Make this easy Vegan Curry Lentil Casserole whenever that craving for restaurant-style creamy lentil dishes hits. Brown lentils simmered in a fragrant coconut curry broth served over rice! So easy, so delicious. Gluten-free, too.
We all have that bag of dried lentils somewhere in the back of our pantry, just waiting for us to find them, add some spices and simple pantry staple ingredients to them, and create an unexpectedly delicious and healthy dish that everyone will LOVE!
This recipe for vegan Lentil Curry Casserole is one of those unexpectedly AWESOME lentil recipes that has to potential to become a family favorite! Especially if you are a fan of rich and creamy curries! It is one of my family’s favorite weeknight dinners – packed with plant-based protein, nutrients, and spicy goodness! A simple and nourishing curry casserole the whole family will enjoy tucking into.
Just look at that thick and creamy gravy – all those amazing coconut and curry flavors are layered deeply into the lentils as they slowly bake. The perfect one-pot / one-casserole meal and the perfect comfort food dish for the cold season!
Think of this lentil casserole as an easy westernized version of restaurant-style Indian daal, with plenty of warming spices, creamy coconut milk and some nut butter for extra richness. You might have most ingredients at home already. Let’s get cooking!
MORE INDIAN DISHES TO TRY
- Butter Tofu GF
- IP Tikka Masala Simmer Sauce , with Cauliflower. GF
- Tofu Amritsari Masala.GF
- Instant Pot Vegan Butter Chickin(soycurls). GF – Creamy, Delicious
- Mushroom Matar Masala GF
- Bombay Potato and Peas GF
- Tofu in Spinach Curry – Palak Tofu GF
This is a simple one pot meal baked into a casserole instead of on the stove top. Baking allows for amazing roasted flavor and also hands off cooking. You can easily convert it to stove top.
This is a generic curry inspired from Indian flavors. You can change up the spices and flavors to preference. Let’s make it!
Lentil Curry Casserole
Ingredients
- 2 tsp oil
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- ¼ cup (40 g) onion finely chopped
- 1 hot green chili finely chopped
- ½ tsp ground cumin
- ½ tsp ground coriander
- ½ tsp turmeric
- ½ - 1 tsp garam masala or curry powder
- 1 bay leaf
- ⅛ tsp black pepper
- 1 good pinch of cinnamon
- ¾ cup (144 g) of lentils brown or green
- 14 oz can (28.35 g) tomatoes
- 14 oz can (396.89 g) coconut milk
- 2 ½ cups (591.47 ml) broth divided
- ¾ tsp salt divided
- 2 Tbsp almond butter or cashew butter or use sun butter to make it nut-free - warmed
- Lemon juice and cilantro for garnish
Instructions
- Add oil to a casserole dish. Add in garlic, onion, green chili, spices and ¼ tsp salt - mix well. Preheat the oven to 400℉ (205C)
- Once heated, place the casserole dish in the oven for 5-8 minutes or until onions start to turn golden
- Remove dish from the oven and add in the lentils, tomatoes, coconut milk, remaining salt and 2 cups of broth, mix well. (reserve 2 tbsp coconut milk for garnish if you wish)
- Place the dish back in the oven and cook for 1 hour or 1 hour and 10 mins or until lentils are cooked to preference (taste using a spoonful to see if they’re done)
- Once done, remove the dish from the oven, and while the mixture is still hot, first mix almond butter with warmed 1/2 cup of broth, add this mixture in, and stir until combined
- Adjust flavor and spice as needed. Add in some lemon juice and cilantro for garnish, as desired
- Serve with some fresh rice, flatbread, naan bread, or pita bread
Notes
- You can also use red lentils in this recipe. Use 1 cup red lentils and check to see if they are done after 35 minutes.
- I recommend full-fat coconut milk for the ultimate creaminess.
- You can use sun butter instead of almond butter to make it nut-free.
- As always, feel free to add more veg or more seasoning to really make this your own.
- To make this without garlic and onion, omit them and add 1/8 tsp fenugreek seed powder to the spices.
Nutrition
Ingredients for Vegan Curried Lentil Casserole:
- like any curry dish, we start with the umami-boosting trifecta of onion, garlic and fresh chili
- spices: ground cumin, coriander, turmeric, and garam masala or curry powder, pepper, and cinnamon
- Lentils: For this recipe, I use brown lentils but you could use red lentils.
