The following quantities serve four generously as a side dish, or two as a substantial vegetarian main meal. Any leftovers can be kept covered in the fridge for a couple of days - the flavours will actually improve over time. Leftovers can be reheated on the stove or in the microwave, but make sure the dahl is hot all the way through before eating.
Red Lentil and Cauliflower Dahl
Ingredients
- 200g dried red lentils
- 1 medium cauliflower
- 2 large carrots
- 2 medium white onions
- 2 mild fresh red chillies
- 900ml vegetable stock (made up from a stock cube is fine)
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- 2 teaspoon garam masala
- 1 dessertspoon vegetable oil
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
Method:
- Peel and finely chop the onions. Heat the oil in a large saucepan (you may have to use two pans if you don't have a large pan, or make the dahl in two batches) and add the onions. Fry gently for a couple of minutes until starting to soften - don't allow them to burn or the dahl will be bitter.
- Deseed and finely chop the chillies and add to the pan along with the turmeric and garam masala. Add the lentils and give everything a good stir so that the spices coat the contents of the pan.
- Add the hot vegetable stock to the pan, stir, and simmer gently for around 10 minutes. Don't allow the contents of the pan to bubble too fiercely or the liquid may evaporate before the lentils are fully cooked.
- Meanwhile, peel the carrots and dice into small chunks. Strip the outer leaves from the cauliflower and chop into small florets.
- Add the carrots and cauliflower to the pan, reduce the heat, and cook slowly for around 20 minutes, or until the lentils have absorbed all the liquid and the vegetables are soft. Check for seasoning and add salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.
- Serve either as a main dish, or as a side dish with fish, chicken, or a selection of curry dishes. The dahl is also delicious served with naan bread.
Variations: you can make this really with any vegetables as long as the basic onion, lentil, spices and stock combination remains unchanged. Try cubed potato (either ordinary or sweet potatoes), parsnips or broccoli; you can also stir chopped spinach through at the end. If you enjoy the flavour of garlic then feel free to add to your dahl - simply peel a couple of cloves, slice finely, and add to the pan along with the onions - again, make sure it doesn't burn or the taste will be bitter.
