Wash and soak the brown lentils for at least 4 to 6 hours (or overnight) until the lentils are very tender.

Thoroughly wash the rice until the water runs clear to get rid of any impurities/gunk (it's an important step so do not skip it). Soak for 20 minutes.

Heat a pan, add cooking oil, onion and ½ tsp salt. Adding salt to the onions will help release water and help it cook faster. Fry the onion on medium-high heat until it starts to caramelize.

Once caramelized, reduce the heat to medium to medium-low heat (depending on the heat of your stove) and add finely chopped ginger and garlic. Fry until onions are nicely browned (be careful not to burn the onion).

Once the onion is caramelized, add the strained tomatoes/passata and spices. Give it a good mix.

Add the soaked lentil and rice, along with salt and water. Cover and bring to a vigorous boil.

Once it starts boiling, reduce the heat to low and cook for about 25 to 30 minutes.

Uncover and check to see if the rice and lentils are cooked (it should be cooked by now, if its not, cover and cook it for a bit longer). Now continue to cook UNCOVER for another 1 to 2 minutes on low heat to get rid of any excess moisture. Turn off the heat.

Add parsley, lemon juice, black pepper and drizzle of olive oil. Mix very gently, the rice is delicate at this point and we don't want to break it. Cover and let it sit for 5 minutes before serving (for flavors to blend).