Red Lentil Dal

This dish is the perfect meal for any day but it tastes especially good on one of those rainy and cold days. You know, those days when you feel cold to the bone. All the fragrant spices will heat you right up and leave your home smelling fantastic. The rich and creamy texture of this Red Lentil Dal is so comforting, it will soon become a staple in your kitchen. Especially since it is so easy and quick to make!

I like to make it with half sprouted lentils and half freshly cooked lentils. However, you could also only use sprouted lentils for even more vitamins and nutrients. The only thing to be careful with is to add the sprouted lentils at the very end, the heat will otherwise destroy most of the precious nutrients.

Don’t worry about having to cook your sprouted lentils. The sprouting process makes the lentils nice and soft and it breaks down certain enzymes, making the lentils easy to digest.

Let’s make this Red Lentil Dal

Step 1 – Prepare the lentils

Take the 100g of not-sprouted lentils and place them in a pot. Add 350ml of water and bring the lentils to a boil. Once the water is boiling, reduce the heat and let it simmer for about 20 minutes until the lentils are soft and tender. Drain the lentils and set them aside.

Step 2 – Make the sauce

Dice the onion and the tomatoes, mince the garlic, and the ginger. Add the coconut oil to a pan, heat it for a few minutes and then add onion, garlic, and ginger. Cook for a few minutes, then add turmeric, cardamom, paprika, salt, and the diced tomatoes. Cook everything for 5 minutes, until the tomatoes are softened.

Step 3 – Combine and garnish

Add the cooked lentils to the spice mix and stir until well combined. Turn off the heat and add the lemon juice. Taste the mix and see if you need to add any more spices. Add the sprouted lentils to the mix and gently combine. Make sure the mix is not too hot anymore, otherwise you will lose some of the nutrients in the sprouted lentils. Leave some sprouted lentils as a garnish on the top.

Step 4 – Enjoy

Enjoy this delicious red lentil dal with some basmati rice and/or naan bread.