you have a typo, its giddy, not gitty.
Oh that’s embarrassing!
Did the curry in a slow cooker really enjoyed it, hadn’t got coconut milk so put some creamed coconut block in, definitely will be making it again ??
How much water do you need for the 1x 2x and 3x versions?
3-6-9 cups. š
I’ve made both the stove top and crockpot versions of this recipe….I think I prefer the stove top. Any instant pot version?
I do, too. š No instant pot version yet, but I’m sure that it would work. š
I am cooking it right now; it’s been 4 .5 hours in low, but the lentils are definitely done – I am unsure why there’s a bitter after taste, is this normal? Could it be too much tumeric? I haven’t added the tomatoes or coconut milk.
Even with the aftertaste, I love them.
Turmeric can be slightly bitter. The coconut milk should take care of that. š
Ha anyone thrown chicken in it while it was cooking?Ā
I haven’t but chopped chicken thighs or breasts I would think would work well.
Bit late to answer this but I usually add raw diced chicken for the last hour or raw prawns about 20 mins from end of cooking. Delicious. I also put a chicken stock cube in.
Thanks for coming back to let us know!!
hi there! Should I do 6 cups of water if I doubled the recipe?
I would reduce the water a little and add more only if the curry starts to look dry. š
Did you really mean one HEAD of garlic (or one clove)?
That’s right! It sounds like a lot but it’s perfect in this recipe. š
I am planning to make this now in the slow cooker. I am confused about the amount of garlic to add. I know you said one head. Iām a garlic lover but this does seem like a lot. How many minced cloves would you suggest? Thanks!
One head of garlic is about 8-10 cloves. š
Thanks for getting back to me! I was able to find it on your stove top recipe. Getting ready to add the coconut milk and other additions soon. Does the coconut milk need to be full fat or can I use non-fat? Also, for the future, can anything else be used as a sub for the coconut milk? š
Full-fat coconut milk will make the curry creamier and richer tasting.- better, in my opinion. But you can definitely use non-fat to cut down on calories. I haven’t found a good non-dairy substitute for coconut milk, but regular cream would work if you eat that.
Thank you so much for getting back to me. Iāll stick to the recipe as suggested bc it was awesome the first time. Making it again this week for the family.Ā
Love it! First time trying lentils, didn’t have time to wash them overnight, cook them, watch them. The recipe is perfect and super easy to cook and delicious š thanks so much for this!!
You are very welcome!!
This curry dish was tasty but had itās challenges. Ā I used green lentils that I had just purchased. They didnāt have a date, so unsure how old they were. After 8 hrs on low in my slow cooker, they still werenāt done. Ā I added about a cup of hot water, and cooked them 2 hrs longer. At that point we had to eat. The dish had good flavor, and the lentils were cooked, but firm. Ā I also didnāt realize that the cumin and coriander were supposed to be whole seeds until I read another comment. I just assumed the spices were ground. Ā Served with rice I cooked in coconut water with one kaffir lime leaf added.
The spices can be whole or ground. We make it both ways, but the recipe is based on our stovetop version which uses whole spices. Good call on adding the lime leaf!
If you add your salt at the start of cooking, try adding it near the end instead. Salt will keep lentils tougher longer.
I had a similar issue with the lentils not cooking properly. I set them on high for four hours, but they were still crunchy. I then put them on low for four more hours, and they were finally done just right. I tasted them before I added the coconut milk and thought this had been a mistake, but after adding it, it was yummy. It needed all 3 tsp salt. I will make it again but cook longer.
Can i use dried red lentils instead as don’t have brown
Red will work, too. š