Appearances aren’t everything, which is why I’m describing this one pot Moroccan quinoa, and showing the ‘before’ pictures to you, prior to sharing a photo of the finished product. It’s just not a beautiful looking recipe, okay? But I urge you to look past the color (which comes from the delicious Moroccan-inspired spice blend that I used) and give this dish a try, because it is phenomenal.
My one pot tandoori quinoa is a reader favorite, and with very good reason. It’s simple, easy, and healthy. I’d been wanting to make another spin on it for a while but I just couldn’t let myself post ANOTHER one pot recipe with chickpeas. Me, I still eat chickpeas most days of the week, but I’ve gotta share some variety here. When it comes to quick-cooking pulses that would be good candidates for integrating into a one pot meal, red lentils just can’t be beat, and I was delighted with the way they paired with these flavors.
This one pot Moroccan quinoa starts with sauteed onions and garlic, and finely chopped carrots and pepper that soften as the dish cooks. Next, I toasted a fragrant homemade spice mixture (you can also use store-bought ras el hanout as a delicious substitute) before adding the quinoa, lentils, and vegetable broth. After the lentils and quinoa are cooked, the dish is finished with a bright note of fresh citrus, and topped with chopped herbs and toasted almonds. It is seriously delectable!
If you’ve tried my one pot dishes before, you know just how easy and delicious they can be. Put this one pot Moroccan quinoa on your rotation next! (And if you’re serving it to guests, top it with plenty of herbs and almonds to, ahem, enhance its beauty.)
One Pot Moroccan Quinoa with Red Lentils
Ingredients
For the Moroccan spice blend (makes a little extra):
- 1/8 tsp fennel seeds
- 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
- 1/4 tsp whole cloves
- 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
- 1/2 tsp coriander seeds
- 1/2 tsp whole allspice berries
- 1 tsp sesame seeds
- 1/8 tsp ground black pepper
- 1/8 tsp ground ginger
- 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
For the one pot Moroccan quinoa:
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 2 carrots peeled and diced
- 5 to 6 small red potatoes scrubbed and diced
- 1/2 red onion diced
- 1 bell pepper seeded and diced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 tbsp Moroccan spice blend (see above) or ras el hanout)
- 1/3 cup un-cooked red lentils
- 1 cup un-cooked quinoa rinsed
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (reduce to 1/8 tsp. for less spicy)
- 3 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
- 3/4 tsp salt or to taste (use less if your broth is salty)
- 1/2 cup freshly-squeezed orange juice (about 1 orange)
- 1/4 cup freshly-squeezed lemon juice (about 1 lemon)
- 1/4 cup loosely-packed chopped fresh cilantro (or mint, or a combination)
- 1/4 cup chopped toasted almonds
Instructions
To make the Moroccan spice blend:
- Toast all of the whole spices (fennel seeds through allspice berries) over medium heat in a dry skillet, stirring frequently, until fragrant.
- Grind them in a spice grinder or with a mortar and pestle. Mix in the rest of the spices and set aside.
To make the one pot Moroccan quinoa:
- In a large skillet or wide saucepan, warm olive oil over medium heat. Add the carrot and potato and stir. Cook for 5 minutes, or until starting to soften.
- Add the onion and bell pepper, along with another splash of oil if needed and a pinch of salt. Cook for 2-3 minutes, or until softened. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds more.
- Add the spice blend, stir, and cook for 1 minute, or until the spices are fragrant.
- Add the red lentils, quinoa, cayenne pepper vegetable broth and salt, and stir. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cover.
- Cook, stirring occasionally, until the quinoa, lentils, and vegetables are cooked through, about 20 minutes. If the mixture starts to dry out before it's done, add more vegetable broth. If there is excess liquid, continue cooking with the cover removed.
- Stir in the orange and lemon juice, and cook for another minute or two uncovered until the juice is incorporated. Taste for salt, heat, and acid, and adjust as desired.
- Serve hot. Fold in chopped herbs and toasted almonds just before serving. After cooling to room temperature, leftovers can be refrigerated for several days.
Nutrition
Enjoy this one pot recipe? Try some of my other one pan meals:
One pot spaghetti alla puttanesca
I'm Shannon, the writer and photographer of Yup, it's Vegan! I'm a morning person based in Baltimore, USA. My mission is to create healthy plant-based recipes that anyone would enjoy, using seasonal produce with inspiration from global flavors.
eve says
hi, i’m having trouble finding red lentils as opposed to split red lentils. i bought “red lentils” for another recipe, and they turned to mush in less than 10 minutes, (the recipe said to simmer for 20). Can you give a suggestion for red lentils that will work in this recipe, (like a brand, or what to look for on the package), or should they turn to “mush”?
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
Yes, great question 🙂 they do get soft in this recipe, it’s by design. THe ones you already have should work. That generally happens with red lentils most of the time unless they’re cooked alongside tomatoes which makes them a little crunchy.
arj says
I would love to try many of your one-pot recipes, but I am allergic to quinoa. Do you think I can sub in couscous? Would regular or larger Israeli be a better sub for quinoa in these recipes? I realize I could sub in cooked rice after, but want to replicate the all-in-one-pot ease of your recipes.
Thank you.
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
I’m not super familiar with couscous but I think it probably wouldn’t require as much liquid as the quinoa does. You might have to do a little bit of kitchen wizardy for this. You can see some of my other one pot options here: https://yupitsvegan.com/30-vegan-one-pot-meals/
For instance, I came up with my one pot rice-based dishes by taking an existing one pot quinoa recipe and adjusting it for the relative amount of liquid that rice absorbs as opposed to quinoa.
You can also err on the side of using less liquid and then add more to thin it out if needed during the cooking process.
Camille says
This is delicious! I’ve made it a handful of times and use one sweet potato and use only about 2 cups of broth. It always hits the spot! Thank you for this recipe!
Andrea Werny says
This dish tastes phenomenal! I omitted some spices and the fresh herbs, and it had a wonderful citrus, spicy and earthy taste. Very satisfying and feels good to eat such a healthy meal. Highly recommend!
Lisa says
Made this for dinner tonight and it was so good!! Thank you for sharing this yummy recipe!
Andrea Wright says
This was so good! I did have to improvise a bit with what I had on hand, but I happened to have a packet of Ras-el-hanout I had picked up from a tea and spice shop. I doubled the carrots and added some diced beets because I didn’t have any potatoes or peppers. The beets made everything red but it tasted so wonderful! We loved the bright citrus finish and the fresh mint especially. We agreed it would be equally good as a cold grain salad in the summer!
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
Awesome, Andrea, thank you for sharing! I love the idea of adding beets to this. I’ll have to try that next time 🙂
Laura says
Do you think this would freeze ok?
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
Hi Laura, I haven’t tried freezing it but it seems like it would. I would leave out the almonds, and fresh herbs, and add those after thawing. You might need to add a little vegetable broth to loosen it up again. let me know the results if you try!
Rachel says
This was a very delicious and forgiving recipe – I just used the veggies (celery and carrot) and herbs (mint and flowering chives) I had on hand and it blew me away. Looking forward to a couple days of leftover lunches! Perfect recipe for spring, thanks!