It’s even vegan and gluten-free. It combines classic Indian spices, onion, ginger, garlic and a bit of green chili with red lentils and spinach. A bit of tomato rounds it out. This is a dish that I cook all the time. Maybe not exactly the same way every time but close. It makes a great side dish to any Indian meal. Dal palak would be the Indian name. I doubt you’ll find it done this way on a menu anywhere though. This is homestyle cooking. And it’s easy to make. Really easy.
This is what Indians call dal
Dal palak is a famous dish. This is a simpler version. Straightforward. It’s just something I like to make. There are a million variations out there. I vary it depending on my mood. Hotter sometimes. A few curry leaves when I feel like taking it towards south Indian. Mix it up. You could fry up a bit of mustard seed or whole cumin seed at the start if you wanted to. Tomato paste if you can’t get nice fresh tomatoes. Squeeze of fresh lemon juice. A big handful of chopped cilantro. All sorts of possibilities with this one. This is a baseline recipe. Make it as written. Or take it wherever you feel like going. Indian lentil curry with spinach doesn’t even need to have spinach in it. Although you’d have to change the name I guess.
Really cook your lentils to make creamy lentil curry with spinach
The key to making any red lentil or masoor dal recipes is to first cook the lentils with a bit of turmeric until they disintegrate. Completely lose their shape. Nice and creamy. I love this. Do it all the time. While the dal is cooking, make what’s called a tempering – the flavours that will season the dish. Temperings can be as simple as a few mustard and cumin seeds, fried in oil. Or it can be a bit more involved like is is here. Dal is great like that. It’s a canvas waiting to be painted by whatever suits your fancy. It’s tasty stuff. Lentils and spinach. Practically health food. But it’s tasty. And that’s what counts.