- canned tomatoes – a must for lentil dishes
- coconut milk, you can also use unsweetened oat milk or soy milk
- almond butter or cashew butter or any other nut or seed butter for that perfect creaminess. But I do recommend you go with a subtle taste. Peanut Butter, f.ex. would be a bit dominant in flavor.
Tips & Substitutions:
- You can also use red lentils in this recipe. Use 1 cup red lentils and check to see if they are done after 35 minutes.
- I recommend full-fat coconut milk for the ultimate creaminess.
- You can use sun butter instead of almond butter to make it nut-free.
- As always, feel free to add more veg or more seasoning to really make this your own.
- To make this without garlic and onion, omit them and add 1/8 tsp fenugreek seed powder to the spices.
Add oil to a casserole dish
Add in garlic, onion, green chili, spices and ¼ tsp salt – mix well
Remove dish from the oven and add in the lentils, tomatoes, coconut milk, remaining salt and 2 cups of broth, mix well
Place the dish back in the oven and cook for 1 hour or 1 hour and 10 mins or until lentils are cooked to preference (taste using a spoonful to see if they’re done)
What to serve with this Curry Lentil Casserole?
This vegan lentil casserole is best enjoyed
- Over a plate of steamed basmati rice, or cauliflower rice
- With some fresh bread or Vegan Naan Bread
- You could use leftover lentils as a filling for a wrap, lentil lettuce wraps, or spoon some into tacos
Alexander
straight forward – excellent instructions and a delicious result.
Vegan Richa Support
Glad you like the recipe!
Carol
If you double the recipe, do you have to increase the cooking time and will it still fit in the same 11 by 17 casserole dish?
Vegan Richa Support
Hi Carol! You will likely need to cook in two dishes, each for the recommend amount of time.
Lianne
Love this recipe! I did alter it slightly as I cooked it in the instant pot, and I used cashew cream in place of the coconut cream / nut butter as I didn’t have those in stock, but it turned out great and was super easy to make. Thanks for another great recipe Richa ❤️
Vegan Richa Support
Terrific!
Genie
Just had this for dinner — turned out great! My husband particularly liked it — said he’d be happy to have it again. But he likes most of your recipes.
Vegan Richa Support
Haha I’m so happy to hear!
Christine
Sounds wonderful ( like all your recipes) I’m wondering if I could use black lentils?
Thanks
Vegan Richa Support
You sure can!
Taylor
Yum!! I made this lentil curry this evening and it’s delicious! At the end I didn’t add the extra broth & I used 3 tbsp of almond butter as I was finishing up my jar. Fantastic flavour and such a great way to use up dry lentils.
Vegan Richa Support
Love it!
Michelle
Wow! This was so good! I wish I had tried it sooner. So much flavor and super easy to make. The squeeze of lemon at the end really brighten it up. I served it with roasted broccoli and rice.
Vegan Richa Support
I’m so glad to hear!
Andrea
Another great recipe! Thanks
Vegan Richa Support
Awesome.
Kathy S
This is such a delicious and easy recipe! My family just loves it! Sometimes I add the almond butter and sometimes I do not, but it is delicious either way. Thank you so much for a great recipe!
Vegan Richa Support
Great to hear Kathy.
Cindy
I made this in the Instant Pot with Better Than Bouillon, No Chicken Base instead of vegetable broth and a Japanese curry powder. At the end, I added 2 T almond butter but no additional broth. I had some today for lunch with some rice. It is so creamy and delicious. Thank you!
Vegan Richa Support
oh – fancy curry powder
Gayle
This recipe is missing something as once it is done there is way too much liquid left?
Vegan Richa Support
OH!! sorry to hear it didn’t turn out for you. Did you do the 1st step heating of onions until they turn golden?
Michele
This recipe is so delicious. 5 stars from everyone in the family! Plus it’s just so easy and hands-off AND the ingredients are pantry staples! I used the Trader Joe’s Coconut Cream (which is mostly solid coconut fat) so I didn’t feel the need to use any nut butter. It was still very rich and creamy! Our new family favorite.
Vegan Richa Support
Hooray!!!
Chris
This recipe is really fantastic!! So easy to make and such good flavors! When I followed other indian recipes, they always turned out too tomato-y or too strong in cumin for me. But this is just right! Thank you so much!!
Vegan Richa Support
Awesome to hear
Franny
Delicious, Richa! I used a package of Trader Joe’s cooked French lentils and made the dish on the stovetop. I added a cup of chickpeas and a big handful of spinach. Was out of almond butter so used tahini. It turned out super yummy with enough leftovers for tomorrow. Thanks for another keeper recipe! 💖 Franny
Vegan Richa Support
yummy, plant power !!! 🌱 good to know about tahini
Jacquie
This was SO GOOD. I made it on the stovetop, just simmered until the lentils were done and the thickness was where I wanted it. Thank you for another winner!
