I will start by saying that this is by no means an authentic recipe. It my interpretation of the classic dish and, I mean no disrespect. I love indian cuisine and spices in general, so this natural for me that my mind wanders and I decide to add what feels right.
Dhal of Dal is an Indian meal I like to make when I have nothing in the fridge. The one thing I always have on hand are spices. I an fortunate enough to live upstairs from a shop that sells bulk spices. It’s a match made in heaven, because I do use spices in most, if not all of the dishes I cook.
I also love using Épices de cru spice blends. You should definitely check out their nordic spices collection. They have unique blend that are endemic to northern Quebec.
I use red lentils for this recipe. You should definitely wash them properly to remove some of the starch. I usually start things off by assembling my spice blend
I have to admin that my spice blend is never identical. I eyeball the quantities, but they are probably similar proportions every time.
I have 2 parts to my mix. Fresh spices that I will toast and some that are already ground into a powder so that I don’t need to.
The spices I roast are:
- crushed cardamom pods
- cumin seeds
- black and yellow mustard seeds
- coriander seeds
- a piece of a spicy chili you like
- black peppercorns and also an indian variety that is milder, but very fragrant
There are multiple ways that you can extract more flavors out of your spices: Dry toasting and frying are my favorite ones.Last time I tried experimenting with both and it turned out great. I started of by dry toasting the bulk spices before crushing the down into a coarse power using a mortar and pestle.
I then use this mixture to dilute the essential oils in a decent amount of vegetable oil. You definitely don’t want to burn the spices at this point, so you should use medium heat. Then I throw in a large, thinly sliced white onion to the mix. You can use salt at this point to sweat the onion.
After the onions are properly sweated and the spices have coated the onion, I add garlic and freshly grated ginger. The smell will be unbelievable at this point!
To this mixture I add my lentils (I usually do batches of 2 cups), which is good for 4-6 portions if served with rice.
I like to blend the lentils with the onion mix properly before adding water. For 2 cups of lentils I add at least 3 cups of water. I bring this to a gentle simmer to cook the lentils slowly. Red lentils cook quite fast, so It won’t take to much time anyways.
Recently, I started to add diced potatoes as well. It makes an amazing difference! It makes the dhal creamier, but also you get a bit of different textures when you take a bite. Monitor the dhal to make sure it does not dry out. You want it to be creamy, so it needs enough liquid. If you want to be decadent, you can substitute any amount of water with coconut milk.
Cover your pot and let it cook for a good 15 minutes. You should taste it once in a while to assess if the lentils are cooked to your taste.
Hope you like this recipe, feel free to reach out if you have questions or comments!