Brown lentil dahl
Ingredients
Dahl
2 tbls garlic oil
2 green cayenne chillies , deseeded and cut into chunks
1/2 tsp asaphoetida
1 tbsp ginger finely chopped
8 fresh curry leaves
1 tin chopped tomato
1/2 tsp ground cumin
3 cans brown lentils (I cup raw soaked and washed three times)
1 cup water
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1/8 tsp garam marsala
3/4 tsp salt
Tadka
1 1/2 tbsp / 20g vegan butter
1 tsp cumin seeds
1/2 tsp black mustard seeds
3 dried chillies , broken in half, seeds removed
To serve
Fresh coriander/cilantro sprigs (optional)
Steamed basmati rice
Method
Heat oil in a saucepan over high heat, add green chilies, and fry for a minute until they start to blister.
Lower heat to medium and add aesafoteda and fry until fragrant.
,Add ginger and curry leaves and cook for 1 minute.
Add tomatoes and cumin, and cook until thickened to a paste - about 2 minutes.
Add lentils, water, turmeric and salt. Stir, bring to simmer, cover and simmer gently for 20 minutes (canned lentils) or 1 hour raw lentils. Stir two or three times during the hour.
Remove lid and simmer gently for 30 minutes to thicken, stirring every now and then. The dal is ready when it has a consistency like porridge - some lentils should be intact but some have broken down to thicken the sauce.
Stir through garam masala at the end. Adjust salt if desired.
Pour over Tadka, if using, and stir through.
Serve Dal over rice, garnished with a sprig of coriander if desired.
Tadka - Sizzling spices
Heat oil in a small pan over medium heat until hot but not smoking.
Add cumin and mustard seeds, stir until cumin is slightly golden.
Then add chillies and cook for 20 seconds. Don't let the spices burn!
Immediately pour into Dahl.
Original recipe: Dal (Indian Lentil Curry)
