Dahl and other Lentil Dishes

[Claire]

I'm thinking Ishbel will come up with the answer here, but I'm asking in general and thinking that you all might enjoy this, especially since it's a pretty healthy dish. When I made my curry a few weeks ago, I had hubby pick up some red lentils and made it dal-based, but just with my own curry spice blend. Then I really looked in the pantry and discovered that I had small yellow lentils and white lentils, not to mention half the bag of red ones. SO ... I need recipes for dahl or any other lentil soup any of you can come up with. I already have a quart or two of turkey stock in the freezer, so .... I'm open to suggestions. Hubby says lent is coming up, and he believed as a child that lentils were called that because you eat them in meat-less lent dishes!!!

 

[Haggis]

I'm a big fan of lentils, they are probably one of the best foods out there. I have a lot of lentil recipes so I will just give you my favourite ones. The first comes from my Peruvian mate's mum.

500g brown lentils (I'm sure red would work, they just won't hold their shape)
1 large brown onion, finely chopped
1 500g jar bolognese sauce
soya sauce, to taste
red chillies, to taste, finely diced
bacon/pancetta, spicy sausage (linguica/chorizo)

Cook the lentils in plenty of boiling water until tender, then drain, discarding the water.

While lentils are cooking, fry in a medium pan with some oil the onion, then when softened add any meat if you are using and the chilli. Cook until the meat is browned then add some soy sauce, mix, then add the bolognese sauce. Rinse the jar out with half a jar of water and add into the mix. Finally add the lentils, put the lid on the pan and let them simmer on medium-high on the stove until nearly dry. Stir frequently to avoid burning.

This makes a lot. Don't know how the Peruvians got into the soy sauce but it work, and don't be afraid to add a fair bit of it. Serve it with rice and a tomato and coriander salsa.



Lentil Soup (Soupa Faki)
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500g lentils
olive oil
2 medium onions, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
2 small carrots, chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 bay leaves
1 teaspoon oregano, dried
salt
black pepper, freshly ground
125mL/4fl oz red wine

Rinse lentils. Warm oil in a large heavy-bottomed stock-pot over medium heat.
Add onions, celery,carrots, garlic, tomato paste, bay leaves and oregano. Sauté until onions are translucent (4-5 minutes).
Add lentils and cover with water to a depth of 8cm/3in water. Bring to boil, cover, and reduce heat. Simmer until lentils are tender (about 30 minutes). Check while simmering to ensure lentils are completely covered with water (and add more if necessary).
Remove from heat, and discard bay leaves. Season with salt, pepper and wine. It is best if left standing for a few minutes before serving (to allow flavours to blend).

Serves 4.


Dhal with Egg and Eggplant
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2 tsp vegetable oil
2 cups red lentils, rinsed until runs clear
clove garlic, minced
2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1 tbsp tomato paste
1 onion diced (maybe 2)
1L water
2 cups vegetable stock
1 large tomato, roughly chopped
3 baby eggplants, cut into 1-1.5cm thick rounds
4 boiled eggs, optional

Fry onions until softened. Add garlic, spices and tomato paste. Cook until fragrant. Add the lentils, stock and water and simmer for 40 minutes or until lentils are tender. Add the tomato, eggplant and cook for another 20 minutes. Add the eggs to the dish if using. Season with salt and pepper. Serve.
Serves 4.


I have plenty more put I don't want to spam them all. Enjoy!

 

[Yakuta]

Hi Claire, the yellow lentils may be moong dal and the white may be urad. You can do a whole lot with them but here is an easy recipe for the yellow dal that you might enjoy.

4 cups yellow moong dal
1 medium onion finely chopped
1 large tomato finely chopped
1 jalapeno finely chopped
2 tsp of cumin seeds
4 cloves of garlic finely minced
1 tbsp of curry powder
1/2 cup of fresh dill finely chopped
salt to taste
3 tbsp of oil (any kind)
3 cups of water

In a pan, add the oil and once it's hot add the cumin seeds, garlic and jalapeno. Saute it for a few seconds. Next add the onion and cook them until translucent. Add the curry powder and toast it for a few minutes. Next add the tomatoes and let it all cook until tomato is almost pulpy in texture. Now add the moong dal and water and salt to taste and let this all cook until the dal is cooked. This cooks fast so don't forget about it (keep an eye on it). Once the dal is cooked add the dill and stir it and serve with store bought roti's and basmati rice.

We like to accompany it with pickles (sweet and spicy) and papads (called papadums in the west)

The white dal is normally used in South Indian cooking to make Dosa's (which are crispy pancakes filled with potatoes) or Idlis. They are normally paired with rice flour to give the pancakes a crispy texture.

 

[Haggis]

Technically urad dhal refers to black lentils...but if you skin these black lentils you get white lentils which also tend to be called urad dhal...hmmmm.

 

[Yakuta]

Haggis, yes we normally say black (kali) urad or white (sufaid) urad in our common vocabulary.

The way it's prepared is different. The authentic dal makhani uses black urad with rajma (kidney beans) and is popular in the North while white urad is normally used by southerners. They normally soak it raw overnight with raw rice, blend it into a paste and then make dosa's out of it or steam that to make idlis.

 

[flukx]

Daal Recipe

I have made Yellow Daal Indian soup a number of times and there is are many ways to go about using the lentils. Here is what I do:

3 Large handfuls of Yellow lentils
2 medium onions, chopped
2-3 teaspoons each of the following: cumin, garam masala, ground coriander, haldi (turmeric), minced fresh ginger, minced garlic
chili powder or minced chili to taste
1 can peeled, chopped tomatoes (however much you want)

I put everything in a pot and add double the amount of water it would take to just cover the lentils. (how much water you add at the beginning is not important, you can always add more later depending on how thick or thin you want the soup).

I simmer for about 1.5 hours. I then blend everything together (my own preference) and then return to a simmer with added vegetables pieces (also own preference) such as carrot, potato, zucchini. Sometimes I'll sear lamb goulasch pieces and let them simmer as well until all vegetables are tender. Add salt or beef broth to taste.

Sometimes I make the "soup" a bit thicker and serve it over rice. So, in essence, I guess it is a type of "Fusion Daal".

 

[flukx]

Ps

When everything is simmer nicely, I lastly add about a tablespoon and a half of butter and let it melt while stirring. It makes the texture wonderful.