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Masoor Dal (Spiced Red Lentils)

5.0(6389)

What I have come to understand is that how food looks as you prepare it can make as much difference to the cook as it does, on the plate, to the person who gets to eat it. When the skies are drab and life feels a little gray, I am absurdly cheered by the fresh brightness of a vibrantly orange dal, a red lentil stew spiced with turmeric, chili and ginger, and colored with sweet potatoes and tomatoes. Just seeing that mixture in the pan lifts my spirits. It helps that a dal is simple to make: a bit of chopping and the stew all but cooks itself. And it can be made in advance and then reheated, always a bonus. This dal makes a wonderful, exuberant partner to broiled salmon, but I love it without meat, too, when I partner it with my “bright rice.”

by Nigella Lawson·published 2005-03-02

Open original recipe

IndianDinner, Easy, Quick, Weeknight, Main Course, Side Dish

Servings

(4–6)

Total time

45 min

Calories / serving

222 kcal

Ingredients (15)

serves

2 tablespoons vegetable oilvegetable-oil
1 cup finely chopped oniononion
2 1/2 cups (10 ounces, about 1 medium) finely diced sweet potatosweet-potato
1 tablespoon minced gingerginger
2 garlic cloves, mincedgarlic
1 Thai or bird's-eye red chili
1 cup red lentilsred-lentils
2 teaspoons ground coriandercoriander
2 teaspoons ground cumincumin
2 teaspoons turmericturmeric
1 teaspoon ground gingerginger
1 cup canned chopped tomatoescanned-tomato
Saltsalt
3 tablespoons chopped cilantrocilantro
Pieces of coconut flesh from a fresh coconut (optional)coconut

Instructions (4 steps)

01In a large saucepan over medium-low heat, heat oil, and sauté onion until softened. Add sweet potato, and sauté for about 5 minutes. Add minced ginger and garlic; stir, and reduce heat to low.
02Finely dice chili, keeping seeds if you wish to add more heat. Add chili, lentils, coriander, cumin, turmeric and ground ginger to pan. Stir until lentils are well coated with oil. Add tomatoes and 4 cups water. Raise heat to bring to a boil, then reduce heat until mixture is at a fast simmer. Cook uncovered until lentils and potatoes are soft, stirring occasionally, about 25 minutes.