Addis

Yet another Moroccan vegan adventure.  I'm running out of bean varieties, so this may be the last recipe of its kind for a while.

Many of the recipes I found called addis are Lebanese.  There are small differences in the spices and method, as well as how much sauce you end up with.  I didn't want a soup, which is what most of the Lebanese addis recipes are.  Here, I'm largely adapting an Instant Pot version for stovetop.  Surprisingly, the cook time is about the same.  You don't get the completely mushy texture that pressure cooking does to beans, which may be a plus if that's what you want.

I'm going off recipe a little, but not much.  I was surprised that paprika is not a common spice in addis.  Instead of adding black pepper and a hot pepper or flakes, I used chili powder for a hint of roasted flavor.  I also cut back slightly on the quantity of spices because, dang, that's a lot of cumin.

1 C brown lentils
1/4 C olive oil
1/4 C diced onion
1 Tb cumin
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp salt
pinch saffron (optional)
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 lb tomatoes, grated
1 C water

1.  Sort and rinse lentils.  Soak 6-12 hours, or overnight.  I did not expect half of them to start sprouting.  Maybe I should look into growing lentils, but with my small space I doubt it would be worth the effort.  Drain when ready to begin cooking.

2.  Heat oil over medium heat in a large saucepan.  Add onion and cook until softened.  That's a lot of oil, so try not to fry the onion.  Add in spices, salt, and garlic and cook until fragrant, about 2 minutes.

3.  Stir in tomatoes, lentils, and water.  Bring to a low boil, reduce heat to a simmer, and cover.  Cook 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.  That should be enough time to wash the unfortunate number of dishes.  It's grating the tomatoes that bumped up the difficulty level of this dish.  If lentils are not tender yet, continue to cook in 5 minute increments.

4.  Add water to desired consistency.  Taste and adjust seasonings.  Serve hot.

Difficulty rating  :)