Yellow Dhal, Spinach and Exotic Mushrooms

A delicious dhal curry served with carrot salad and wholewheat roti.

INGREDIENTS

For the yellow dhal:

4 cups / 820g boiled & fully cooked yellow split peas
30ml / 2 Tbsp Ghee
1 onion, finely chopped
2 tsp whole cumin seeds
1 tsp black mustard seeds
2 tsp freshly crushed garlic
Handful of curry leaves fresh or dry
2 tsp turmeric
1 tsp masala
2 large ripe tomatoes, cut into small blocks
1-1,5 L boiling water, depending on how thick you’d like your dhal
60g butter, cut into cubes
180g baby spinach, rinsed & blanched in boiling water then squeeze out the excess water and roughly chop the spinach. See note.
400-600g exotic mushrooms, sautéed, season with salt & pepper, see note.
A handful of fresh coriander, roughly chopped

Carrot salad:

3 medium carrots, peeled and grated
1 small red onion, peeled & thinly sliced
2 limes, squeezed
1 tbsp. olive oil
Salt and pepper to season

Wholewheat roti:

3 cups wholewheat flour
3 Tbsp sugar
2 cups boiling water
60ml oil

METHOD

To make the yellow dhal, heat ghee in a Le Creuset Signature Buffet Casserole, sauté the chopped onion, cumin seeds, black mustard seeds, garlic & curry leaves for 3-5 minutes on a low heat until the onions are translucent.

Add the turmeric and masala then add the chopped tomatoes sauté for 5-10 minutes on a low heat then add the cooked yellow split peas and water. Simmer on a low heat for 15-20 minutes then add the butter and stir it into the dhal until it melts away into the dhal.

Add the blanched & chopped baby spinach, sautéed mushrooms & chopped coriander.

To make the carrot salad, combine the grated carrots with sliced red onion, lime juice, olive oil & season with salt and pepper.

To prepare the wholewheat roti, in a large mixing bowl combine flour and sugar. Add boiling water & stir to combine with the flour using a wooden spoon to make a dough then add the oil and incorporate into the dough.

Divide the dough into 12 equal sized balls.

Lightly sprinkle flour onto a clean surface and using a rolling pin, roll each dough ball out into a circle that is about 2mm thick. Use more flour if your dough is starts to stick as you roll it out into circles.

Heat a large non-stick pan to a high heat and ‘toast’ your roti for about 30 seconds- 1 minute on each side. The roti should get light brown speckles on the surface and bubble as it cooks. If you toast the roti on the pan for too long it will get crispy rather than be soft and tender.

Serve the roti with the dhal in bowls and a spoonful of salad on top.

Note:

What does blanched mean?

Prepare a bowl with cold water and ice. Heat a pot of boiling water with salt, cook your spinach briefly for about 60 seconds then remove the spinach from the boiling water, place it in a bowl with cold water and ice to cool it down as quickly as possible. You can use this cooking method for other vegetables like carrots, peas and green beans, only the cooking time varies, the process remains the same.

What does sautéed mean?

Heat a pan to a medium-high temperature. Add a little oil to the hot pan and gently fry until cooked. Use brown mushrooms or button mushrooms instead if you cannot find exotic mushrooms.

Image and recipe by Food By Dash