Well this recipe was a fluke… and oh boy, was it a great fluke!
Peta here. From memory, it was the day of (or day before?) a new magazine issue launch. We were down a recipe as a recipe didn’t get the tick of approval from the recipe testing team. It was crunch time. I had to find a replacement (and pronto).
I knew it had to be vegetarian and I knew it had to taste amazing. I got creating. A little bit of this and a little bit of that hoping for the best. I remember sending either a voice memo or a video to Bec once it was cooked and taste testing it live. Was an instant hit. I knew I nailed it.
I made a second batch just to be sure then we sent it to one of our awesome recipe testers. It passed with flying colours.
It has remained a popular vegetarian recipe over the years. It really is a must try.
Want to try some other delicious curry recipes?
- Veggie Balls with Curry Sauce
- Mini Coriander Chicken Curry Pies
- Quick Chickpea Cauliflower Curry
- Beef and Pumpkin Curry
- Malaysian Meat Curry Powder

Thermomix Indian Inspired Sweet Potato, Spinach and Lentil Stew
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 4-6, depending on accompaniments
Description
The flavours are subtle, the spice level can be tweaked to suit your tastes and it makes for a very filling vegetarian meal. To stretch this dish, simply serve with a side of steamed rice or cauliflower rice.
Recipe Tester Feedback: “This dish completely caught me by surprise. I really didn’t expect to enjoy it as much as I did because I’m not a lover of coconut, but in the end, it was such a beautifully well balanced and delicate mix of flavours that it totally won me over! Seconds please, chef!” – Claire
No: Gluten / Dairy / Nuts / Eggs
Ingredients
- onion – 1, large, peeled and quartered
- coconut oil – 25g
- paprika – 1/2 Tbsp, Hungarian, or hot paprika for a spicier stew
- garam masala – 1 tsp
- cumin – 1 tsp, ground
- dried coriander – 1 tsp, ground
- cloves – 1/8 tsp, ground
- curry powder – 1/8, more for a more spicy stew
- vegetable stock – 1/2 Tbsp, powder
- coconut milk – 400ml, good quality, tin
- water – 100g
- tomatoes – 100g, diced
- sweet potato – 350g, peeled and diced into 1x1cm pieces
- lentils – 2 x 400g tins, brown, rinsed and drained
- baby spinach – 40g, roughly chopped
Instructions
- Place onion (1) into bowl. Chop Speed 7 / 5 seconds. Scrape down sides.
- Add coconut oil (25g), paprika (1/2 Tbsp), garam masala (1 tsp), cumin (1 tsp), coriander (1 tsp), cloves (1/8 tsp) and curry powder (1/8 tsp) to bowl. Program 4 minutes / 100C / Speed 2.
- Add the vegetable stock powder (1/2 Tbsp), coconut milk (400ml tin), water (100g) and tomatoes (100g) to bowl.
- Place the sweet potato (350g) into the internal steaming basket and add lentils (2 x 400g tins) on top.
- Set internal steaming basket into place in the bowl, close the lid and set the steaming attachment lower dish on top to avoid splatters. Program 20 minutes / Steaming Temperature / Speed 2.
- Carefully remove internal steaming basket from bowl with spatula.
- Pour the lentils and sweet potato into bowl and stir gently to combine with the coconut sauce.
- Pour into serving bowls. Top with the spinach (40g), which can then be stirred through before eating.
Notes
- Can be frozen
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes