Let me start off by saying that this is by no means a traditional recreation of a daal. This is very much my take on it. I feel like that disclaimer is important.
But either way, this may just be my go-to recipe for the upcoming cold nights. It's nice and hearty, with tonnes of warm flavours, and a great excuse to eat my weight in naan bread (not that anyone needs an excuse for that). But truly - it's such a wonderfully easy and quick recipe to make, using humble and frankly, cheap ingredients, but does not compromise on flavour in the slightest. Another pro? It's entirely vegan.
The below recipe will serve 3-4 people.
Ingredients
1 large white onion
1 stick celery
1 carrot
1/2 fresh chilli pepper
40gr fresh ginger
4 cloves garlic
1tsp curry
1tsp garam masala
1tsp mild chilli powder
1/2tsp turmeric powder
1/2tsp ground cumin
300gr red lentils
1tbsp fresh coriander
1/2l vegetable stock
400gr (1 can) chopped tomatoes
275gr coconut milk
100gr spinach (fresh if possible)
Salt and pepper, to taste
Vegan yoghurt (to serve) Lime (to serve) Extra coriander (to serve)
Method
1. Chop the onion, celery, carrot, and chilli finely, removing the seeds from the chilli pepper. Using a microplane, grate the ginger and garlic. Set aside.
2. In a medium sized pot drizzle some oil of your choice and sweat the onion until just about translucent. Add the celery and carrot and allow to cook along with the onion for around 2-4 minutes. Add the chilli pepper, garlic, and ginger. Cook for a further 3-5 minutes, or until fragrant.
3. Start adding in all your dried spices. Stir to combine and then add in the lentils, followed by the vegetable stock. Mix thoroughly, scraping the bottom of the pot to make sure nothing's stuck to the bottom.
4. Add in the chopped tomatoes, coconut milk, and salt and pepper to taste. Allow to simmer until the lentils are cooked through, stirring occasionally. The lentils should cook in around 15-20 minutes.
5. Once the lentils are cooked through, stir in the spinach. If using frozen spinach you may want to add this in slightly beforehand to ensure it's not raw. If using fresh (recommended), the spinach will take just a minute or 2 to cook through.
6. Serve piping hot, with a dollop of yoghurt, a squeeze of lime, and some fresh coriander.
SIDE NOTE: Daal is great served with flatbreads, naan, or your bread of choice!
Recreating this recipe? Tag me on instagram @juliawgr!
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