Lentils With Dumplings (Printable)
Tender lentils in a rich vegetable stew with light, fluffy dumplings on top
# What You’ll Need:
→ Lentil Stew
01 - 1 cup dried brown or green lentils, rinsed
02 - 1 medium onion, diced
03 - 2 carrots, sliced
04 - 2 celery stalks, sliced
05 - 3 cloves garlic, minced
06 - 1 can (14 oz) diced tomatoes
07 - 4 cups vegetable broth
08 - 1 bay leaf
09 - 1 tsp dried thyme
10 - 1 tsp smoked paprika
11 - 2 tbsp olive oil
12 - Salt and pepper, to taste
13 - 2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley (optional)
→ Dumplings
14 - 1 cup all-purpose flour
15 - 1 ½ tsp baking powder
16 - ½ tsp salt
17 - 2 tbsp unsalted butter, cold and diced
18 - ½ cup milk
# How To Make:
01 - Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the diced onion, sliced carrots, sliced celery, and minced garlic. Sauté until the vegetables are softened, about 5 minutes.
02 - Stir in the rinsed lentils, diced tomatoes with their juice, vegetable broth, bay leaf, dried thyme, smoked paprika, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat, cover, and simmer for 25–30 minutes until the lentils are tender. Remove and discard the bay leaf.
03 - While the stew simmers, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt in a mixing bowl. Add the cold diced butter and rub it in with your fingertips until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in the milk until just combined; be careful not to overmix.
04 - Increase the heat under the pot so the stew reaches a lively simmer. Drop spoonfuls of dumpling dough (about 1 tbsp each) onto the surface of the stew, yielding 8–10 dumplings. Cover the pot tightly and cook for 15 minutes without lifting the lid, until the dumplings are puffed and cooked through.
05 - Taste the stew and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper as needed. Sprinkle with chopped fresh parsley before serving, if desired.
# Expert Advice:
01 -
- The dumplings steam right on top of the stew, so you get a complete meal from a single pot with zero fuss.
- Smoked paprika gives the lentils a subtle depth that makes people ask what your secret is.
- It costs almost nothing to make and reheats beautifully the next day for lunch.
02 -
- Do not lift the lid while the dumplings are steaming, no matter how tempted you are to check on them, because even a quick peek can deflate them and leave you with dense little disks instead of light, fluffy pillows.
- Make sure the stew is at a visible simmer before you add the dumpling dough, since a too-calm surface will not generate enough steam to cook them through.
03 -
- Rinse the lentils under cold water and sort through them quickly for any small stones, because finding a pebble in your stew is a sure way to ruin an otherwise lovely evening.
- The single biggest secret to perfect dumplings is cold butter and a light hand, so handle the dough as little as possible and think of it more like coaxing than mixing.