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    Vegan tarka dal

    A northern Indian lentil curry simmered until it thickens to the consistency of porridge, then finished with spices sizzled in plant butter. Cheap, filling and largely hands-off.

    Prep
    10 minutes
    Cook
    45 minutes
    Makes
    3 portions
    Difficulty
    Easy
    Vegan tarka dal

    In one portion

    These are the figures for one medium portion. In Susten, each person at your table gets their own portion size.

    To see how one portion fits your day, work out your daily calories and protein.

    Calories
    635kcal
    Protein
    18g
    Carbs
    93g
    Fat
    20g

    Where the calories come from

    • Protein 12%
    • Carbs 59%
    • Fat 29%
    Fibre
    7.7 g
    Sugar
    5.2 g
    Salt
    0.03 g

    What it costs at Tesco

    Susten matches every ingredient to a Tesco product. Your shopping list names each one, with its price.

    £1.81a portion

    We base this on how much of each product the recipe uses. Half a pack costs half the price.

    We last updated these Tesco prices on .

    Ingredients

    Amounts for
    • 65g plant butter
    • 2 ½ green chillies, deseeded and cut into chunks
    • 1 ¼ onions, finely chopped
    • 8 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
    • 9g fresh ginger, finely chopped
    • 3g dried curry leaves
    • 1 ¼ tomatoes, chopped
    • ⅔ tsp ground cumin
    • 260g red lentils, rinsed
    • 1.2l water
    • ⅔ tsp turmeric
    • 1 ¼ tsp cumin seeds, for the tadka
    • 1 ¼ shallots, halved lengthways and sliced, for the tarka
    • 9g fresh coriander, sprigs
    • 290g basmati rice, to serve

    Method

    1. Put the lentils in a sieve and rinse them under the cold tap until the water running off is clear. Drain.

    2. Set a heavy pan over a medium-high heat on the hob and melt two-thirds of the plant butter in it. Fry the chilli for 1 minute, until it begins to blister, then add the onion and let it soften.

    3. Turn the heat down to medium and stir in the curry leaves with the garlic and ginger. Keep stirring until the garlic is golden, about 1 minute.

    4. Tip in the tomato and ground cumin and cook for about 2 minutes, until the tomato has broken down to a paste.

    5. Stir in the turmeric, then the lentils and water, with a good pinch of salt. Once it is simmering, cover and cook gently for 25 minutes, giving it a stir every so often so it does not catch.

    6. Take the lid off for a final 10 minutes of simmering, until it is as thick as porridge, with some lentils broken down and others still holding their shape. Taste and season.

    7. Now make the tarka. Melt the rest of the plant butter over a medium-low heat in a small frying pan, then stir the cumin seeds in it until they are lightly golden. Add the shallot, and once it is tinged gold, tip everything straight into the dal and stir it through.

    8. Cook the rice separately: boil it in salted water until tender, then drain. Spoon the dal over and top with sprigs of coriander.

    Adapted from RecipeTin Eats

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