Page title and description

Vegetarian mains
Lentil dhal and tarka fried onions with spinach
Ingredients
- 250g spinach
- 150g red lentils
- 2 tbsp curry powder
- 1 tin coconut milk
- 150g white basmati rice
- salt and pepper
- 125g cherry tomatoes
- 2 large or 4 small onions
- oil for frying
- 2 garlic cloves
- 15g fresh coriander
- 1 tbsp curry leaves
- 1 tsp black mustard seeds
- ½ tsp cumin seeds
- 1 lemon
Method
Prep time:
10 min
PT10M
Cooking time:
20 min
PT20M
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Step 1
Put a kettle on to boil. Make sure the spinach is washed well. If using larger perpetual spinach, strip the leaves off their stalks and discard the stalks. Fill a saucepan with boiled water, bring to boil on the hob and cook the spinach for approx. 2 mins, until wilted. Drain, rinse under cold water, squeeze out excess moisture, then chop it up. -
Step 2
Reboil the kettle. Rinse the lentils in a sieve under cold water. Place the lentils in the same, rinsed out pan with the curry powder. Add the coconut milk and 150ml water. -
Step 3
Bring the lentils to a simmer. Leave to cook gently for approx. 20 mins, until softened. Add more water if they start drying out; you want a loose, porridgelike consistency. -
Step 4
Meanwhile, rinse the rice as you did with the lentils. Add it to another saucepan and cover with water from the kettle. Add a good pinch of salt and bring to a gentle simmer. Cover and cook for 15-20 mins, until tender. -
Step 5
While the lentils and rice cook, roughly chop the tomatoes. Add them straight to the lentils when they are ready. -
Step 6
Peel and slice the onions. Heat 2 tbsp oil in a frying pan. Fry the onions on a medium-high heat for 10-12 mins until they soften and start to turn golden. While the onions fry, peel and chop 2 garlic cloves. Roughly chop the coriander. -
Step 7
Add the garlic, curry leaves, black mustard seeds and cumin seeds to the onions. Fry for 2 mins, until the mustard seeds start to pop. Remove from the heat. -
Step 8
When the lentils are cooked, season well with salt and pepper to taste. A little squeeze of lemon juice will enliven it, too. Drain the rice. -
Step 9
Fold the spinach and half the coriander into the lentils. -
Step 10
Serve the dhal with the onions spooned on top. Garnish with the remaining coriander and serve the rice as a side.