Not too sweet and not too spicy, this Moroccan Beef Stew with Lentils dish knocks it out of the park! Comfort food with a twist [gluten free].
My cooking schedule usually looks something like this: a new dish everyday. I’ve always enjoyed experimenting with new food combinations in the kitchen but this creative side of me has been amped up since I started blogging. My family will never get bored of eating the same thing. In fact, it’s hard for my husband to get me to make his favourite meals since I’m always trying new things!
I’d say my success rate is about 90%. My creations are pretty awesome. My husband jokes that he doesn’t need to compliment my cooking since I do it all the time…
But I do have some flops. Like the Cheesy Chickpea Roasted Red Pepper Pasta I made the other day. Sigh. It sounded so good in theory. But now that I typed that all out I’m like “what was I thinking?!”
This dish, however, is stellar! I enjoyed it so much I almost feel like I want to make it again this weekend! Almost… then I remember all the other new dishes I want to create…..
Why this Moroccan Beef Stew with Lentils is a smart choice
Something magical happens when a plant source of iron is paired with meat, poultry, or fish: more iron is absorbed! That’s one reason I love to combine pulses (chickpeas, beans, lentils) with some meat.
This meal also boasts two other plant sources of iron: raisins and dried apricots. One serving (1/6 of the recipe) has 6.5 mg of iron! The recommended daily amount for adult males is 8 mg and for females it’s 18 mg.
This meal also contains a modest amount of Vitamin C (25 mg/serving), which is known to increase iron absorption from meals.
Meal Planning Hacks
I love making this recipe (and so many others!) in my Instant Pot. It’s such a great tool for cooking freezer meals and making meal prep easier. Meal prep and meal planning go hand in hand. If you feel like you’re constantly overwhelmed with the “what’s for dinner, mom?” question, then I’d love for you to check out my Meal Planning Hacks E-Book! I’ll give you 10 amazing ways to make meal planning easier so that it works for you! Sign up here:
Watch how to make Moroccan Meat Stew with Lentils
Thanks to the Instant Pot, look how easy it is to make this healthy but comforting recipe!
If you give this recipe a go, let me know! Leave a comment, rate it, or snap a photo and tag it with #smartnutritionrecipes on Instagram! I’d love to see your creations! Knowing someone has enjoyed one of my recipes always makes my day brighter.
Moroccan Beef and Lentils
Ingredients
- 1 lb lean ground beef
- 1 large onion diced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 2 carrots grated
- 1 tsp ground coriander seed the spice
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- ½ tsp ginger
- ½ tsp turmeric
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp pepper
- 2 cups beef broth
- 1 28 oz can diced tomatoes
- 1 cup dried split red lentils
- 2 tsp honey
- 3/4 cup raisins
- 3/4 cup dried apricots cut into quarters
Instructions
Stove Top Instructions
- In a large pot, saute the ground beef, onion, and garlic over medium heat until the ground beef is cooked through.
- Add the carrots, spices, salt, and pepper. Cook 1 more minute.
- Then add the broth, tomatoes, lentils, and honey. Turn the heat down to low. Simmer until the lentils are cooked.
- Add the raisins and apricots.
- Serve over brown rice with a side dish of green beans.
Instant Pot Instructions
- Saute the ground beef, onion, garlic, spices, salt and pepper over medium heat until the ground beef is cooked through.
- Then add the carrots, broth, tomatoes, lentils, and honey. Stir to mix.
- Select Manual and choose 5 minutes.
- Use your release method of choice.
- Add the raisins and apricots and stir.
- Serve over brown rice with a side dish of green beans.
Notes
- To make the meal vegetarian, omit the ground beef and add an additional cup of lentils and 2 cups of broth. Saute onions in 2 tbsp vegetable oil. Substitute vegetarian broth for the beef broth.
- To make the meal vegan, also substitute the honey for 1 tablespoon of brown sugar.
Nutrition
I loved this recipe as it gave me the opportunity to adapt it to diabetic needs. Instead of the honey and dried fruit, I added a quarter tsp of stevia and a cinnamon stick (as well as the ground cinnamon). I had a side of steamed green beans with lemon pepper and also buckwheat pilaf with mushrooms and onions. It was great!!
Hello, I’ve made this recipe before but this is first time making your version.
It is so good I could eat just this for the rest of my life!
I’m using a combo of Lean and regular ground beef, should I pour off the excess grease from the pan before adding the rest of the ingredients?
Thank you,
Jan
It’s totally up to you! The beef fat will add more flavour to the recipe.
One my favorite recipes my family enjoys regularly- even my picky toddlers!
Would love to see more dishes like this one
Happy to hear your family enjoys it so much!
This recipe (at least with these measurements) is extremely bland and has nothing like the flavours of Morocco.
There was no zing, tang or spice coming through at all. I’d probably add twice as much honey and it needs something else.
This dish needs a lot of rescuing.
No way! My family loves it as it is!
