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Cream of red lentils with an almond and onion tadka
Serves 4-6 Starters and mains
Ingredients
- 400g red lentils or yellow split mung peas or peas, soaked and drained
- 3tbsp ghee or coconut oil
- 4 shallots, finely sliced
- 3 garlic cloves, finely sliced
- 1tbsp ground almonds
- juice of 1 lime
- 1tbsp tomato purée
- 1tsp freshly grated or ground turmeric
- 3⁄4tsp salt
- 1tsp ground cumin
- 1tsp mustard seeds
- 1tsp freshly grated or ground ginger
- 1tsp ground coriander
- 1⁄2 red chilli (or more to taste), finely chopped
- 1tsp coconut sugar
To serve
- fresh coriander
- naan (optional)
- raita (optional)
Method
Put the lentils in a large saucepan with 11⁄2litres water. Bring to the boil and skim off any foam that rises to the surface with a spoon.
Let the lentils boil for 35-50 minutes, adding more water if it dries up. Keep adding water to achieve the desired consistency. When the lentils are dissolved and creamy, take the pan off the heat.
For the tadka, heat a saucepan over a medium heat and add 2 tablespoons ghee or coconut oil. Sauté the shallots, garlic and ground almonds over a low heat until the shallots are golden and transparent. Let the shallots sweat and release their juices rather than get too crispy. Add another tablespoon of ghee or coconut oil with the rest of the spice paste ingredients and stir- fry for another 3 minutes before removing from the heat.
Reserving a small amount of the tadka for topping, blend the rest of the mixture to a smooth paste with a few tablespoons water.
Before serving, bring the dahl to a simmer and mix in the tadka. Remove from the heat and serve with fresh coriander. You can make this a bigger meal by adding raita and naan bread.
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