Dal Palak

Dal palak is your go to when you want a dish that provides adequate amount of protein as well as folate!

From Stone Age until now, dal or lentils have been consumed by humans quite frequently. Especially in Indian households, dal is cooked almost every alternate day. Different regions of India have multiple recipes for each kind of dal (there are multiple types of lentils!).

Dal can be made just as is, or can be mixed with vegetables and even meat. But that’s not it! Different types of dal are used to make desserts as well! Filled with nutrition and versatile, dal is a delicious menu item for you to try. Here is a recipe of dal and palak that will tantalize your taste buds.

Health Benefits

Lentils are credited as one of healthiest of foods. Lentils are rich in protein and Vitamin B3, making them excellent replacements for meat-based protein for vegans and vegetarians. Lentils are also full of cholesterol-lowering fiber, benefiting the body by regulating cholesterol and blood sugar levels and preventing digestive tract disorders.

Spinach is also a nutrition filled vegetable, with rich resources folate, vitamin A, B6 and C. Spinach is also an excellent resource of iron, potassium, zinc and magnesium which are essential for proper functioning of multiple systems.

Ingredients

cup tuvar dal (arhar/pigeon pea lentil): 1/2

cup water: 1 1/2

tsp turmeric powder: 1/4

tbsp oil or ghee: 1 1/2

tsp cumin seeds: 1/2

cup onions (chopped): 1/3

cup tomatoes (chopped): 1/3

tsp ginger (crushed): 1

cloves of garlic (crushed): 3-4

green chilli: 1

cup spinach (chopped): 1 1/2

pinch asafoetida: 1

tsp dry fenugreek leaves: 1/4

tsp coriander powder: 1/4

tsp red chili powder: 1/4

cup water: 1/2

tsp lemon juice: 1

tsp garam masala: 1/4

salt to taste

How To Make Dal Palak

For Dal

1. Clean and rinse dal 3 times in plain water and drain.
2. Add dal, water and turmeric powder to a pressure cooker and stir and cover with lid. Let dal cook on a medium flame for about 15 minutes (7-8 whistle counts).
3. When pressures settles down, check dal to see whether it is cooked through. Remove from flame
4. Mash dal coarsely with a wooden spoon and keep aside.

For Tempering:

1. Add ghee to a pan and heat on a medium flame.
2. Add cumin and temper until fragrant and light brown. Keep an eye on them and avoid burning them.
3. Add onions and sauté until translucent. Avoid browning the onions.
4. Add ginger, garlic and green chilli to the pan and fry until raw smell of garlic disappears.
5. Add asafoetida, coriander powder, and red chilli powder; stir and add tomatoes.
6. Add dry fenugreek to the gravy and cook until tomatoes have softened and released oil.
7. Add spinach and mix well and cook until spinach has wilted.
8. Add mashed dal, ½ cup water and salt. Simmer for another 5-6 minutes or until desired consistency is reached. Remove from flame.
9. Sprinkle garam masala and lemon juice on top and serve hot.

Trivia

• Dal or lentils have been consumed by humans since the Neolithic times (last stage of Stone Age).
• In Judaic beliefs lentils are believed to be representative of the circle of life, because of their round shape, and are hence considered as a food for mourners.
• Queen Marie Leszczynska, wife of King Louis the XV, made lentils so fashionable that they were called as the queen’s lentils.
• During the 1930s in the U.S., there was a 33% boost in domestic spinach consumption, despite the depression era, due the fame of Popeye the Sailor Man cartoon.
• In the Medieval times, artists used to extract the green pigments form spinach to make green paint/ink.