Instant Pot Mujadara – a nourishing vegan meal of lentils and rice, infused with fragrant Moroccan spices, served with caramelized shallots and seasonal veggies. This can also be made on the stovetop! See Recipe notes!
Few desires, happy life. ~Moroccan Proverb
While in Morocco last winter, we hired a guide to take us high up into the Atlas Mountains to visit the beautiful old Berber villages. Our guide, Rachid was not eating meat during this time and would often stop at roadside cafes for a quick bowl of Mujadara- a humble, nourishing meal of lentils and rice, seasoned with flavorful Moroccan Spices. He described it as Moroccan comfort food – filling, nourishing and very affordable.
This meal was very similar to what my Egyptian father used to make, but he called it “Kushari”. He would tell me stories of growing up in his tiny village, and how my grandmother, a Copt (old Christian religion) would make this lentil -rice dish for them during their “Holy Great Fast” which lasted almost two months. Years later, after moving to America, my dad would often make his version of lentils and rice, because it reminded him of his mom, and was his comfort food and very affordable when times were lean.
Now that I think about it, this is actually very similar to Khichari, the healing Indian Ayurvedic Bowl I posted about a few years back. It seems many regions of the world have very similar versions of this!
The Mujadara we experienced in Morocco was different from my father’s – it was flavored with fragrant Moroccan spices and this recipe here is inspired by the Moroccan version.
This Mujadara recipe can be made quickly and easily in an Instant Pot. I like to make a batch and have it in the fridge for midweek lunches. I thought my husband Brian would shun the Mujadara, but to my surprise, he happily gobbled it up and wanted seconds – the true test!
The basic recipe is easy and quick, and feel free to add any seasonal veggies you like. Tomatoes are delicious in summer, but roasted root veggies or winter squash would be nice in winter.
The shallots are a must – so don’t leave them off.
I added pine nuts but feel free to leave them off or sub other toasted nuts or seeds. A little crunchy texture is nice.
Then simply drizzle with olive oil, and add a squeeze of lemon. You can also serve this with yogurt or tahini sauce.
This can be made ahead and reheated for easy healthy midweek meals. A healthy delicious base. To keep this vegan, top with tahini sauce instead of yogurt. Or add avocado!
During the colder months, add seasonal roasted veggies, (cauliflower, carrots, parsnips, butternut) instead of tomatoes. You can also add shredded raw veggies like carrots, beets or cabbage.
So a warm base of lentils and rice, topped with cool, crunchy raw veggies. Add tahini sauce or tzatziki, plain yogurt or zhoug yogurt! Yes I know these are not “Moroccan sauces”, but they taste good here.
An energizing healthy bowl!
The fresh herbs and olive oil really elevate the Mujadara, so don’t skip this step.
Moroccan Mujadara! A quick and easy vegan meal that can be made in an Instant Pot. You will love this!
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Instant Pot Mujadara
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 25
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 5
- Category: Main, vegetarian, vegan, gluten free, instant pot,
- Method: instant pot
- Cuisine: middle eastern
Description
Instant Pot Mujadara – a comforting, healthy vegetarian meal of lentils and rice, with fragrant Moroccan spices, served with caramelized shallots, fresh veggies, pine nuts and optional yogurt. Gluten-free and Vegan adaptable. To make this on the stove top…see recipe notes.
Ingredients
- 1 cup brown lentils (do not split lentils) see notes
- 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2–3 fat shallots, thinly sliced ( or 1 red onion)
- 4 cloves garlic, rough chopped
- 2 teaspoons cumin
- 1 teaspoons coriander
- 1 teaspoon allspice
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon turmeric, optional
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon dried mint or parsley ( or use a tablespoon of fresh)
- lemon zest from one small lemon
- 3 cups water (updated from 3 1/2 cups- see notes if using white rice)
- 1 cup brown basmati rice (rinsed and drained- see notes for white basmati rice)
Garnishes: caramelized shallot or onion, diced tomato, simple roasted veggies, diced avocado, sprouts or greens, sliced cucumber, pine nuts, a drizzle of olive oil, yogurt, vegan yogurt, zhoug yogurt (amazing), lemon wedges, fresh parsley, aleppo chili flakes. (In winter, serve with roasted root veggies, shredded kale, carrots, or cabbage or beets!
Instructions
- Place lentils in a bowl and cover with hot tap water (or boiling water), letting them soak until time to add to the instant pot.
- Set Instant Pot to Saute function. Saute shallots in the oil, 4-5 minutes, stirring constantly, until tender and fragrant and slightly caramelized. Remove half, saving for the topping. Add the garlic and saute until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes. Add all the spices, salt, lemon zest and water. Stir. Drain the lentils and add them along with the rinsed rice to the instant pot. Give a good stir.
- Cover the instant pot and set to High pressure for 11 minutes. Let naturally release for at least 10 minutes.
- In the meantime, prep any garnishes you like.
- To serve, gently fluff the Mujadara with a fork (do not over mix, or it will get mushy ). Divide among bowls, drizzle with olive oil, add tomatoes, avocado, caramelized shallots, sprouts, a spoonful of yogurt or zhoug yogurt, or tahini sauce – and fresh parsley or mint.
