Instant Pot mujadara (or mujaddara) is the best way to enjoy a classic Middle Eastern lentil rice pilaf. It’s a delicious, hearty vegan dish with spiced rice and lentils. This version uses brown rice and lentils for ultimate nutritional impact.
Using an instant pot makes easy work of cooking lentils and brown rice, two things that can take a long time and be easy to get wrong. The whole dish comes together in a flavorsome and perfectly textured bowl of deliciousness.
Jump to:
- What is mujadara?
- Why should I make this Instant Pot mujaddara?
- Mujaddara ingredients and substitutions:
- Steps in making Instant Pot Mujadara:
- What to serve with brown rice and lentils:
- How to make mujadara without an Instant Pot:
- How to store leftover mujaddara:
- Recipe tips and tricks:
- Mujadara FAQs:
- Instant Pot Mujadara
What is mujadara?
Mujadara is a delicious classic dish in Middle Eastern cuisine. It consists of rice and lentils that are heavily spiced with cumin, and served with plenty of caramelized onions. Traditionally, this is considered a peasant dish because it’s made with budget grains and without any meat, but it definitely tastes like a meal for a King! Mujaddara is full of flavor and texture and is utterly comforting.
Why should I make this Instant Pot mujaddara?
- Mujaddara is such a healthy, fuss free meal. It’s vegan, and works great when you feel like going meat free, or need a meal to make with just pantry ingredients.
- Mujadara is rich in complementary proteins. This is a fancy way of saying it’s a great way for vegetarians to get the protein they need, because the rice and lentils compliment each other to give you essential amino acids that you’d be missing if you just consumed one without the other.
- It requires just a handful of ingredients, most of which are staple ingredients, and a few simple steps to follow.
- This is a really kid friendly recipe, and it’s also great for meal prep. It tastes great hot, at room temperature, even cold. Leftovers taste great too.
- Mujadara instant pot is super easy, with the rice and lentils cooking at the same time. However, if you don’t have an instant pot, you can make this on the stove top with great results.
Mujaddara ingredients and substitutions:
Rice: I used brown basmati rice. Brown rice is perfect in this, the nuttiness of the brown rice works so well with the lentils.
You can use white basmati rice instead, just reduce the cooking time to 11 minutes and the water to 2.5 cups.
Lentils: Brown lentils, you can also use green lentils but avoid the orange ones which will turn into mush- if you have orange lentils, you may want to check out this mujadara recipe.
Onions: Probably my favorite part of mujaddara. This is why I use three onions when a lot of recipes will just call for one. My preferred onions to caramelize are yellow onions, but white or red will also work.
The idea is to deeply caramelize the onions until golden brown and sweet. Half of the caramelized onions are mixed into the mujaddara and the rest are reserved for topping.
Garlic: Another thing I can’t cook without. The recipe calls for minced garlic as well as whole cloves. If you add peeled whole garlic cloves t the pot before cooking, they soften and became a little sweet and mushy, the perfect surprise in a mouthful of rice. My husband and I hunt down these garlic cloves like gold!
Spices and Seasoning: The star of the spices is definitely the cumin. Not only does the flavor wonderfully enhance the lentils, but it’s said cumin helps with digestion, so in Middle Eastern cuisine its commonly added to pulses and beans and things that are harder to digest.
Lots of cumin is added to this, don’t be scared by the amount, it’ll come out wonderfully. We also add a little seven spices (or mixed spices or all spice), cinnamon, and salt and pepper.
Steps in making Instant Pot Mujadara:
- Prepare all your ingredients. Thinly slice the onions, mince the garlic cloves. Soak the brown rice for 20-30 minutes, then drain and rinse until clear. At the same time, soak the lentils in hot water until it comes time to use them in the recipe.
- Sauté the onions and garlic: With your instant pot set to sauté, add the olive oil. Once hot, add the onions and a pinch of salt. Keep cooking, stirring frequently, until the onion turn a deep golden brown and soften. This will probably take around at least 8-10 minutes.
- After the onions have caramelized, set aside half of them onto a paper towel lined plate (to soak up some of the extra oil). To the onions still in the instant pot, add the minced garlic and cook for another one to two minutes until fragrant.
- Add the spices: Add the spices, stir, and cook for 30 seconds or so, then add the drained lentils, drained rice and the water. Stir to combine, then set instant pot to High pressure for 11 minutes (make sure the valve is set to seal not vent).
- Once the cooking time is finish, let the pressure naturally release for 10-15 minutes, then vent any remaining pressure and open the lid.
- Fluff gently with a fork, and serve warm, topping with the additonal caramelized onions.
