Yemeni Aseedah-Inspired Tomato Lentil Bowl

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup quick-cooking polenta
• 1 cup cooked brown lentils
• 1 cup crushed tomatoes
• 1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 small onion or 2 scallions, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 tsp ground fenugreek
• 1/2 lemon, cut into wedges
• 1/4 cup fresh herbs, chopped
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Steps

1. Heat the olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat and cook the onion with a pinch of salt for 6 minutes, until soft and golden at the edges.
2. Add the garlic and fenugreek and stir for 30 seconds. Fenugreek turns bitter if it browns, so keep it moving and add the tomatoes quickly.
3. Add the crushed tomatoes and 1/2 cup water, season with salt and pepper, and simmer for 12 to 15 minutes, until the sauce has darkened and thickened.
4. Stir in the cooked lentils and simmer for 5 minutes more, crushing a few against the side of the pan so they thicken the sauce. Keep it warm.
5. Bring 2 1/2 cups water to a boil in a heavy saucepan with 1/2 teaspoon salt.
6. Pour the polenta in a thin, steady stream with one hand while whisking hard with the other, then reduce the heat to low.
7. Cook for 8 to 10 minutes, beating constantly with a wooden spoon and scraping the base, until the mixture is very stiff and pulls away from the sides of the pan in one mass. Aseedah is meant to be much firmer than porridge, so keep working it past the point where it looks done.
8. Wet a bowl, pack the aseedah into it, and turn it out into a serving dish as a smooth mound. Make a well in the top, ladle in the tomato lentil sauce, and finish with the fresh herbs and lemon wedges.

Allergen note: No common allergens in the listed ingredients; check packaged items.

Use the listed quantities as a guide, adjust seasoning to taste, and cook proteins to a safe internal temperature.