This is a fantastic store cupboard recipe and a great choice for
students or anyone keeping an eye on the pennies.
The flavours are more earthy and spiced than fiery spicy, so if you have
a friend who can't handle the heat this is still a great choice.
As I'm going travelling around India in around 5 days I'm trying out a
couple of recipes to prepare my body for the amazing food I'll be enjoying! This dish was inspired by a Jamie Oliver recipe with just a few adjustments.
Although this may look like a lot of ingredients, they were pretty much
all things that I already had in the house. All I had to buy were the
pomegranate seeds, which may seem superfluous but only cost £1 and are a great
way to brighten up any dish you serve, sweet or savoury.
It may seems a little strange skimming off the lentil 'scum' (hardly the
most appetising of words!) but this makes the dhal a little less starchy and
takes barely any time.
The aromatic mixture is the flavour of the dish; make sure to taste it
as you're making it! I added in two more teaspoons of garam masala than I
originally had thought as I felt the flavour was lacking. Does your mixture
need more chili? A pinch of salt? Make this dish taste exactly as you want it
to!
When all the lentils and mixture are combined it should be a little
loose but quite thick. Feel free to add more water at this stage and don't
forget to give it another taste!
I love to add extra protein to my dishes with a sprinkling of seeds or
nuts. These toasted cashews add crunch and extra flavour to the dhal and are definitely
worth the effort!
RECIPE
Serves 4-6 (depending on whether you serve with rice or not)
Cooking time is around 25 minutes
Ingredients:
200g red lentils
1/2 butternut squash (peeled and dice quite small)
2 tsps turmeric
2 knobs salted butter
2 tsps cumin seeds
1 small red onion
3 cloves garlic, crushed or finely sliced
1-2 fresh chillies, depending on how hot you like it!
4tsps garam masala
1 tsp ground coriander
Thumb sized piece of fresh ginger, finely grated
2-3 finely sliced tomatoes
Handful of cashew nuts
Pomegranate seeds to serve
Method:
If you're serving with rice put this on now as the rest of the recipe will take around 20 minutes to cook.
If you're serving with rice put this on now as the rest of the recipe will take around 20 minutes to cook.
Place the lentils in a pan and cover with enough cold water to come
around 5cm above their surface. Bring to the boil and skim off the sum that
rises to the top. This is best done with a serving spoon. Reduce to a simmer
and add in the butternut squash.
Stir in the turmeric and one knob of butter.
Cover and leave to cook gently.
In a small frying pan, dry fry the cumin seeds over a medium heat for
around 2 minutes.
Remove the cumin from the pan and set to one side.
Put a pinch of the chopped chillies to one side. Melt a second knob of
butter in the same frying pan and gently fry the chopped garlic, onions,
chillies and the grated ginger. Once most of the moisture has evaporated, mix
in the toasted cumin, garam masala and ground coriander. Remove from the heat
and set aside
Once the lentils are completely softened and the squash is tender give
them a good stir. They should have the consistency of porridge. Add more water
if necessary and mix in your aromatic fried mixture.
In another small pan dry fry some more cumin and a little chilli and
garam masala and put on a high heat. Toss in the cashews and toast until they
are browned and hot (around 2-3 minutes). Keep an eye on them so they don't
burn.
Give your lentils another stir and serve with the rice. Top each plate
with the cashews and a sprinkle of pomegranate seeds.
What's your favourite lentil dish? Let me know!
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