Did you have a nice weekend? I had a relaxing Sunday, and even though the weather was gloomy all weekend in San Francisco, I didn’t mind. I caught up on all of my chores (laundry, cleaning, etc.), so the weekend went by fast for me! It was so nice to have a day where I didn’t have any deadlines to meet or work to do. I realized how sad it was that I felt so happy about this, and how long it has been since I have had a real day off all to myself!
Since I had the time, for lunch I wanted to try a new recipe…red lentil chicken stew. Stews are my absolute favorite comfort foods, especially on cold days like today. It was like heaven biting into tender pieces of chicken covered in a variety of spices, and the soft lentils mixed with juicy tomatoes and onions. I haven’t been so excited about a recipe turning out so delicious in a long time! This red lentil chicken stew recipe is definitely going on my “week night dinners” list. It is so flavorful!
Although it seems like it takes a long time to cook, most of the time is waiting for the stew to simmer in the oven for an hour and a half (your house will smell amazing!). The preparation is actually really easy.
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 2 boneless, skinless, organic free-range chicken breasts
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tbsp ground cumin
- ¼ tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 tbsp sweet paprika
- ½ tbsp cinnamon
- ½ onion, finely diced
- ⅓ cup split red lentils
- 1 cup chopped organic cherry tomatoes
- 3 cups chicken stock (*4 cups if you want more of a soup)
- ¼ cup chopped dried apricots or mango
- ¼ cup freshly chopped cilantro
- Preheat oven to 320 degrees F.
- Slice each chicken breast in half, yielding four strips.
- Coat the chicken in olive oil and cumin, cayenne pepper, and paprika.
- Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in an oven-proof baking dish and brown chicken (about 2 minutes on each side).
- Remove and set aside.
- Add 2 tbsp olive oil to the pan, along with the onions and garlic. Simmer for 5 minutes.
- Add cinnamon, lentils, chicken stock, tomatoes and dried apricots and bring to a boil.
- Add the chicken breasts on top, cover, and place in the oven.
- Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes.
- Serve over jasmine rice and garnish with fresh cilantro.
I cannot wait to try this one! My husband would eat plain chicken breasts every night if you let him. I need something a little fancier – like this!
xo Jackie
http://www.FoodWineFashion.com
Ooh, what a great lentil dish!
Mmm I love lentils! This looks like it would smell & taste delicious. I love dinner recipes that require just a little prep, and then you can just leave them in the oven. Definitely bookmarking for dinner later this week!
What a lovely looking stew that must not only be tasty but good for you too. I love the simplicity of a one-pot dinner xx
I love simple recipes that look wonderful and taste great for weeknights. I can’t wait to try this.
This looks delicious! Definitely need to add this to my list of things to make (especially before the weather gets too, too hot–kinda scared since its 90 degrees in DC tomorrow!). Love the red Dutch oven 🙂
This stew looks so delicious and comforting! So nice for all the rainy days we have been getting! 🙂
I’ve used lentils in soup and salads, but never as an entree. I need to remedy this soon…your chicken stew looks amazing!
I made this last night, it was delicious but came out as a soup! It looked nothing like your photo… Is the 4 cups of stock correct? It seemed like an awful lot? Yummy though!
Hi Sarah!
Thanks for your comment. The consistency is MEANT to be more of a sauce, but not soup 🙁 Hmmm, sorry it worked out that way – I will try it again with 4 cups and see if I get the same result, but last time the lentils soaked up a lot of water! Did you soak them beforehand perhaps? If not, I would recommend using less stock next time.
I just made this and holy moly is it delicious! Mine also came out a lot soupier than your photo. I might cut the stock down to 3 cups next time. But it really is no problem—just more to pour on the rice. I also used mint instead of cilantro because it’s what had—and it works GREAT well with the spices and lentils. I’m very excited to have this recipe and I’m sure it’ll become a staple of mine. Thanks!
Thanks for your comment Lisa! Sorry it came out soupy – I think I will change it to 3 cups due to the comments about this. Cheers!
I was disappointed. I reduced the spices as a tablespoon of cumin and paprika was far too much. I used a teaspoon of each and even that seemed. a bit much. I used two cups of stock not three and it still seemed a bit sloppy. I cooked it in the oven for an hour and thought the lentils were overcooked.
One of my favourites and I make it with extra stock to have it soupy! LOVE IT! It’s a regular in my house – so hearty and warming, perfect for Autumn 😊