Indian Spiced Lentils with Spinach

My house is going through a kitchen remodel and we’ve been without a functional kitchen for awhile. My current kitchen consists of a hotplate, Instant pot, and a what I think may now a broken toaster oven. The instant pot has become increasingly helpful since it’s also a slow cooker, can saute things, and of course, is a pressure cooker. Jack Lalanne would have been in his element on this one.

Knowing that the instant pot is not something that all Yellowbirders have, I finally found a cookbook that shares recipes that can either be made in the Instant pot OR a slow cooker. I made this dish last week and it is delicious and super healthful.

5 cup chicken broth
3 cup lentils
3 large tomatoes, diced or 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes
1 cup finely chopped carrots
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 serrano chile peppers, seeded and finely chopped (wear gloves)
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp ground turmeric
1 14-oz can unsweetened coconut milk
5 oz baby spinach
Black pepper
Hot cooked rice
Orange wedges

Slow cooker version: In a 5 or 6 quart slow cooker, combine the first 10 ingredients (through turmeric). Cover and cook on low 8 hours or high for 4 hours. Then stir in coconut milk and spinach. Season to taste with black pepper and additional salt. Serve over rice with orange wedges.

Instant pot recipe: In a 6 quart pressure cooker, combine the first 10 ingredients (through turmeric). Lock lid in place. Set cooker on high pressure to cook 15 minutes. Let stand 15 minutes to release naturally then release remaining pressure. Carefully open the lid and stir in coconut milk and spinach. Season to taste with black pepper and additional salt. Serve over rice with orange wedges (we only had lemon juice, which worked well too).

Credit to Better homes and gardens cookbook: Fast or slow: Delicious meals for slow cookers, pressure cookers, or multi cookers.