Here’s another one of my favorite dal recipes!
If you have been following my blog here or my recipes on Instagram for a while, you know that spinach dal is a staple in my home. I cook it often and typically serve it with quinoa, rice, dosa, or sometimes even with toasted multigrain and seed bread.
Spinach or palak dal recipe is simple and easy to prepare, making it an excellent choice for a weekday meal and great to meal prep too. It’s made with toor dal, spinach, green chilies for heat, turmeric powder, onion, tomatoes, and a few spices.
I usually make spinach dal in two different ways. When I’m short on time, I pressure cook all the ingredients together and then temper it with spices.
However, when I have more time to spare, I prefer making this spinach dal recipe, which is a traditional method. It takes a little longer than the one-pot cooker method, but tastes better too.
I hope you try this healthy spinach dal recipe and enjoy it as much as we do!
Spinach Dal
Ingredients
- 1 cup toor dal rinsed
- 2 cups water
- 1 box baby spinach rinsed and chopped
- 2 tbsp coconut oil or any cooking oil
- 1/4 tsp mustard seeds
- 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
- 2-3 dried red chilies split into halves
- a pinch of hing
- 2 cloves of garlic pounded or minced
- green chilies, slit to taste
- 1 small onion chopped
- 1 large tomato chopped
- 1/4 tsp turmeric powder
- salt
- lemon juice of half a lemon
Instructions
- Add toor dal or lentils and water to a pressure cooker and cook until the lentils are cooked well. Turn off the heat. Once the pressure releases, gently mash the cooked lentils and keep aside.
- Heat oil in a medium-sized cooking pot or a deep skillet.
- Add mustard seeds and cumin seeds, dried red chilies, and hing.
- Add and sauté garlic until aromatic.
- Add green chilies and chopped onion, and sauté until the onion is translucent. Then add the chopped tomatoes, sprinkle with salt, cover, and cook until the tomatoes are soft.
- Add turmeric powder, sauté for a couple seconds and add in chopped spinach. Stir fry until spinach soft and cooked.
- Transfer mashed dal/lentils, and add enough water as per desired consisteny. Allow the lentils to come to a boil and adjust salt if necessary. Continue cooking for 2-3 minutes until dal is thicker and frothy. Turn off heat and drizzle lemon juice.
- Serve with dosa, toasted bread, or rice. Enjoy!
Video
If you tried this recipe, let me know how you liked it by leaving a comment below or tagging a picture of your preparation on Instagram @swaadista
Happy cooking, happy eating!
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