Healthy Food Recipes: dhal recipes

Do not let the name of this recipe deceive you into thinking that it is a pudding or sweet sugar filled daal.

The reason that I call this dal recipe my 'sweet' yellow daal is due to my method of cooking. I gently fry a combination of carrot, swede, parsnip and onion - then with a few more added ingredients I pour tiny amounts of water into the pan - this is just to cook the vegetables not to stew them - I only add more tiny drops of water when the vegetables look to be drying out. The result is a delicious dish of naturally sweet vegetables that tastes so intensely sweet that you would think that I had added sugar to the recipe.

I only use a small amount of my mild curry powder and lots of garlic to season and spice this daal recipe. It is a very very mild dish indeed as far a spices are concerned but the flavours are absolutely fantastic.

If you like, fresh or dried chillies can be added this dish for some heat if desired, but you really must try it mild first ....that is unless you are chilli mad!

My dal recipe is fully vegan and gluten free.

This recipe is very healthy for you as lentils, swedes, parsnips, carrots , onions and garlic have multiple vitamins, minerals and fibre that help your body function correctly.

The sweetness of my red lentil daal does not clash with the savoury factor of this dish because it is all so natural with no added sugars or flavourings.

Once you taste this amazing meal you will be making again and again.

Ingredients for Sweet Yellow Dal
1 Cup Red lentils
1 Large Carrot (chopped small)
1 Large Parsnip (chopped small)
1/4 Swede (chopped small)
1 Small onion (diced)
1 Garlic cloves (minced)
dried Coriander leaves (large pinch)
1 large tsp Chef Jeenas Mild curry powder
Tiny pinch Ginger powder
Salt to season
Water
Rice bran oil

See the sweet vegetables in only a tiny amoung of water.

How to cook a Sweet Yellow Daal

Rinse the red lentils thoroughly.

Bring to the boil in lightly salted water and simmer for 25 minutes or until the lentils are cooked.

Use some rice bran oil to gently fry the onions, swede, carrot and parsnip for approximately 10 minutes. Be sure to stir frequently so that the vegetables do not burn.

After about 10 - 15 minutes add the garlic and stir well for a few minutes. Add the curry powder and coriander leaves stir well for a few minutes then add a small amount of water.

Simmer on a low heat and stir very often until the vegetables are cooked to a soft texture.

Do not pour water over the vegetables - just add tiny amounts of water to the vegetables as and when you need it to stop the vegetables drying out and burning.

Do not turn the vegetables into a stew by adding too much water or else it will ruin the dish.

Add salt to season.

When the vegetables are cooked drain the water completely from the cooked red lentils.

Add the red lentils to the cooked vegetables stir well and check if it needs more salt to taste.

You can serve my sweet red lentil daal with rice, bread or even pasta.

We ate ours with buckwheat pasta spirals.

Enjoy.

My tasty green lentils dhal recipe is a fantastic accompaniment to most meals. You can eat it with bread, rice and even chips (fries).

It is a dry dhal recipe and which not only uses green lentils but green petite pois peas too.

Green lentils are very healthy for you as they contain lots of vitamins and minerals like Iron, Folate, Copper, Maganese and even the happy chemical Tryptophan - as well as being high in fibre.

I also use my mild curry powder and 2 red chillies pepper to make this green lentil dhal recipe but you can add more or less chilli to suite your tastes. This is a dhal that taste very good without any heat at all so it is up to you.

Ingredients for green lentil dal

3 Portobello Mushrooms (chopped)
1 Cup cooked Green Lentils
1/2 - 3/4 Frozen Petite Pois Peas
1 Carrot (diced)
Rice bran oil
2 Tomatoes
1 Garlic clove (minced)
2 Inch fresh ginger (grated)
3-4 Tbsp Water
Salt to season
3 tsp dried methi leaves
Large pinch Dried curry leaves
1/2 tsp Turmeric
1/2 tsp Cumin powder
1 Large tsp Jeenas mild curry powder
2 Red chillies (diced)
Fresh coriander

How to make a Green Lentil Dhal

In a small blender place tomatoes, curry leaves, methi, cayenne and turmeric and blend into a paste.

Use a fair amount of oil in a large pan.

On a medium heat cook your carrots for 5-7 minutes.

Add garlic and ginger, stir very well and cook for one minute.

Add the curry powder stir well and cook for one more minute.

Add tomato paste base and red chillies to the carrots, stir well.

Season the daal with salt and simmer for 10 - 15 minutes.

Do not boil or you will destroy the spices.

Add frozen peas and cumin simmer for a 5 minutes then add mushrooms.

Simmer for another 10 minutes.

Add the tablespoons of water as you go along to loosen the dhal only.