- Feel free to serve with other seasonal veggies ( roasted root veggies, shredded cabbage or carrots, etc).
Notes
LENTILS & RICE: If you use different lentils (like small ones) or different rice (like white basmati) you will have to adjust the liquid down a bit. Most Lentils take 9 minutes (unless they’re very small) to cook in the Instant Pot. White Basmati Rice takes 5 minutes in the pressure cooker. That is why we use brown basmati rice here, because they take roughly the same amount to time to cook.
WHITE RICE If using white basmati rice, shorten the cooking time to 9 minutes and reduce water to 2.5 cups. The rice will still get slightly mushy, but not horribly.
This can be made ahead and refrigerated and used as a healthy base for mid-week lunches.
In fall, winter you could serve with roasted winter squash or root veggies.
STOVE TOP: To make this on the stovetop, and if using large brown lentils, par-cook them in boiling water for 15 minutes. While the lentils are boiling, heat oil in a dutch oven and cook the shallots, stirring often until golden and caramelized. Remove half and continue with the recipe. Drain the lentils and add it along with rice, spices, salt, water to the pot. Bring to a simmer, cover tightly and cook on low heat for 20 minutes. Check to see if lentils and rice are tender. If not, continue to cook a few more minutes, adding more water if necessary. If using small black or green lentils, check cooking directions for cooking time. Adjust par cooking time according to the size of a lentil. For example, tiny black beluga lentils take 20 minutes to cook, so you would not need to par-cook. Please leave your adjustments below to help other users, thanks!
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Delicious!! Mine was a bit too watery but it still tasted amazing! I’ll just have to adjust accordingly for next time 😉 I made a big pot and will use for lunch as suggested.
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Thanks so much- Glad you enjoyed!
Such a warm depth of flavour from the spices, then comforting lentils and brown rice all topped off with creamy avocado, sweet tomatoes and vibrant fresh mint – loved it.
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Thanks so much Kelly! Glad you enjoyed!
How many servings does this make?
4-6
Your recipes never fail to impress!! I have never heard of Mujadara before. Everything on your blog looks and sounds so good and it is!!!! I’m glad I tried this dish; it was delicious!! I made this on the stove top and I used white basmati rice so I adjusted the water for the recipe down to 2 cups and made extra shallots (learned from the comments from your readers). Although, I’ve never had Mujadara before, I think it came out perfect! I topped it with shaved carrots, diced avocado and pine nuts. I made your Tahini Sauce and Zhoug to go with it and it really does “elevate” the dish. We love love love it!! I can’t thank you enough for all your deliciousness!!
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Sounds perfect!
IF I had an insta pot I would certainly add this to my repertoire 😀 your recipes are my new favorites
thanks! Noted!
Hi! I was wondering if I could subsitute the rice with regular brown rice, and what type of lentils are you using?
Hi Remmy, it would change the cooking time ( longer) and amount of liquid (More?). Feel free to play with it and let me know. 🙂
Can we use a different type of rice instead of the rice it calls? And also what type of lentals do you use?
Yes, but you’ll need to adjust cooking liquid ( read package instructions for liquid) and timing (google the type of rice for instant pot time). 🙂
Omg- this was SO GOOD!!! I’m eating it right now and it’s amazing. Thanks for this easy and yummy recipe. I sautéd with water instead of oil to make it oil free!!!
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Oh perfect Ruthie!
This was great! Interested in if it would be possible to use garam masala to replace some of spices (just to further simplify things)? Thanks!
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It would be different, but I think would taste good!? Give it a try!
This was great! Interested in if it would be possible to use garam masala to replace some of spices (just to further simplify things)? Thanks!
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I wasn’t thinking much of this meal but gave it a shot. I like it a lot. It’s my staple dish now. Cheers 😉
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I wasn’t thinking much of this meal but gave it a shot. I like it a lot. It’s my staple dish now. Cheers 😉
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Hi Sylvia: The flavor is very good, but I had some difficulty matching the stovetop cooking time for white rice and lentils (lentils cook much longer in salted water). I’ll try with brown rice and lentils, but can you clarify if they need to be presoaked?
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I think using brown rice here would make the timing better. Do you have access to tiny black lentils? This may help too! Soaking lentil will help quicken cooking time as well.
Hi Sylvia: the flavor is truly amazing, but can you help clarify the stovetop cooking time and need to soak, since rice and lentils (esp. if cooked in salted water) are hard to match? I tried white rice and small black lentils together, but rice cooked fast in 20 minutes, while the lentils needed at least twice as long. I’ll try use brown rice with these lentils next time, but would I then need to presoak either/both, or can they just cook together for about an hour ?
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My husband and I enjoyed eating authentic Lebanese cuisine at a local restaurant. When it closed its doors, I tried several different restaurants in search of mujadara similar to hers but nothing came close. I have been craving it ever since. I was so excited to find your blog and immediately tried your recipe. I couldn’t find any brown basmati rice but was able to get white basmati rice. I adjusted the water to two cups and reduced the time to 11 minutes and WOW was it amazing!!!! Thank you so much for sharing this recipe and I will definitely be adding this to my rotation.