What to serve with brown rice and lentils:
Mujaddara is best served with yogurt, either plain or my preference, with some cucumbers and garlic in it in the form of jajik (the classic pairing)
I like to serve it with both yogurt AND a simple green salad. There’s nothing like a bite that has all three components in it. Delicious!
It has such a hearty flavor, that pairing it with something like olives or pickles gives such a great acidity and tang to the dish.
How to make mujadara without an Instant Pot:
You can definitely make this in a regular saucepan! What you need to do is:
Boil the lentils in enough water to cover them for 15-20 minutes, until tender but not mushy. Drain the lentils and set aside.
While the lentils are boiling, caramelize the onions in another saucepan. Remove half and set aside, then to the caramelized onions still in the pan, add the crushed garlic for 1-2 min, then add the lentils, rice, water and all the spices, along with the whole garlic cloves. The water should cover the ingredients by an inch or so.
Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer and simmer tightly covered 20 minutes, until water is absorbed and rice and lentils are cooked through.
How to store leftover mujaddara:
Leftover mujaddara can be stored covered tightly for 4-5 days in the fridge, and be frozen for up to three months.
Leftovers taste great, both hot (my preference) or cold (my husbands).
Recipe tips and tricks:
- Go through the lentils thoroughly while rinsing them and pick out any debris or small stones. Rinse the rice well too to get rid of excess starch.
- Soak the lentils in hot water right before starting with the recipe, that way they start to cook through and can continue cooking in the instant pot with the rice so they finish simultaneously.
- Caramelize the onions to a really deep golden brown color to really get that delicious sweet flavor.
Mujadara FAQs:
You can! Make sure that the amount of ingredients in the Instant Pot doesn’t exceed the maximum fill line.
Yes, see the section above titled “How to make mujadara without an Instant Pot”
Make sure you rinse the lentils and rice well before adding. Also, be generous with the amount of olive oil you add to caramelize the onions with.
Yes you can. Reduce the water to 2.5 cups.
For more delicious Middle Eastern Lentil Recipes:
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Instant Pot Mujadara
Equipment
- Instant Pot
Ingredients
- 1 cup brown/green lentils
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 3 onions, sliced thinly
- 3 garlic cloves, minced or crushed
- 1 tablespoon cumin powder
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon seven spices or all spice
- 1 teaspoon salt, plus an extra pinch for sprinkling on onions
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 3 cups water
- 1 cup brown basmati riced, soaked and drained
- 8-10 whole garlic cloves optional but they cook into these sweet mushy pockets that are delicious!
Instructions
- Place the lentils in a bowl, and cover with hot water. Allow the lentils to soak until it's time to use them in the recipe.
- Set Instant Pot to sauté. Add the olive oil, then the sliced onions. Season with a sprinkle of salt, and cook for a good 8-10 minutes until caramelized and deep golden brown.
- Remove half of the onions to a small plate to reserve for topping. Add the minced garlic and sauté for a minute or so until fragrant. Add the cumin powder, cinnamon powder, seven spices, salt and pepper, plus the water.
- Drain the lentils, and add them to the instant pot along with the drained rice. Add the whole garlic cloves scattered into the mixture. Stir.
- Set instant pot to normal pressure on high for 11 minutes. Make sure the valve sealed. Once the cooking time is over, naturally release the pressure for 10-15 minutes, then vent any remaining pressure before opening.
- Gently fluff the mujaddara with a fork, being very careful because it's soft and might get too mushy if overmixed. Serve garnished with the caramelized onion you set aside, preferably with yogurt or a side salad.
Liza says
I love that you can make this in the instant pot and time the ingredients perfectly! Thanks for a very delicious recipe and great directions.
Farah Abumaizar says
It’s my pleasure Liza! Hope you enjoy it!
Lisa says
This is a delicious dish and I can’t believe how quick it cooks in! I will be making it for my vegetarian daughter.
Farah Abumaizar says
So glad to hear that Lisa!
Beth says
I absolutely love this recipe. It’s easy, it’s healthy, and it’s delicious. You can’t beat that combo!
Farah Abumaizar says
Thanks so much Beth, definitely one of our favorites!
Esther says
I actually ended up cooking it for 6 min and it was fabulous!
Thanks!
Farah Abumaizar says
Oh good to hear it! I’ll put that as a note thanks Esther so glad you enjoyed!
Esther Hausman says
You said to reduce the time for the white rice but then said 11 min which is the same as the brown. Can you please clarify.
Thanks!
Farah Abumaizar says
So sorry! I’ll fix that , reduce time to 9 minutes and water to 2.5 cups