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Mujadara Baked Rice and Lentils

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Mujadara Baked Rice and Lentils is straight up comfort food.  Made richer with full-flavored spices and brought to your dinner table in a pretty casserole.

Classic Mujadara baked rice, lentils, onion and spices mounded in a cobalt blue bowl and tilted forward.

If you’re looking for an inexpensive and easy recipe then this is the one.  Mujadara is a classic recipe and is a staple in the Middle East.  People have been making it for over 500 years.

Because this dish consists of a legume and grain it is a complete protein and also very high in protein per cup.  It’s just one of those perfect dishes.

Mujadara is not normally baked but it is so easy this way and it comes out perfect every time.  About all you have to do is combine everything in a casserole and then it just takes care of itself in the oven.

I did pre-saute the onion before I added it to the mixture because I just like the extra sweetness that comes out of the onion that way.

You can serve it as a main dish with other smaller sides such as Pure Delicious Cauliflower.  You could add a loaf of crusty bread too but definitely a salad.  So good!

So now you have it.  Lentils and rice made richer with full-flavored spices and brought to your dinner table in a pretty casserole.

 

Classic Mujadara baked rice, lentils, onion and spices mounded in a cobalt blue bowl. Up close photo only 2/3rd's of the bowl showing and is sitting in front of a blue casserole.
 

 

 

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Classic rice, lentils, onion and spices mounded in a cobalt blue bowl and sprinkled with parsley.
5 from 4 votes
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Mujadara Baked Rice and Lentils Casserole

Mujadara Baked Rice and Lentils is straight up comfort food.

Course Main Course, Side Dish
Recipe Type Casserole
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 10 minutes
Servings 4 Servings
Calories 321 kcal
Author Ginny McMeans

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon coconut oil
  • 1/2 cup onion, diced
  • 3 cups vegetable broth - use low sodium to watch for your sodium intake
  • 1 cup brown lentils
  • 2/3 cup brown rice
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Instructions

  1. In a skillet heat oil to medium high and then turn it down to medium and saute the onion until it is translucent - about 10 minutes.

  2. Heat 3 cups of vegetable broth to a boil.

  3. Meanwhile, to a casserole add rice, lentils, all the spices and sauted onion.

  4. Be careful and pour the broth over everything in the casserole dish.
  5. Stir until all is evenly dispersed. The rice and lentils will settle on the bottom.

  6. Cover with a fitted lid or cover tightly with foil. Leaving enough foil to go over the edges, liberally.

  7. Bake at 325 degrees for 60 minutes.

  8. Check and see if the liquid has absorbed and the rice is tender.  If not add another 10 minutes.

  9. It will still be very moist.
  10. Serve and sprinkle with fresh parsley - if you like.

Recipe Notes

IF FREEZING:

Please follow any of the directions defined in my article How to Prepare Food for the Freezerr.

TO PREPARE AFTER FREEZING:

If you have frozen leftover mujadara in smaller rigid containers then take out the containers and put in the fridge the day before serving. Heat in a microwave on high, stirring about every 2 minutes until heated through.

Nutrition Facts
Mujadara Baked Rice and Lentils Casserole
Amount Per Serving (1 Cup)
Calories 321 Calories from Fat 18
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 2g 3%
Sodium 58mg 2%
Potassium 724mg 21%
Total Carbohydrates 57g 19%
Dietary Fiber 16g 64%
Sugars 2g
Protein 18g 36%
Vitamin A 0.4%
Vitamin C 4.4%
Calcium 4.9%
Iron 25.8%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

 

 

Classic Mujadara baked rice, lentils, onion and spices mounded in a cobalt blue bowl and sprinkled with parsley.
 
 

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Comments

  3. That sounds like a great recipe and would be perfect for a weeknight dinner. We eat lentils almost everyday, so this is going to be a nice new addition.

  8. I made it again Ginny. I used a lasagne sized casserole dish and also added 3 large carrots. It spread out as it cooked and turned out great. So glad. Next time I will use cumin instead of cloves. Thanks!

  9. Thanks!! I used a pan that was a bit smaller than the one you used. I am going to try the recipe again tonight with a larger pan and see if that works better. Thanks for these great recipes.

  10. I am so sorry Angela! I don’t know what could have happened. That is the recipe and if you scroll back with the comments you’ll see some that there are very good comments. It sounds as if you have thought of suggestions that I would have made. I hate to leave such a comment where I can’t even help you. Maybe the foil was too tight? It would let any steam out for the ater to cook down? Was the oven preheated? That could make a big difference.

  11. Thanks for all these inspiring recipes! I tried this recipe for Madajura, and something went wrong. After 70 minutes hardly any broth had evaporated and the lentils and rice were not cooked. I raised the temp to 375 and cooked it for another 30 minutes to get the lentils and rice cooked. But it was like a mushy soup.

    Has anyone else had this experience? I am uncertain about reducing the broth in the future–how much? OR raising the temperature in the oven. Oven is working fine. I did cover the casserole dish with aluminum foil, not a lid, but the foil was tight and don’t think that was the problem.

    Any tips? Thanks!
    Angela

  13. Hey, this might be a silly question but is the rice raw when you put it in the oven or is it precooked?

  20. This was really good served with tahini mixed with a little lemon juice and quite a lot of water to make it go runny and creamy, and a salad of diced cucumber and tomato with parley and a lemon vinaigrette.

    Very yum!

  21. That is fantastic Nicolette and thanks for letting me know. Yes, if you add more rice you need more liquid. The ratio for brown rice to liquid is more than white rice so … try 1/3 cup more brown rice and add another 1-1/2 cups of vegetable broth. This should work.

  22. I just made this last night and my whole family, including my two year old, LOVED it. I was worried it might be bland, but, boy was I wrong. The only thing I would do differently next time is add more rice, so there would be equal parts rice and lentils. Do you think I would need to add more broth?

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