Mung Bean Stew Instant Pot. Vegan. Gluten Free.

Mung bean stew via the Instant Pot.

I’m an adventurous eater now that I’m vegan.  As a carnivore, 4 years ago, I was food phobic.  Personally, I steered clear of certain foods because they turned me off a bit.  Case in point: fish, seafood and exotic meats to name a few.  Everyone has their food phobias, right?  Fast forward to this moment… I love exploring the farmer’s markets and finding new beans or veggies I’ve never tried.  Do you gravitate towards trying new foods?

This past Saturday I was shopping at my favorite bean/grain shop at my farmer’s market and the mung beans caught my eye.  I took a pound of them and figured I would research recipes later on in the day.  I was thrilled to stumble on this recipe from one of my favorite vegan bloggers, Vegan Richa.  If you don’t know her or her cookbook – you must!  I highly recommend.

Sunday I whipped this recipe up & instantly was in love.  I hope you enjoy this protein-packed, easy dinner idea that’s perfect for leftover lunches or dinners all week long.  Let’s get rolling…

Ingredients:

3/4 cup mung beans (dry whole green mung beans)
½ brown basmati rice
½ tsp coconut oil
½ tsp cumin seeds
½ red onion, chopped
1 can (28 oz of crushed tomatoes)
5 cloves of garlic
1 inch ginger, peeled
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp ground coriander
½ tsp garam masala
½ tsp cayenne
¼ tsp black pepper
4 cups water
1 tsp lemon juice
¾ to 1¼ tsp salt

Methods:

I soaked the Mung Beans overnight in a bowl of water but you can do this for at least 15 minutes.  Also soak the brown rice for 15 minutes.

Into a blender or Vitamix, blend onions, tomatoes, garlic, ginger, spices and 2 tbl of water and blend on setting 5 with a few pulses.  See photo below:


Start the Instant Pot on sauté setting.  Once hot, add some oil and toast up the cumin seeds for about 1 minute.  Then proceed to add the puree from your blender and cook for 15 minutes until it thickens up a bit.  Then turn the machine off.

Drain the beans and rice and add to the Instant Pot.  Add your water, salt and juice.  Stir well and add the lid.  Close the vent.  Using the manual button, add 15 minutes to the timer and let the machine go.  Let the Instant Pot release naturally in approximately 10 minutes.  Serve with your favorite bread, Naan or crackers.

I topped mine with sliced jalapeño and some cilantro leaves.

Here is my weekly recap so far:

Sunday: 9.75 outdoor, hilly outdoor running
Monday: 60m elliptical/60m treadmill incline walking/weightlifting upper body & abs
Tuesday: 8 outdoor, 38 degree miles at 4am 🙂

That’s a wrap!  Happy Tuesday.

— Knead to Cook