Red lentil Dal with vegetables

Red lentil dal with vegetables

This is one my favorite cool weather comfort foods. This dal is warming, delicious and nutritious. Many years ago, Ron from The Green Door Restaurant in Ottawa taught me how to make dal. The key to a good dal is to make it so that none of the spices overpowers any other spice. Makes 4-5 servings over rice. 

INGREDIENTS

Lentils:

1 cup red lentils (Split mung beans or split yellow peas are an option; they take a little longer to cook.)

4-5 cups water

2 Bay leaves (optional)

Spices:

1 tablespoon coconut oil or butter

1 tablespoon avocado or other vegetable oil

1 tablespoon ground cumin

1 tablespoon ground coriander

½ tablespoon Tumeric

1/8 teaspoon asafoetida (optional)

½ teaspoon Garam Masala (optional)

¼ teaspoon cinnamon

¼ teaspoon ground ginger or ½ Tbs. fresh ground ginger

1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom

Pinch of ground cloves

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper or finely chopped chili pepper

2-3 cloves of garlic finely chopped

Vegetables:

1 onion finely chopped (optional if you prefer not to eat onions)

2 celery sticks finely chopped

1 medium carrot finely chopped

2 cups of cubed squash (I like the Japanese Kobocha squash because you can eat its green peel. The squash is relatively easy to chop, tasty and slightly sweet. Remove any little white hard bits from the skin. This squash has a beautiful rich texture.)

2 cups of chopped broccoli, broccolini or other greens

1 tomato cubed (optional)

To serve sprinkle with chopped cilantro

How to:

Rinse and cook the lentils and bay leaves in water or vegetable stock. Bring to boil and simmer for about 30 minutes. Stir occasionally with a flat wooden spoon. The lentils tend to thicken at the bottom and stick to the pot. If possible use a pot with a thick base. The cooked lentils should be thick and creamy. Add a little water or coconut milk if too thick, simmer with the lid open if too thin. The dal will thicken up with vegetables.

In a skillet warm up the oils. When hot, add spices and turn the heat down not to overheat the oil or burn the spices. Add chopped onion, garlic, celery, and carrot and sauté for 5-7 minutes. Add the squash with a little water or coconut milk and simmer covered on low heat until the vegetables are tender but not too soft. Turn heat off and let sit until the lentils are cooked.

When the lentils are cooked add the broccolini, tomato, cooked vegetables and spices mix to the cooked lentils. Stir altogether and simmer for a few minutes until broccoli is tender. If it’s too thick add a little water or coconut milk. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Enjoy over brown rice, white or brown basmati rice, quinoa or a combination of white basmati and quinoa cooked together. Sprinkle with chopped cilantro. This makes a perfect, nutritionally well-balanced meal.

I like to keep the leftovers in the fridge in a mason jar and eat over the week. You can also freeze the leftover dal for about two months. Watered down a little, the dal makes a wonderful soup.

Enjoy!