Dal tadka with canned lentils
15 min · 19 g protein · 312 cals / serving
Thick, tomatoey dal on a weeknight without the long simmer: canned lentils cooked down with onion, ginger, tomato and turmeric and mashed until creamy, then finished the classic way, with a tadka of cumin seeds, sliced garlic and dried chiles sizzled in hot oil and poured over at the table. Lemon and cilantro to finish.
Ingredients
Dal
- 1 tsp canola oil
- 1 medium onion, finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, grated
- 1 1/2 tbsp ginger, grated
- 1 green chili pepper, slit lengthways; leave it out for a mild dal
- 3/4 tsp turmeric
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes, with their juice
- 3 cans (15 oz each) lentils, brown or green, drained and rinsed
- 1 1/2 cups water, boiling, from the kettle
- 3/4 tsp salt
Tadka
- 1 tbsp canola oil
- 1 tsp ground cumin, cumin seeds (whole)
- 3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
- 2 dried chili peppers, small dried red chiles, whole
- 1 tsp garam masala
- 1 tsp paprika, Kashmiri chili powder or sweet paprika, for colour
To finish
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 2/3 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
Steps
- Put the kettle on. Heat the teaspoon of oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the onion with a pinch of the salt and cook for 3 minutes, stirring, until soft; grate the garlic and ginger while it cooks. Add the garlic, ginger and green chili and cook 1 minute more.
- Stir in the turmeric and ground coriander for 20 seconds, then add the tomatoes, lentils, the boiling water and the rest of the salt. Bring back to a boil and simmer for 4 minutes, mashing about a third of the lentils with a potato masher or the back of a spoon, until thick and creamy. Add a splash more water if it gets too thick to pour.
- While the dal simmers, make the tadka: heat the tablespoon of oil in a small pan over medium heat. Add the cumin seeds and let them sizzle for 20–30 seconds, then add the sliced garlic and dried chiles and fry until the garlic is pale gold, about 1 minute. Take the pan off the heat and stir in the garam masala and paprika; they should foam, not burn.
- Pour the sizzling tadka over the dal, add the lemon juice and scatter with cilantro. Serve with rice or warm flatbread. It keeps 4 days in the fridge and freezes for 3 months; it thickens as it sits, so loosen it with a splash of water when you reheat it.
Good to know
Can I use red lentils instead of canned?
Yes, for a smoother, more classic dal: simmer 1 1/4 cups rinsed red lentils in 3 cups water for 10–12 minutes until they collapse, then carry on from step 2 with the tomatoes. The dal then takes about 25 minutes.
Is it spicy?
Gently warm. The dried chiles flavour the oil without much heat as long as they stay whole; for children, leave out the green chili and fish the dried chiles out before serving.
Alternative
Per
- Calories
- 74
- Protein
- (26%)
- 4 g
- Fat
- (21%)
- 2 g
- Carbohydrates
- (54%)
- 11 g
- of which sugar
- 2 g
- Fiber
- 4 g
- Sodium
- 227 mg
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Computed from the ingredients with our published formula, not yet kitchen-tested. How
As written, 1247 kcal goes into the pot and 1756 g of ingredients comes out as about 1685 g of food: 74 kcal per 100 g. Cooking moves water and energy density is the score's biggest lever, so the dish is scored as cooked, not as an average of its parts. Every ingredient links to its food page, with the same data and score. The label's percentages are each macronutrient's share of the calories. The full formula.