Lentils and Rice with Fried Onions (Mujadarrah)

SUBMITTED BY: Melissa Mueller PHOTO BY: lillpup

"This may sound like a plain recipe, but believe me, it's wonderful! It is an easy-to-make Middle Eastern comfort food that combines lentils, rice and delicious fried onions. The yogurt really gives it a super flavor!"

PREP TIME	10 Min
COOK TIME	40 Min
READY IN	50 Min

SERVINGS & SCALING

Original recipe yield: 4 Servings

USMETRIC

About scaling and conversions

INGREDIENTS

6 tablespoons olive oil
1 large white onion, sliced into rings
1 1/3 cups uncooked green lentils
3/4 cup uncooked long-grain white rice
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup plain yogurt or sour cream (optional)

READ REVIEWS (118)

DIRECTIONS

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Stir in the onions, and cook about 10 minutes, until browned. Remove from heat, and set aside.
Place lentils in a medium saucepan with enough lightly salted water to cover. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer about 15 minutes.
Stir rice and enough water to cover into the saucepan with the lentils. Season with salt and pepper. Cover saucepan, and continue to simmer 15 to 20 minutes, until rice and lentils are tender.
Mix half the onions into the lentil mixture. Top with yogurt or sour cream and remaining onions to serve.

ADVERTISE WITH US

REVIEWS

MORE MEMBER REVIEWS

Reviewed on Mar. 24, 2008 by msmarieann

This is a family staple. Best thing about being Arabic is the food... my god! Juddrah is one of my childhood favs! One type, caramelize the onions as dark as you can without burning. The deeper you caramelize them the more delicious the end taste is. Sour cream is a no. Yoghurt is a yes. We eat everything with plain yoghurt and this is one of those dishes that is out of this world with yoghurt, salt, and a side of a cucumber salad. Keep in mind, your whole house will reek when you cook this, so make sure you have good ventilation!!!

15 users found this review helpful

Reviewed on Apr. 9, 2003 by RAZZMATAZZ

My Arabic teacher once made mujadarrah for his class and ever since then I tried to make it at home, but I never got it quite right until I tried this recipe. The flavour, while simple, is very authentic. It's also probably the easiest dish I've ever made. Don't be afraid of burning the onions - they taste best when properly browned.

15 users found this review helpful

Reviewed on Jan. 11, 2008 by VesHeill

I rated this a 4 as a compromise. I would have rated it a 5, but my husband said he would have given it a 3 (He isn't very familiar with lentils - not that there was a problem with the taste. Because it tasted great!). I made a few slight alterations: I made it with 3 onions instead of 1, and I sliced them into half-rings before getting them good and browned, and I added 1 TBS cumin and 1&1/2 tsp garam masala to the lentils. Everything else I left the same. The house smelled wonderful while cooking and the leftovers were great the next day - even my toddler enjoyed it. Don't skip the yogurt, since the yogurt's tang definitely pulls the flavors together. I'll definitely make this again.

14 users found this review helpful

MORE MEMBER REVIEWS