Everyone has different tastes though 🙂
This recipe was absolutely delicious! I doubled the onions and garlic (you simply cannot have too much garlic in my opinion) as well as also adding Garam Masala and substituting sun dried tomatoes and craisins for the dried fruit at the end. Turned out super flavorful!
Thanks for sharing your adaptions! So glad you enjoyed the recipe!
Healthy and delicious! The best combo
Next time I will try adding a bit of chilli flakes for a little extra kick.
Yes, love that combo! Thanks for the feedback!
I made this with meatless grounds and it was delicious! Thanks for the recipe.
So glad you liked it!
AMAZING! I love the combination of spices and sweetness. Nice that she added the side suggestion too. My kids LOVE it!
Wonderful! Always a bonus when the kids like a new dish! Thank you for the review!
What would happen if you added the raisins and apricots during the cooking process?
They would puff up quite a bit and get soggy, not maintaining their texture or flavour as much. Where I live, dried apricots are kinda pricey, so I like to taste them and really enjoy the flavour burst in this dish!
Loved this dish! Thanks for all the great recipe ideas and helpful nutrition info.!
So glad you like it!
Can you cut this recipe in half using the Instant Pot?
I think you could but I haven’t tried that myself 🙂
Made this dish with pantry/freezer staples as an alternative to shopping for groceries after being away for a week. Used dates rather than raisins. Really enjoyed the flavour contrasts. I contemplated squeezing lemon over after serving, but too lazy to go pick one. May try that on leftovers tomorrow. Thanks!
Oooh please let me know how that tastes! Thanks so much for the review and the comment, it’s always great when a delicious recipe works with what you have in the house!
Excellent
I also added dried prunes
What a fantastic addition! Love it!
I would love some guidance on how to release and for how long!
Any type of release is fine! I usually do the 10 minute natural release.
This was so good. I added some fresh mint and used currants instead of raisins because that’s what I had. I’ll definitely be making it again!!!
Oh I love the idea of currents and mint! Amazing!
This was very good. Easy and different for dinner. I simmered the stew for 15 minutes before putting in the dried fruit. My husband wants to try it with lamb next time. Like, pieces of lamb. We might also want to add something like chili flakes, or maybe cayenne? We cook low sodium for health reasons, and all I had to do was leave out the salt and use the canned diced tomatoes with no salt added. Thank you!
Lamb would be very on point for Moroccan cuisine!
Hi Jessica – this recipe sounds delicious! Did you use green lentils? I’m thinking red or split red lentils will dissolve during the cooking
Hi Shelley! Good question! I’ll update the recipe to be more specific. I use split red lentils and yes, they kind of “dissolve” right in.
Any way to do it without an instant pot?
Yup! There are instructions for both stovetop and Instant Pot!
Jessica, we will be having this tonight with our Grass Fed Lamb-I will let you know how it is!
Yes, please let me know how it is with lamb!
Just made this without the sauté step…. Just put it all in the pot and pushed ‘stew’. I did break up the ground beef a little first, but that’s it. Came out perfectly, so easy.
Great! Thanks for letting me know how it worked without the saute!
Made this for dinner tonight, and OMG was it good!! A big hit with the family!
I made it in my instant pot. I just sauted the meat, then threw all the remaining ingredients into the pot. I added some diced potatoes, celery, a can of diced tomatoes, a 3oz can of tomato paste and a cup of burgandy wine to the rest of the ingredients listed. Hit the “soup/stew” button and 10 minutes later… Viola!
Served it over jasmine rice and topped with fresh cilantro.
Will definitly be adding this to my favorites!
Awesome! Thanks for the review Teresa!
Made it with ground chicken. Didn’t use raisins, I had dried cherries on hand so used that but less. Only like 1/4 cup. Added some extra spices. It was really good.
Awesome!
Trying the ground chicken right now. I’ll leave review later. Thanks.
Can I use ground chicken?
For sure!
Tried it tonight and my son actually likes it. He said it was sweet, though and I only added a fraction of the raisins and apricots. Is there something that could be added to kick it up a notch spice-wise?? Other than that, it’s delicious!!
Glad you family enjoyed it! I haven’t tried it myself, but maybe adding 1/2 tsp of chili flakes along with the spices would work nicely to kick up the spice! Let me know if you try it.
dry or canned lentils?
Good question! Dry lentils. I’ll make the change in the recipe 🙂
I ended up crushing the coriander seed I had with a mortar and pestle since I didn’t have pre-ground. This dish was SO delicious!! My spouse’s arabic co-worker asked him “where did you get THAT” and then was like “my mom makes [something similar] for me all the time!” So nice to know it’s recognizable!
Awesome! Love to hear that I’m not too far off in authenticity 🙂
Hi Jessica, just wondering if by coriander you mean coriander seed, ground coriander seed, or cilantro? I looked it up and the internets told me coriander was cilantro ….
Good question! This recipe uses ground coriander seed, like you would find in the spice section. I’ll update the recipe to be more specific. Thanks for asking.