Creamy Carrot & Lentil Dal
A Lentil Dal with a twist
This delicious lentil dal is light and creamy, thanks to the coconut milk and sweetness from the carrots. It’s gently spiced with cumin, turmeric and mustard seeds with a slight earthiness from the spinach that’s added right at the end. The dal is substantial enough to have on its own for a meal, or it can be enjoyed with poppadoms and naan bread. I like to make some quick pickled sliced red onions to garnish when serving; along with chopped chillies, plenty of fresh coriander and a generous squeeze of lime juice.
What’s in this dal?
This dal is made with red lentils, a rich stock, mustard seeds and ginger & garlic paste as the base. Then the grated carrots and coconut milk is where the sweetness comes into the dish. The coconut milk makes it silky smooth and paired with the lightly pickled onions this really balances the flavours. There’s fresh spinach stirred through right at the last minute which adds an earthiness. Then for a punch some fresh chillies are chopped up and scattered over the top. Finish with chopped fresh coriander and a generous squeeze of lime juice.
What to serve with the dal
I like to serve this with a few poppadoms and some lime pickle. It doesn’t really need much else with all of the strong flavours. The creamy red lentils are substantial enough too. However if you did want to add a few other dishes some samosas, bhajis or naan would work well. You could also serve this as a side dish or part of a feast with your favourite curries and rice. You might like my Pumpkin & Chickpea Curry recipe. If you have any leftover, the dal freezes really well, just pour it into a container and freeze for the next time you’d like to eat it.
Creamy Lentil Dal with Carrots
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp Oil Coconut or olive oil
- 200g Red lentils
- 600ml Vegetable stock
- 200g Onion or 1 large onion
- 500g Carrots
- 2 tsp Ginger and garlic paste
- 5-10 Fresh curry leaves (optional)
- 1 400g Tin of coconut milk
- 1 tbsp Cumin
- 1 tsp Coriander powder
- 2 tsp Black mustard seeds
- 1 tsp Turmeric
- 1 Small bunch of coriander 30g
- 3 Fresh chillies green or red
- 2 Limes
- 2 Handfuls of fresh spinach.
Lightly Pickled Onions
- 2 Small red onions
- 2 tbsp Red wine vinegar
Instructions
- Put a large saucepan on a medium heat and heat up the oil. Next, grate the onion (or use a food processor to do this if you have one.) Add the onions to the pan and let them sweat for 10 minutes.
- Grate the carrots finely either in a processor or handheld grater. Once the onion is starting to turn golden on the edges, add the ginger and garlic paste and cook for a couple more minutes.
- Stir through your spices and mustard seeds, and let them turn aromatic for a minute or so before adding the lentils, coconut milk, carrot, stock and curry leaves. Bring this to a simmer, and then turn the heat down and cook for 30 minutes. Stir now and then to ensure there’s enough liquid — if it gets too thick you can add a little water at a time.
- Meanwhile, you can make your lightly pickled onions by slicing them finely. Next, stir through the red wine, cover and set this aside for serving. You can also finely chop your chillies and coriander.
- Once the dal is cooked, stir through your spinach and let this cook for a minute or so until it’s wilted. Serve up the dal, scatter a few chopped chilis, coriander and the pickled onions over the top. Finish with a good squeeze of lime then serve. Serve with poppadoms or naan bread.
More recipe ideas
You can find more tasty food ideas on my blog Cook Shoot and Share. Or for some more Indian food inspiration check out my Pumpkin & Chickpea Curry for another Winter warmer. You can also take check out my Instagram too where you can keep up to date with recipes I make.