We ordered Mediterranean food for Thanksgiving...

One of the items was lentils and rice, which I was excited to get because I wanted to know how to make it. Usually if I can taste something, I can figure out how to make it. I was pretty disappointed in the lentils and rice we got from our local Dimassi's though. The rice was not interesting at all. It tasted like plain old Uncle Ben's Converted rice from a box. The lentils were just brown lentils. (Which are always good, of course)

First of all, the dish would have been greatly improved just by using a better quality of rice. So I did that, using basmati rice. I also salted and sautéed a huge onion, finely chopped. When it was transparent, I added the washed basmati rice and let it brown a little. When the rice was about 3/4 of the way toasted, I added some cumin seed about 1-2 tsp, and let that cook a few minutes. Then I added a cup of washed brown lentils and about 5 cups of filtered water. I brought it to a boil, then reduced the heat, covered it and cooked it for 25 min. Then I gently stirred it--I may have added a bit more water here--put the lid back on and cooked it another 10-15 min for the water to absorb and the lentils to get tender. When it was done, I salted and peppered it. I served it with crispy fried onions (store bought) on top. It was fabulous. Next year we won't order this from Dimassi's.