Pork, Chickpea ,Vegetable and Lentil Casserole

These are the ingredients that go with the pork.

The casserole ready to go into the oven for about 2 hours at gas 4.

I made this Pork, Chickpea ,Vegetable and Lentil Casserole last weekend. I got the pork as it is a good price at the moment . I like to use lentils and chickpeas and lots of vegetables to make a colourful spicy dish that is economical, full of fibre and protein and most of all really tasty.
This is the recipe for the Pork, Chickpea ,Vegetable and Lentil Casserole
Ingredients

olive oil for frying

4 cups of lean pork chopped into bite size chunks

2 onions peeled and diced

4 cloves of garlic diced

2 carrots peeled ,diced and chopped into chunks

4 to 6 sticks of celery trimmed , chopped

2 apples peeled , cored and chopped

2 teaspoons of ground coriander

2 teaspoons of ground cumin

1 can of chickpeas or equivalent in frozen(cooked)

1/2 cup of red lentils

4 tablespoons of tomato puree

salt and pepper

chopped fresh herbs to serve

2 peppers sliced

chicken or vegetable stock--Swiss bouillon about 1 pint.

Method

1. Heat the oil in a frying pan to a medium heat

2. Add the pork chunks and fry, add in small quantities, too many in the pan and they will boil so do in small batches. The meat needs to seal and be brown. Place into a casserole dish.

3. Add some more oil and add the garlic, onions,apple, carrots, celery and peppers cook for 3 to 5 minutes and add to the casserole dish.

4. Add the coriander, cumin, chickpeas, lentils, tomato puree, salt and pepper to the casserole and mix.

5. Add enough stock to just cover the casserole

6. Cover with foil and put the lid on

7. Cook at Gas 4, 180C or 350F for about 1 1/2 to 2 hours in the centre to top of the oven

8. I would check after 1 hour to see how much the red lentils have soaked up. Add more stock if necessary.

9. Serve with fresh herbs and oven roasted new potatoes with wild mushrooms

This freezes well.

Vegans and vegetarians can make this but omit the pork and use more chickpeas and red lentils for a Chickpea ,Vegetable and Lentil Casserole.

Add a chopped chili for a hot version

Add some paprika for a different flavour and deeper colour.

Add cherry tomatoes to make it sweeter

Thanks for reading and let me know how these recipes work out

Crazycupcakes