Dilly Carrot and lentil stew

Directions

1. Dice onion and slice garlic
2. Cut carrots into large chunks. Around ¾ - 1 inch
3. n a large pot or Dutch oven, heat olive oil over medium low heat and cook garlic until just brown. This step is really crucial not to mess up, you don’t want the taste of burnt garlic. As soon as the garlic starts to brown around the edge, it should take ~30 seconds to brown all the way through and remove with a slotted spoon
4. Add onions into the pot with a pinch of salt and cracked pepper. Sweat onions over medium high heat for 8-10 minutes
5. Add chili flake in this step if using, to bloom in the oil
6. After about 15-20 seconds of the chili flake toasting, add in carrots and coat with oil. Add another punch of salt and pepper
7. Add in lentils and the broth. I like to use Better than Bouillon but any kind of broth works.
8. Cook on medium heat until carrots and lentils are fully cooked, stirring occasionally (mine took until 45 minutes until carrots were cooked). Once cooked, lightly crush some of the carrots on the side of the pot with your spoon. If the water gets too low, before carrots are cooked add in a little bit of water.
9. Chop around ¼ cup of dill and add into the stew.
10. Serve with fried garlic on top, more dill and a little bit of butter.