Jeanette's Healthy Living

Where delicious and healthy come together

  • Home
  • Recipes
    • List of All Recipes (alphabetical)
    • Breakfast
    • appetizers
    • soups
    • salads
    • main courses
    • side dishes
    • dips and sauces
    • beverages
    • smoothies
    • Desserts and Cookies
  • Special Diets
    • gluten-free
    • dairy-free
    • vegetarian
    • vegan
    • Liquid/Soft Food Diet
    • Pureed Food Diet
    • Low Residue Diet
  • Cancer Cooking
  • Faith
  • Healthy Living
    • Healthy Living
    • travel
  • About
    • About
    • Contact Us
    • Work With Me
    • Media Features
    • Terms & Conditions

Simple Lentil Dal with Whole Cinnamon, Cardamom, and Cloves

July 22, 2010 by Jeanette 3 Comments

Jump to RecipePrint Recipe
24 shares
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Yummly

Lentils are considered a “superfood,” providing both a source of high protein and fiber (soluble and insoluble), iron, as well as folate, which reduces the risk of birth defects.  Its high fiber content makes it an anti-cancer food.

Lentils come in different colors – red, yellow, green and black, and are eaten all over the world, including the Near East, India, France, Italy, Greece and China.

Lentils are inexpensive and easy to cook, as no soaking is needed, and they cook in 10-40 minutes, depending on the variety.  Two of my favorite lentil dishes are Melissa Clark’s Red Lentil Soup and Dals, an India preparation of lentils, a stew-like concoction which contain various fragrant spices.

Dals are prepared using different types of lentils (to be discussed further in another blog entry), cooked with spices, and typically finished with sauteed onions, garlic and ginger, and more spices for a spark of flavor.  Today, I made this dal from Suvir Saran’s cookbook, Indian Home Cooking (I doubled the recipe to make sure I had extras), which I highly recommend for anyone interested in preparing easy, authentic Indian dishes at home.

 

5 from 2 votes
Print

Simple Lentil Dal with Whole Cinnamon, Cardamon and Cloves

Course Main Course
Cuisine Indian
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 50 minutes
Total Time 1 hour
Servings 4
Calories 275 kcal

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 tablespoon oil
  • 1 stick cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
  • 3 whole cloves
  • 4 green cardamon pods
  • 1 cup lentils washed, drained
  • 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
  • 4 cups cold water
  • 1 teaspoon salt or to taste

Tempering Oil

  • 1 tablespoon oil
  • 1 medium onion finely chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic mashed to a paste
  • 1 tablespoon ginger minced
  • 1 hot green chile pepper minced, remove seeds for less heat

Garnish

  • 1/4 cup fresh cilantro chopped
  • 1/2 lemon or lime

Instructions

  1. Heat the oil with the cinnamon stick in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Cook, stirring, until the cinnamon unfurls, 1 to 2 minutes.

  2. Add the cumin, cloves, and cardamom and cook, stirring, until the cumin turns a golden brown color, about 1 more minute. Add the lentils, turmeric, water, and salt. Bring to a boil and skim well, Turn down the heat and simmer, covered, until the lentils are soft, 20 to 40 minutes, depending on the type of lentil used. Add more water during cooking, if necessary. Taste for salt and add more if you need to.

  3. Remove cinnamon stick. Use immersion blender to gently puree some of the lentils. Alternatively, ladle about 1/2 cup of the lentils into a small bowl and mash them with a spoon. Return the mashed lentils to the pot and give the dal a stir. Continue cooking at a simmer, uncovered, for 5 minutes to thicken. If you like a thicker dal, puree more of the lentils until you reach the desired consistency. If you like a thinner dal, add water.

Tempering Oil

  1. Heat the oil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook until it just begins to brown around the edges, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic paste, ginger, and minced chile and cook just to mellow the raw taste of the garlic, 10 to 15 seconds.

Finishing The Dish

  1. Stir half of the tempering oil into the dal along with half of the cilantro and all of the lemon or lime juice. Simmer very gently for 5 minutes Transfer the dal to a serving bowl, pour the remaining tempering oil over the top, and sprinkle with the remaining cilantro. Serve hot with basmati rice and Indian bread (naan or kulcha are my favorites).

