Lentil Dahl

In one of my zine cookbooks there was a really basic recipe for dahl.  I knew it wouldn’t taste like real dahl, so I consulted my vegetarian Indian cookbook.  Well, unfortunately the dahl recipe in it had a lot of ingredients (namely, tomatoes) that I didn’t have.  So here’s a simple dahl that’s not too simple, but easy to make with ingredients on hand.

Ingredients:

3 tbsp. olive oil
1 yellow onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 cups soy milk
1 1/2 cups water
1 tbsp. curry powder
1 tsp. garam masala
4 tbsp. organic ketchup*(see note) or tomato paste
1 cup lentils
pinch chili peppers
pinch black pepper
pinch salt

Directions:

1. In a small pot over medium heat, sautee onions and garlic in olive oil for a minute.  Add spices, curry powder, garam masala, chili peppers, salt and pepper, and continue sauteeing for several more minutes.
2. Stir in water, soy milk and ketchup until evenly combined. *(Note: organic ketchup tends to be thicker [less vinegar] than Heinz or other brands, if you don’t have organic ketchup, tomato paste would also work here).
3. Add lentils and cover.  If your pot lid does not have holes for ventilation, leave a corner of the lid off to allow some steam to escape.  Cook, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking, for approximately 30-40 minutes (depending on the size of the lentils) until lentils are thoroughly cooked and sauce has thickened.

~ by amyvegan on July 4, 2008.