Dal
Red Lentil Dal
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 yellow onion, finely chopped
1 teaspoon whole cumin seeds
1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 tablespoons finely chopped ginger
2 cups red lentils, sorted and rinsed
4 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
1 1/2 cups chopped tomatoes, with their juice
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 jalapeño pepper, stemmed, seeded and finely chopped
Heat oil in a large pot over medium high heat. Add onions and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add cumin, cardamom, garlic and ginger and cook, stirring often, until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add lentils, broth, tomatoes, cilantro, turmeric, salt and jalapeño and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium low, cover and simmer, stirring often, until lentils are soft, about 15 minutes. Ladle into bowls and serve.
Folk Style Dal
5 cups water
1 cup urad dal (split black Asian legume) 1/2 tsp turmeric
Salt
For tempering:
1 Tbsp butter
1 tsp cumin seeds
1/2 tsp ginger
1 tsp garlic
2 green chillies, slit
1 small onion, minced
1 small tomato, chopped
1/4 cup tomato puree
2 tsp dhabba tadka mix (spice mix)
Juice of one lemon
For dhabba tadka mix:
1 Tbsp cumin
1 1/2 Tbsp coriander seeds 1 tsp fennel seeds
1 tsp whole cloves
1/2 inch cinnamon stick 1/2 tsp red chili powder 1/4 tsp ground mace
1 tsp turmeric powder Salt to taste
Cook the beans with salt and turmeric until very soft.
To make the dhaba tadka mix:
Dry roast the whole spices (cumin, coriander seeds, fennel, cloves and cinnamon) on a skillet. Add the turmeric powder, chilli, mace powder and roast until fragrant. Add the salt. Make a fine powder of the spices. You can store this powder.
For the dal:
In a deep pan, take a tablespoon of white butter, fry the cumin, ginger and garlic. Then add the onions until they turn translucent. Pour in the cooked dal, add salt, green chilies and the chopped tomatoes. After one minute, add the tomato puree, and the dhaba tadka mix. Top with lime juice. Serve.
Spinach Dal
In this version, yellow split peas are simmered in water until completely broken down, and brightened up with lemon juice. Then, cumin seeds and turmeric are sizzled in butter along with garlic, ginger, and serrano chili to add color, heat, and texture to the dish. Add some chopped spinach to the infused butter, cook until wilted, and stir it all into the dal. This filling recipe makes a generous amount, so be sure to steam plenty of rice for serving.
This dal is made with yellow split peas, but you can substitute other varieties like red or green lentils or split chickpeas. Find them in the bulk or ethnic section of most well-stocked grocery stores or online. Just make sure to taste the dal for consistency while it’s simmering and adjust the cooking time as needed. This dal recipe has mild spicing, but if you want to crank up the heat, add another chili or two.
2 cups yellow split peas (about 14 ounces)
8 cups water
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice (from about 1 medium lemon) 2 teaspoons salt, plus more as needed
8 tablespoons ghee
2 teaspoons cumin seeds
1 1/2 teaspoons turmeric
5 medium garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
1/4 cup peeled and finely chopped fresh ginger (from about a 4-inch piece) 1 medium serrano chili, stemmed and finely chopped
8 ounces baby spinach, washed and coarsely chopped
Steamed rice for serving
Place the split peas in a fine-mesh strainer and rinse thoroughly under cold water. Transfer to a large saucepan, add the measured water, and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium low and simmer, stirring occasionally and skimming any scum off the surface with a large spoon, until the peas are completely soft and the consistency of split pea soup, about 45 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the lemon juice and measured salt; set aside. Heat the ghee in a medium frying pan over medium heat. Add the cumin seeds and turmeric and cook, stirring occasionally, until the cumin seeds are toasted and fragrant, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic, ginger, and chili; season with salt; and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables have softened, about 2 to 3 minutes. Add the spinach, season with salt, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the spinach is completely wilted, about 4 minutes. Transfer the spinach mixture to the reserved saucepan with the split peas and stir to combine. Serve immediately with steamed rice on the side.
