This smoky lentil stew is one-pot comfort-food perfection

I love this recipe, which is hearty, one-pot comfort-food perfection. It’s simple but rich, with deep flavours and so much goodness. Apart from some initial chopping, it practically makes itself as it simmers away, so it’s perfect at the end of a long day.

The ingredients are mostly staples you’ll often already have in the fridge or cupboard. For the lentils, I like to go for the black beluga variety. I love that they completely hold their shape while still soaking up loads of flavour. I’m sure vegans will already be familiar with my dairy-free creme fraiche of choice, made by Oatly, but if you’re simply going for veggie you can use any regular creme fraiche you like.

Like most of my recipes, this makes really good leftovers and freezes well, too, so if you’re a prepper, then this one is for you. You can serve it with some fluffy quinoa or rice or just curl up with a bowl as is.

Indy Power is a food writer based in Dublin; littlegreenspoon.ie, @thelittlegreenspoon

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INDY POWER’S SMOKY LENTIL STEW

Ingredients
Serves 4
1 white onion
2 cloves garlic
2 medium carrots
2 medium potatoes
2 sticks celery
1 red pepper
30ml olive oil
1tsp smoked paprika
1tsp regular paprika
2tbsp tomato paste
200g black beluga lentils
1 ltr stock
Salt and freshly ground pepper
75g vegan creme fraiche
Small bunch chopped parsley, for serving

Method
1 Peel and finely dice the onion. Peel and mince the garlic. Peel the carrots and potatoes and chop them into cubes. Dice the celery and pepper.

2 Add the olive oil to a large pot on medium heat. Add the onions, celery, carrots, potatoes and peppers and cook for about five minutes, stirring often, until starting to soften.

3 Add the garlic, paprika and smoked paprika and cook for 1-2 minutes. Then add the tomato paste, stir well and cook for another minute.

4 Add the lentils and the stock and bring to the boil. Then turn the heat down and let it simmer for about 25-30 minutes, until the lentils are tender and the stew is nice and thick.

5 Season well with salt and pepper. Stir the creme fraiche into the pot or let everybody serve themselves a dollop. Serve with some parsley on top.