Review: Red Lentil Curry

First of all, here's where you can find the recipe.

Second, we loved it.

Third, it is easy to make.

Now, with those Whip it Up bases covered I will elaborate.

I found this recipe from AllRecipes.com by clicking on a link for yummy vegetarian meals. I am this close to being a vegetarian, folks. This is for a few reasons: health, money, and the world food crisis. So, Eric and I have decided to cut back on our meat intake. We're thinking we should have about 3-4 vegetarian meals per week. (Don't worry, if you come over we'll probably make meat). We can get proteins in lots of other, healthier ways. Like lentils. I'm toying with the idea of having all my Whip it Up recipes be vegetarian. How do you like them apples?

This recipe appealed to me for a few reasons- We love curry. Both of us just relish any chance we get to eat curry of any type. I'm a particular fan of green curry, but red curry has really grown on me lately. Plus, it's not as spicy. Also, I had red lentils, onions, red curry paste, tomatoe puree, garlic and ginger all on hand. Also rice. We always have rice. In fact, we bought a 10-kilo bag of rice when we got here exactly five months ago, and we're just now almost through with it. Definitely an excellent buy.

Overall, the recipe was astoundingly simple to make. It really was one of those recipes where you pour in the ingredients and stir. Nothing tricky about it. The only problem for us is that we only have two burners, so I couldn't get the sauce going until I was done with the lentils because I needed the rice cooking pretty much the whole time. Not a huge problem, but I certainly could have used an extra burner.

Eric, Matthew, and Makereta all really liked this meal. Makereta said it was the perfect level of spicy for her. I would have liked to kick it up a notch or two, but since I was making it for all four of us, then I was perfectly content with making it a little more mild.

I didn't add all the seasonings I was supposed to because I do not have turmeric, chili powder, and cumin on hand, and I really didn't want to shell out the money it would have cost to buy those things. When I am back in the States with all my trusty own ingredients, I will add those in. With that said, I never felt like the recipe was lacking because I didn't have those ingredients included.

So, the moral of this blog is that this is a good recipe. A good, extremely healthy recipe. I've enumerated the health benefits of lentils before, so I am eager to have another recipe to use them in.

Also, on the reviews of the recipe some people mentioned omitting the paste. You really can't do that. The paste is crucial. You can buy it in any grocery store in New Zealand (in the Asian section), and you might be able to find it in regular grocery stores in the states, particularly if you live in an area with a strong Asian influence. Otherwise you might have to take a trip to a specialty Asian market, but curry paste is cheap, and a little bit goes a long way, so a special trip is worth it.