Vegan Richa Support
perfect
Jenny
So easy and delicious! I used tahini because I didn’t have any nut butters on hand and it was great! I also used a jalapeño which did the trick for spice. I also sauted the onions and spices while the oven heated up. It was really convenient to have it bake in the oven so I could get other things done. I will definitely be making this again.
Vegan Richa Support
thanks, good to know, & yay for multitasking
Kelcie
This so delicious and easy to make! I ended up sautéing the onion, garlic, and spices instead of baking them. I also did not dilute the almond butter with additional veggie stock, I just directly mixed it in when I took it out of oven. We all loved it, thank you!
Vegan Richa Support
thanks Kelcie – good to know
Eti
Hey Richa, as always, it is so hard choosing out of so many yummy recipes you post 🙂
I have my heart set on this one. Ever tried using a Ninja Foodi instead of an oven? I wonder if time should be kept the same or not. Thanks! Have a great weekend.
Vegan Richa Support
thanks! not yet – but go for it and let me know how it turns it.
Pat
Yum yum!! I just made this. So delicious! I used red lentils as that was all i had. Turns out, it takes about half the time to cook so that was great. I made green beans to go with it and what a pop of color my bowl was! Sorry i did not take a picture but i was really wanting to eat it.
I followed all instructions except i used ghee as the oil and used the full teaspoon of garam masala. I also used cashew butter instead of almond butter. The broth i used was the Better Than Bouillon No Chicken Chicken flavor. Wonderful!
Richa, you are a genius!
Vegan Richa Support
perfect. aww, thanks Pat
Christina
This smelled so incredible the entire time it was in the oven that I was worried my expectations for its taste were going to be too high. I figured I’d be happy if it tasted half as good as it smelled, but it tasted just as incredible as it smelled. This is a new favorite. Thanks, Richa!
Richa
Yay!!!
Joel
This is SO GOOD and was so easy! Thank you!
(Also I did use peanut butter and did not find it overwhelming.)
Vegan Richa Support
thanks Joel!
Megan
I never leave recipe ratings but I have to tell you— I make this once a week. It’s my husband’s absolute favorite and he packs up the leftovers to take when he works away from home. He never gets tired of it and it keeps him from stopping by for junky non-vegan crap when he’s out and busy. My five young kids also really enjoy it. I use your recipes all the time, Richa. Thanks so much for your work!
Vegan Richa Support
so glad my recipes help your family so much =)
Laura M
This is such a delicious and easy way to make lentils. I have made this recipe twice in one week and my hubby and I can’t get enough of it. Thank you!!!!
Vegan Richa Support
wow!!
Melinda
Any idea on how to convert this to an instant pot?
Richa
Sauté the onion garlic spices on sauté mode. Then cancel, add the rest of the ingredients except nut butter and pressure cook for 15 mins. Natural release and open. If you want it thicker then add the nut butter
Jen B
Made last night and loved! Followed your instructions exactly and found it very easy especially with so little hands-on time. I can be picky about my lentils – I find them too sweet sometimes — but I will definitely make this again and again. Thank you!
Vegan Richa Support
I’m so glad that you;ll be making this again
Kai
I make this recipe about once a month and love it! I sprout my lentils to boost the nutritional value. I usually add celery, red bell pepper, and extra peppers and spices. Thank you for creating this delicious recipe!
Vegan Richa Support
lovin’ the sprouts Kai – thanks for stopping by
Marissa
Hi. I have a lot of leftover cooked brown lentils from making your lentil mushroom Wellington for Friendsgiving which was a big hit. I was looking for a recipe to use up the cooked lentils and wanted to try this recipe. How would I modify it to use the cooked lentils. Thanks.
Richa
Use 2 -2.5 cups cooked lentils, don’t add any broth, just the coconut milk and tomato purée . Bake for 14-18 minutes or until the sauce has come to a boil.
Erika
My only regret is that I didn’t double the recipe so I’d have leftovers! So good!
Richa
🙂
Darlene
This was the first time we ever had a curry dish, so I was hesitant & trying to figure out what it would really taste like. Let me tell you, it was so creamy, filling & delicious; the house was filled with a wonderful aroma. My husband said this recipe is another keeper 😊 I used a orange bell pepper only because that’s what I had in house.