The One-Pot Chicken and Lentil Dish You Can Eat All Week Long
This creamy curried chicken and lentil dish is brimming with flavor, and it’s even better the next day. Make it on Sunday and eat it for lunches and dinners all week.
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We all need an easy, go-to stew for Sunday dinners – it makes for a warm, comforting meal at the end of the weekend, and the added bonus is that you’ll have plenty of leftovers to use through the week. This fragrant and creamy chicken and lentil stew takes only 40 minutes to prepare and is your perfect make-ahead meal to eat for lunches and dinners throughout the week.
Using mostly pantry staples – curry powder, dried lentils and chicken broth – it only uses one pot to minimize mess. While this recipe serves four, it can be easily scaled up and stored in individual freezer containers for longer storage in the freezer. It’s the perfect meal to pull out on busy nights when you haven’t had a chance to figure out dinner.
It also has big nutritional benefits thanks to the lentils. Dry green lentils have about 24 g of protein and 64% of your daily fiber requirement in a 1-cup serving. Thanks to their rich stores of fiber, lentils offer slow-burning energy that help regulate blood sugar and ward off insulin spikes.
We suggest topping it with a dollop of yogurt and a sprinkle of cilantro but you can customize it with any toppings you have on hand – try sour cream, sliced radishes or even caramelized onions to mix it up and make it your own.
One-Pot Chicken & Lentils
Ingredients
- 2 6-oz boneless, skinless chicken breasts, sliced into 1-oz pieces
- Pinch each sea salt and fresh ground black pepper (TRY: Simply Organic Ground Black Pepper)
- 2 tsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tsp curry powder (TRY: Simply Organic Curry Powder)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1½ cups dry green lentils, rinsed
- 1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
- 3 cups water
- 1 cup plain Greek yogurt
- ½ cup chopped fresh cilantro
Preparation
- Season chicken with salt and pepper. In a large saucepan or Dutch oven, heat oil on medium-high. Add chicken and cook, turning occasionally, for 7 to 8 minutes, or until lightly browned and just cooked through. Remove to a plate.
- To saucepan, add curry powder and garlic and cook, stirring, for about 1 minute, or until fragrant.
- Add lentils to saucepan and stir to coat. Stir in broth and water; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 15 minutes. Return chicken to pan along with any accumulated juices and continue to cook until lentils are tender and most liquid is absorbed, 10 to 15 minutes more.
- Divide evenly among serving bowls, season to taste with salt and pepper, and garnish each with yogurt and cilantro. (NOTE: If lentils are still not tender after cook time is complete, add ½ cup more water and continue to cook until softened.)
Thought this chicken and lentils recipe was easy? Find one-skillet supper recipes here.
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Nutrition Information
- Serving Size ¼ of recipe
- Calories 389
- Carbohydrate Content 45 g
- Cholesterol Content 49 mg
- Fat Content 5 g
- Fiber Content 11 g
- Protein Content 42 g
- Saturated Fat Content 1 g
- Sodium Content 139 mg
- Sugar Content 4 g
- Monounsaturated Fat Content 0 g
- Polyunsaturated Fat Content 0 g