Mujadara, also known as Mejadra, is a popular Middle Eastern dish made with rice, lentils, and caramelized onions. The rice and lentils are cooked together with fragrant spices, giving the dish a warm and comforting flavor. The onions on top add a sweet and savory crunch to the dish. Mejadra is often served as a main vegetarian course or as a side dish with yogurt and/or a fresh salad.
SPICES AND RICE: Add 2 tbsp olive oil to a medium-sized pot over medium heat. Add ground cumin, coriander, garlic powder, and turmeric. Sauté stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 2-3 minutes. Add rice and sauté for 1 minute.
ADD LENTILS: Add the water, drained and rinsed lentils, sugar, and salt and pepper to taste (I add 1¼ tsp salt & ¼ tsp pepper). Bring to a boil; then turn heat to medium-low. Cover with a lid and cook for 10-14 minutes or until most of the liquid is absorbed. (It's okay if there is still a little liquid; it will absorb during resting.) Keeping the lid on, remove the entire pot from heat and let it stand for 10 minutes. Don't rush this step!
FINISHING TOUCHES: After 10 minutes, remove the lid and fluff the rice with a fork. Stir in the finely chopped parsley and green onions. Taste and season with more seasonings if needed. Transfer rice and lentils to a wide serving platter and drizzle the remaining 1 tbsp oil over everything. Squeeze on some fresh lemon if desired. Top with crispy onions and enjoy warm! Great with a dollup of yogurt too!
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Notes
Note 1: Rice: If you use a variety of rice other than basmati, you'll likely need a bit more liquid. But if possible, use basmati rice, it truly works the best here! Also, no need to rinse the rice first here or you may end up with too much liquid.Note 2: Using real onions and dried lentils: If you're looking to make a more authentic version of Mujadara, here's the recipe that Doris taught us: The key ingredient in Mujadara is caramelized onions, so it's important to start by thoroughly caramelizing them. To do this, heat 1/2 cup of olive oil in a large, deep skillet and add 3 large, thinly sliced onions. Cook the onions over low heat for about 50 minutes to an hour, stirring occasionally, until they are deeply caramelized. Use a slotted spoon to remove the onions to a separate plate and lightly salt them.If you're using dried lentils, start by soaking them for about an hour and then draining them. To the same pan that you caramelized the onions in, add more oil, the drained lentils, seasonings, salt, and water. Cook until the lentils are soft, and then add the rice. Doris recommends using less rice than lentils - if you use 2 cups of lentils, use 1 cup of rice. Make sure to add enough water to the pan to cover everything to the same height (but not above). Cover and cook until the rice is tender. Let rest then fluff everything up and add lots of fresh herbs.Nutrition information does not include the fried onions.