Enjoy a bowl of flavorful, rustic, hearty Red Lentils cooked in a tasty tomato sauce with a perfect Poached Egg on top - all ready in under 20 minutes. I will show you how to make fool-proof poached eggs in the microwave - you'll never go back to stove-top poached eggs.
Salt & pepper, to taste (about ¼ teaspoon each is a good start)
¼cupparsley leaves, finely diced
2-4eggs(see recipe notes) + water for poaching
Instructions
Cook the red lentils:
In a 2.5-3 quart sauce pan, heat the olive oil and add the diced onion. Saute over medium heat for 5 minutes. Add the dry lentils, water, and diced tomatoes and stir. Cover with a lid and reduce heat to low. Allow to simmer for about 7-10 minutes, or until the lentils are cooked to your liking (see recipe notes). Remove from heat and stir in salt, pepper, and parsley leaves. Serve with a poached egg on top.
Make microwave-poached eggs:
Use a microwaveable bowl or container that is wide enough for the number of eggs you will be poaching. Add enough water to the bowl so that the water comes up a couple of inches in the bowl - you will need the eggs to be completely submerged in the water.
Gently crack the eggs right into the water. Carefully transfer the bowl to a microwave oven. Microwave the eggs on medium or high power. You will need to play around with the timing a little. For 2 eggs, I recommend starting at 1 minute and 30 seconds, then checking the eggs and microwaving 30 seconds at a time until the eggs reach your desired level of done-ness. For 4 eggs, start with 2 minutes and then microwave 30 seconds at a time until they are cooked to your liking. Use a slotted spoon to gently remove the eggs from the water and serve over the hot lentils. Season with salt and pepper.
Notes
You can use any kind of lentils you like. Split lentils cook much faster - in about 7-10 minutes. Whole lentils take a bit longer - 20 minutes or more. Watch the lentils and cook them to your liking - add a few minutes to the cooking time if you like them super soft and mushy.
If cooking split red lentils, start checking on them after about 7 minutes, since they can get overcooked easily. Drain any extra water, if needed.
Poached eggs are best eaten fresh. If you are serving this for 2 people and saving some lentils for the next day, poach as many eggs as you will eat that day.
If you are poached several eggs, it is best to do it in a flat container than in a bowl, so they don't all sit on top of each other. These are great, and come with a lid to prevent any microwave splatter!
Feel free to add some spice: stir in ½ teaspoon each ground coriander and ground cumin, and a pinch of cayenne pepper or red pepper flakes to the onion when you're sautéing.