Recipe Notes

Adapted from Indian Home Cooking, by Suvir Saran

Nutrition Facts
Simple Lentil Dal with Whole Cinnamon, Cardamon and Cloves
Amount Per Serving
Calories 275 Calories from Fat 81
% Daily Value*
Fat 9g14%
Sodium 588mg26%
Potassium 538mg15%
Carbohydrates 35g12%
Fiber 16g67%
Sugar 2g2%
Protein 13g26%
Vitamin A 100IU2%
Vitamin C 6.4mg8%
Calcium 58mg6%
Iron 4.5mg25%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Related Posts
Filter by
Post Page
vegan Cooking For Cancer vegetarian dairy-free gluten-free soups Beans/Legumes Liquid/Soft Food Diet Clean Eating Slow Cooker New Year Pantry Recipe Dinner main courses Instant Pot back-to-school whole grain healthy choices cruciferous vegetables csa Asian Cancer Faith vegetables green leafy vegetables salads side dishes
Sort by
Slow Cooker Greek Lentil Soup - this simple soup is absolutely delicious and so satisfying, perfect for a cold winter day

Slow Cooker Greek Lentil Soup (Fakies) Recipe

2020-02-10 05:00:37
jeanette

18

Pressure Cooker Lentil Chili - lentils take just 14 minutes to cook in a pressure cooker - this vegetarian/vegan chili is deliciously hearty

Pressure Cooker/Instant Pot Lentil Chili Recipe

2020-01-06 05:00:19
jeanette

18

Slow Cooker Vegetarian Lentil Chili Soup - warm up your belly with this healthy, hearty flavorful soup

Slow Cooker Vegetarian Lentil Chili Soup Recipe

2019-01-15 00:00:00
jeanette

18

Clean Eating Lentil Soup © Jeanette

Clean Eating Lentil Soup Recipe

2019-01-07 05:00:34
jeanette

18

Instant Pot Vegetarian Lentil Tacos - flavorful, delicious vegetarian/vegan lentils served in burrito bowls or in tortillas/taco shells

Instant Pot Vegetarian Lentil Tacos Recipe

2018-09-03 05:00:27
jeanette

18

Slow Cooker Lentil Smoked Ham Soup - made with mineral rich chicken bone broth and a smoky ham bone, this simple lentil soup is rich and flavorful

Slow Cooker Lentil Smoked Ham Soup

2017-12-06 05:00:25
jeanette

18

Thai Coconut Curry Lentil Soup - coconut milk, lemongrass, kaffir lime leaves and Thai red curry paste are key ingredients in this creamy, fragrant lentil soup

Thai Coconut Curry Lentil Soup

2017-04-03 05:00:00
jeanette

18

Lentil Vegetable Farro Chard Soup

2016-10-05 05:00:38
jeanette

18

Daniel Plan Vegetable Lentil Chicken Sausage Soup - this soup is packed with healthy ingredients - turmeric, lots of fresh vegetables, lentils and some chicken sausage for flavoring

Vegetable Lentil Chicken Sausage Soup Recipe {Daniel Plan Recipe}

2016-03-03 14:01:06
jeanette

18

Superfoods Salad

Lentil Kale Whole Grain Beet Winter Squash Mushroom Salad

2013-10-16 05:00:05
jeanette

18

24 shares
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Yummly

Filed Under: Beans/Legumes, gluten-free, main courses, Pantry Recipe, side dishes, vegan, vegetarian Tagged With: Dal, Indian, Lentils

« White Bean and Cauliflower Soup Recipe – Comforting Soups
Simple “Superman” Spinach Salad {Superfoods} »

Comments

  1. Julie Saldana says

    January 14, 2019 at 12:46 am

    With the benefits from lentils, I appreciate your recipes today. These are the things I’m looking for. Thanks for sharing.

    Reply
  2. Lauren Harris says

    September 14, 2019 at 12:19 am

    5 stars
    Ahhhhhmazing! I’ve been looking for a Dahl
    Recipe like this for years. It’s that good and more! I also added some Harrissa at the end. So good!

    Reply
    • Jeanette says

      September 19, 2019 at 3:12 pm

      So glad you enjoyed this dal – love the addition of harissa for some spiciness!

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Hi! I'm Jeanette - welcome! Step into my kitchen, where you'll find healthy dishes packed with flavor and goodness.

[Read More …]

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Get Your Free e-Book!

Weekly College Meal Planner

Good recipes come to those who subscribe!

Archives

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
Copyright © 2016 Jeanette's Healthy Living · Privacy Policy
24 shares
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Pinterest
  • Yummly