Zucchini Carrot Dhal

 

Zucchini Carrot Dhal

 

By Namit Kathoria

 

Preparation time: 15-20 min

Cooking time: 30 min

Serves 6

Ingredients:

1 ½ cups dry red lentils (Masoor dhal) – preferably left to soak overnight

2 medium tomatoes diced

1 large/2 small carrots finely diced

1 zucchini diced

1 large/2 small sweet potatoes diced

1 large/2 small red onions finely diced

1-2 fresh chillies finely chopped (optional/deseeded if you want it less spicy)

3 garlic cloves grated

½ inch fresh turmeric grated/ ½ teaspoon turmeric powder

½ inch ginger grated (with the peel on but scrubbed)

1 teaspoon mustard seeds

1 teaspoon fennel seeds (saunf in Hindi)

2-3 tablespoons olive oil

5 cups vegetable stock

1 teaspoon coriander powder

2 teaspoons cumin powder

1 tablespoon curry powder

1 teaspoon maple syrup

1 teaspoon hot paprika

Himalayan rock salt and black pepper (according to your taste – add at the end)

Up to ½ teaspoon Cayenne pepper/chilli powder according to how spicy you want the dhal to be

10 dried curry leaves or 5 fresh curry leaves

⅛ teaspoon Hing (asafoetida)

 

Garnish with: fresh coriander leaves washed and chopped, lemon wedges, whisked up Greek style soya yoghurt

 

Preparation:

1. Preferably leave the lentils to soak overnight for at least 8-9 hours and rinse them through.
2. Dice the onion, the carrot, the zucchini and the tomato. Grate the ginger and the turmeric. Put everything to the side.
3. Heat up one tablespoon of the olive oil. Put in one piece of onion, wait for it to start to sizzle and when it does, put in the rest of the onion and the tomato. Cook on a medium to high heat, stirring constantly so that the onion doesn’t burn. Wait for the onion to become translucent and the tomato to become soft.
4. Add some more olive oil, the ginger, the garlic, the turmeric, the chopped chilli, the mustard seeds and the fennel seeds. Cook for about 30 seconds stirring constantly.
5. Add in the vegetables, the spices, the curry leaves and some more oil. Stir until the spices have started to blend with the oil and just started to cook. This normally takes around 3 minutes.
6. Add in the maple syrup, the lentils and the vegetable stock. Mix through well.
7. Bring the mixture to a boil, then simmer and cook for about 20-30 minutes until the lentils and the vegetables have become soft. (If you are using a pressure cooker it will only take about 5-8 minutes once pressure has built up.)
8. Mix once more, taste and if needed add salt and pepper or any of the spices.
9. Garnish with fresh coriander, lemon wedges and some Greek style soya yoghurt.
10. If you want to, serve with some brown basmati rice.

Where does your protein come from?

It comes from the lentils, which are a good source of protein. Combine with brown rice and you get all the essential amino acids that your body needs.

 

To get more inspiration for healthy plant-based recipes please see our new nutrition and recipe book “Life” which is due to come out in 2022.