Place the lentils in a medium saucepan. Fill with enough cold water to cover the lentils by about an inch. Bring it to a boil over medium-high heat, then turn down to a simmer and cook until the lentils are tender but not mushy about 20 minutes. Drain and set aside.

Meanwhile, as the lentils cook, place the oil in a pan, warm for a minute, add onions, and saute until they turn dark caramel brown, stirring often. This will take about 15 minutes. Splash the onions with a little water if they stick to the bottom of the pan. You'll know they're done both by their deep chestnut color and by the slight crispiness developing on some of the onions.

After the lentils have been cooking for 20 minutes, add the rice,  2 cups water, salt, pepper, cumin, bring to a boil. Turn the heat down to low so that the pan is at a simmer, cover and cook 30 minutes. Stirring often (but gently so you don't break the rice) The water should be completely evaporated and rice should be tender. (If there's still too much water in the bottom, put the lid back on and cook for another 5 minutes.)

Remove from stove, place fried onions and some of the oil on top of the rice/lentil

serve immediately