Mejadra – Lentils with Rice & Crispy Onion | Recipe

My Lebanese friends introduced me to mejadra when I was in high school. I instantly fell in love with the simple combination of caramelised onion, rice and lentils topped with crispy onion.

Each Lebanese family in the neighbourhood had their own treasured version of this recipe: some added aromatic spices, while others simply seasoned theirs with salt. Personally, I love the fragrant combination of warming cumin, coriander and cinnamon with the rice and lentils. Delicious as a stand-alone vegan meal or a side dish as part of a buffet.

Ingredients

• 200g brown lentils, rinsed
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 onions, finely sliced
• sea salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 teaspoons cumin seeds
• 2 teaspoons coriander seeds
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 150g (3/4 cup) basmati rice, rinsed
• 875ml (3 1/2 cups) boiling water

Crispy Onion

• 1 large onion, finely sliced into rings
• light olive oil, for shallow-frying

Serves 6-8

Method

Place the lentils in a saucepan and cover with plenty of water. Bring to the boil, reduce the heat to low and simmer for 12 minutes to soften. Drain and set aside.

Meanwhile, heat a large frying pan over medium–low heat. Add the olive oil and onion and a generous pinch of salt and cook, stirring regularly, for 15 minutes or until the onion is caramelised. Stir in the cumin and coriander seeds and cinnamon and cook for a further 1 minute to toast the spices.

Add the rice, lentils and a pinch of salt and pepper to the pan, stir to combine, and cook for 1 minute. Pour in the boiling water, reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Check the mixture and add a little more water if the pan looks dry, then cook for a further 5 minutes until all the liquid has been absorbed. Turn off the heat. Lift the lid, cover the pan with a tea towel, then replace the lid. (The towel absorbs the moisture to keep the mixture light and fluffy.) Rest for 10 minutes.

To make the crispy onion, dry the onion rings with paper towel to remove excess moisture. Heat enough light olive oil for shallow-frying in a frying pan over medium–high heat, add the onion rings and cook for 5 minutes or until golden and crispy. Drain on paper towel and sprinkle with salt while hot.

To serve, transfer the mejadra to a platter and top with the crispy onion.