Thanks Diane! What kind of lentils did you use and were they dried lentils? Thanks very helpful!
I used brown dried lentils since that’s all I could find at the store.
Thanks so much!
Does spicing remain the same for white or brown rice (or for brown or smaller lentils)? Also, is 1 tsp of allspice correct? It’s a powerful spice. Thank you so much.
Feel free to cut it back if you like. Yes, keep spicing the same, but timing will change.
Thank you!
One thing I forgot to mention
I use 2 cup water and 1/2 cup vegetables broth
★★★★★
Wow unbelievable.
I measured 150 grams each and used white Basmati rice . In IP 9 minutes and keep warm 15 minutes.
It was perfect, not mushy at all.
One thing different I did was I roasted lentils in pan on stove until splitter and then soak
Mushy. I wish I had read the comments first! It was also surprisingly bland despite all the spices. I followed the recipe to a T, so not sure what went wrong. I think it needs to be updated to call for less water.
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Hey Ross- I added some notes to the recipe and updated for less water. Can you tell me if you used brown rice ( or white) and brown lentils ( or another kind) ?
Love the combination of the lentils and rice with the veggies! We love all of these separately. So, combining them together with all the flavorful spices is delightful. We also love the lentil recipe by itself (dal in South Asia).
★★★★★
SO good! We’ve made this a few times now and it’s become (another) favourite from your website. Thank you so very much. Again.
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Hi,
I cooked mine in a 3 Q. and like some others stated, it was mushy. I used white Basmati, so decreased the water as per recipe. What would you recommend for water next time? and would you allow for natural release of pressure?
Thanks,
BTW, Your suggestion on the hot sauce was right on, it ‘s been a great condiment.
Hi, shoot! Maybe manual release and few minutes less? How much rice and liquid did you use?
1 c. rice and 31/4 water since I was using white basmati…
also cooked for 12 min.
but it did naturally release 1/2 way as I was out of the room
3 1/4 cups water is way too much?
Made this to your specs on stovetop, and it was delicious, thank you! My Moroccan grandma made a slightly sweeter version of this and I’ve missed it so much; this brought it all back. Main difference with your take is that she would boil the lentils in a weak broth + all of the dry spices + garlic for a few minutes before adding the rice. Her ‘secret mix’ for the spices was more or less yours, but she’d crush fresh mintleaves+a fresh chili+lemon zest+fresh ginger together in a pestle with half a tablespoon of course darkbrown sugar, add a bit of hot water and then pour everything in with the boiling lentils and the rest of the spices. She’d also always throw in raisins and use much (much!) more olive oil than you. Yours tastes lighter, hers more comforting 😉 I think of your version as a nice spring variation of this now, so thank you again! We’d usually eat it with several vegetable side dishes (carrot salad, raw courgette, large white beans), preserved lemon, and olives.
Thanks for this Yasmine- hers sounds so good!
Me and my husband started plant based eating January 1 2020. His struggle has been this aversion to beans. When I told him that I was making a Middle Eastern lentil dish for dinner he was not happy. I told him he needed to keep an open mind and try it before judging. He was hooked from the first bite and so was I. Bravo. New favorite recipe. Thanks for this.
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Awwww, warms my heart! Thanks for sharing and maybe he’ll venture out and try other beans!
This recipe looks amazing! This may be a stupid question, but do you cook the rice before putting it in the instant pot?
No! The instant pot will cook it. 🙂
Thanks for the instant pot version of mujadara!! So easy and so tasty!!
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Thanks Olga!
I am Lebanese, and while this recipe has some significant differences from my family recipe (much more rice, different spices, shallot instead of yellow onion etc.), I look forward to trying it and experiencing the different flavor profile! Unfortunately, when I printed this recipe out, the text bar for subscribing to your blog completely obliterated a couple of essential steps of the recipe. Not sure if that’s something you can fix on your end.
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Ok Hopefully fixed now- please let me know.
Glad I read the comments before I made this! I use a 6-qt. Instant Pot and to avoid the mushiness, I cut the water down by a cup — so, used only 2.5 cups water — and kept the cooking and natural release times the same. It’s still a bit too mushy for my liking, but otherwise it tastes delicious. Cooks, I would really recommend using only 2.5 cups water!
Great to hear, thanks for sharing your adaptation!
The flavours in this dish are fantastic, restaurant quality! I followed the recipe to the letter though and it came out mushy, although this did not prevent us from devouring it! Will absolutely make it again but with a bit less water!
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Not sure if the water consistency is correct. Mine came out completely mushy and inedible. The flavor was good but the consistency was not good at all. Any thoughts?
What size instant pot did you use?
The exact same thing happened to me! The recipe came out too mushy although the flavor was so good, we ate it anyway. Are used an instant pot Duo that holds 6 quarts.
Ok good to know- will have to retest this one.
Same thing happened to me with a 8qt instant pot. Way too much water 😢
Sorry about that. I will note the recipe- It may be the type of rice too.