Vegan Kushari

Kushari…Vegan Kushari

“What the heck is Kushari?” Those were my exact words to John when he said he wanted to make a Vegan Kushari dish.  So I googled it, and wiki provided me with some knowledge.  In a nutshell, Kushari is a dish of pasta, rice, lentils, spiced tomato sauce, served with garlic vinegar and crispy onions.  Okay, so you had me with pasta and rice.  You guys know our love of mixed rice-type dishes: bibimbap, taco bowl, fajita bowl, you get the picture, so naturally, a Vegan Kushari is a perfect fit!

We have been focusing more on whole grains and weren’t sure we wanted heavy pasta… So enter Banza!  A pasta made with chickpeas with just the right pasta texture and matching flavor to work perfectly in our dish.  It’s egg-free, gluten-free, and non-GMO  Our other brilliant (IMHO) substitution was bulgar.  The rich flavor and soft texture really complemented the pasta and lentils.  We stayed true to the recipe with lentils and a spiced tomato sauce.  We didn’t have garlic vinegar, so we opted for a splash of red wine vinegar and some garlic powder – a well-played and accessible alternative.  Lastly, we have decided to top it with both crispy onions and dukkah from America’s test kitchen Vegan for Everybody cookbook.  Voila- perfection!

Carbs

There are so many reasons I love this recipe (carbs, carbs, and more carbs), seriously though; it’s a healthy comfort food that can be served as the entree or side dish. Even better, there are so many ways this could be switched up by changing out grains and pasta varieties.  You might wonder why we aren’t too concerned with carbs.  These are not processed carbs, they are whole-grain carbs that provide nutrient-dense, fiber-filled, benefits.  And we believe that with a balanced plant-based diet, you can never have too many whole-plant foods.

Vegan Kushari

Pasta - Lentils - Bulgar! Carbs on carbs on carbs in this healthy and flavorful spin on Kushari!

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Ingredients

• 1 8 oz box Banza Wagon Wheel Chickpea Pasta, Cooked according to package instructions
• 3/4 c lentils, Cook according to package
• 3/4 c bulgar, Cook according to package
• 1 14 oz can diced tomatoes
• 1 14 oz can tomato sauce
• 2 cloves garlic, sliced thin
• 1 sm onion, diced
• crispy onions
• garlic vinegar (or red wine vinegar and garlic powder)
• dukkah

Instructions

1. Cook your lentils, bulgar, and pasta according to the directions, drain and mix together in a large bowl
2. Saute onions in water.
3. Add garlic, saute briefly until fragrant
4. Add tomatoes and tomato sauce and cook until rich and thickened, about 10 minutes 
5. Plate it up - A couple of scoops of the pasta, lentil & bulgar mix, then top with tomato sauce, sprinkle with dukkah (optional), crispy onions, a splash of garlic vinegar (or a splash of red wine vinegar and garlic powder). 

Nutrition Information:

Serving Size: 1 g
Amount Per Serving: Unsaturated Fat: 0g

We hope you enjoy this VegInspired spin on Kushari, and be sure to #veginspiredfoodie with your remakes. Give us a follow on Instagram, Facebook, and our New YouTube channel.

Eat More Plants & Live VegInspired!

XO,

Kathy

**This post is sponsored by Banza; we received free products to try and test in the kitchen.