Wash & soak ½ cup of green lentils for 8 to 10 hours or overnight. Once the lentils are soaked, drain the water and rinse it. Transfer the lentils to a pot. Add salt and water. Cook over medium-high heat and bring to a vigorous boil. Once it starts to boil, reduce heat to medium-low and cook for about 4 minutes or until lentils are cooked but still holds its shape. WE DO NOT WANT MUSHY LENTILS. Right away strain the cooked lentils. Let it sit in the strainer to get rid of any excess water and allow it to cool down. Once lentils have cooled, add lemon juice, olive oil and mix well. Allow the lentils to marinate while we continue with the rest of the cooking.

Thoroughly wash 1 cup of quinoa until the water runs clear and then soak in water for 30 minutes. ✅ 👉After 30 minutes drain the water from quinoa and let it sit in the strainer to get rid of any excess water.

To a heated WIDE PAN, add olive oil, chopped onion, carrots, ¼ tsp salt and fry on medium to medium-high heat until it's slightly browned (about 5 to 6 minutes). ADDING SALT TO ONION/CARROTS RELEASES IT'S MOISTURE AND HELPS IT COOK FASTER, SO PLEASE DON'T SKIP IT. Add the garlic and fry on medium heat for 30 seconds or until fragrant.

✅ 👉REDUCE THE HEAT TO LOW BEFORE ADDING THE SPICES AND TOMATO PASTE TO PREVENT IT FROM BURNING. Add the tomato paste, paprika, ground cumin, cayenne pepper and fry on low heat for only 1 to 2 minutes (no longer than that), just to cook out the raw flavour of the tomato paste. Add the quinoa, salt, vegetable broth. Turn up the heat and bring to a VIGOROUS BOIL. Then reduce the heat to low and cook for about 15 to 20 minutes or until quinoa is cooked.

✅ 👉DO NOT LET THE QUINOA GET MUSHY. ADJUST THE COOKING TIME OF QUINOA ACCORDING TO THE HEAT OF YOUR STOVE. DO CHECK IN 15 MINUTES, if still not cooked then cook for longer. It took me 20 minutes on my stove.

Once the quinoa is cooked, uncover the lid and turn off stove. Add the cooked lentils, ground black pepper, red onions, parsley, mint & mix well. Cover the lid and allow it to rest for 3 to 4 minutes for the flavours to blend.

Serve hot with a side of green salad. Perfect for meal prep / meal planning as it stores well in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days