Red lentil dal – recipe for popular Indian vegan dish

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This red lentil dal is incredibly delicious, creamy, spicy, healthy, vegan and filling. You can serve it for lunch and dinner on its own, with various side dishes or with bread. On cold days, this hearty Indian dish will warm you from the inside. Moreover, it is easy and quick to prepare from common ingredients. So be sure to try the lentil dal! A detailed red lentil dal recipe with exact quantities and step-by-step instructions can be found below.

Red lentil dal – recipe for popular Indian vegan dish

What is Dal?

Dal (also dhal, dahl or daal) is a common main dish in India and is made with pulses. In addition to lentils, it can include chickpeas, beans or peas. Indian cuisine is hardly imaginable without dal. Besides pulses, various spices are the most important ingredient in an Indian dal. The consistency of the dish is similar to a creamy soup, a curry or even a stew. The word “dal” means “dried pulses”, but at the same time it also refers to the dish made from them. The red lentil dahl is also known as masoor dal. It was named after the small red lentils, which have the same name. The lentils have a short cooking time and do not need to be soaked.

Indian dal

Delicious and simple

What could be better for lunch or dinner than a hot dish that tastes delicious, is healthy, fills you up and is quick to cook to boot?! This is exactly the case with the Indian red lentil dal. It is simply the perfect main dish that you can only imagine. And if you love Indian dishes, curry for example, you’re guaranteed to love this daal recipe too.

What makes this dish so healthy?

Lentils, which are the main ingredient in Indian dal, provide the body with various nutrients and are filling. Thanks to vegetables, the dish contains many vitamins. Some spices, such as turmeric, also have a health-promoting effect.

Indian cuisine at home

Do you love Indian cuisine? With this lentil dal recipe, you don’t even have to go to an Indian restaurant to enjoy it. The vegan dal is whipped up in a flash from simple ingredients and will delight you with its distinct flavor and irresistible aroma on the dinner table. Prepare the red lentil dal and bring India to your home! You will definitely not be disappointed with this dish.

Red lentil dal

Serve vegan lentil dal

Indian red lentil dal is especially popular with basmati rice or naan bread. By the way, homemade Indian flat bread tastes best with it. In the article How to make naan bread vegan: recipe for Indian flatbread I show you how to make it yourself. You can also serve the lentil dal with other side dishes or any flatbread. Pure, like a soup, with fresh herbs it tastes just as delicious.

Storing red lentil dal

If your lentil dal is not completely eaten after cooking, and some is left over, store the leftovers in an airtight container, such as a Tupperware, in the refrigerator. After all, in the next few days, the Indian dish will taste no less delicious. The vegan dal will keep for about 5 days. Before serving, you can simply put it in a pan and warm it up on the stove. If the lentil dal has become too thick in the meantime, you can add some water or vegetable milk when reheating.

Lentil dal vegan

This red lentil dal is

  • vegan,
  • creamy,
  • spicy,
  • savory,
  • incredibly delicious,
  • healthy,
  • filling,
  • aromatic,
  • gluten-free,
  • with lots of vitamins,
  • with nutrients,
  • versatile to serve,
  • can be modified to taste,
  • like stew in consistency,
  • ideal for lunch or dinner,
  • just as delicious the next day
  • easy and quick to prepare from common ingredients,
  • perfect for all lovers of Indian cuisine.

Indian red lentil dal recipe

You can find the exact quantities and step-by-step instructions to cook the Indian red lentil dal vegan yourself below in the box recipe.

This vegan lentil dal is very easy to prepare. You don’t need any extraordinary ingredients for the recipe. To cook Indian dal, you need

  • red lentils in particular (after all, it’s a red lentil dal),
  • coconut milk,
  • vegetables (for me it was carrot, bell bell pepper and tomatoes),
  • water or vegetable broth,
  • onions,
  • garlic,
  • ginger,
  • coconut oil for frying,
  • to taste some lime and agave syrup,
  • of course spices (for me it was the Indian spice garam masala, turmeric powder, paprika powder, coriander powder, bell pepper and salt).

Cooking Indian lentil dal: this is how it works

  1. First, prepare all the ingredients. For this, cut carrot, bell bell pepper, tomatoes and onion into small cubes, chop garlic and ginger, wash lentils.
  2. In a deep pan, melt coconut oil, add onion and fry until translucent. Add carrot, bell bell pepper, ginger and garlic and fry briefly. Add spices and continue to fry very briefly.
  3. Add red lentils, cover with water and simmer for about 8 minutes.
  4. Add tomatoes and coconut milk and simmer until lentils are cooked.
  5. Add lime juice, agave syrup, salt, pepper to taste and cook very briefly. Your Indian lentil dal is ready!

Cook red lentil dal

With these tips and tricks you can cook the most delicious red lentil dal

  • Add spices to the lentil dal according to your taste.
  • Use good quality spices, as they make up the flavor of this dish.
  • Sautéing spices briefly at the beginning before adding lentils is important. This allows them to release essential oils and best develop their aroma and flavor. The process, which is very common in Indian cuisine, is called tadka.
  • In addition or instead of carrot and bell bell pepper, you can take other vegetables of your choice that suit the dish.
  • Instead of coconut milk, you can use soy casein or oat casein.
  • Instead of agave syrup, you can use another sweetener of your choice or simply omit it.
  • Instead of water you can use vegetable broth. The vegan daal tastes best with homemade vegetable broth.
  • If you use vegetable broth, you can omit carrot and bell bell pepper in the recipe.
  • Depending on how thick you want your Indian red lentil dal, you can add a little water or vegetable broth in the final step to achieve the desired consistency. After that, be sure to bring the dal to a boil or it will go bad quickly.
  • Depending on the cooking time of your lentils, which is written on the package, the cooking time given in the recipe may differ.
  • Store the leftover red lentil dal in an airtight container in the refrigerator. It will keep for up to 5 days.
  • Indian dal tastes just as delicious in the days following its preparation. Just warm it up before serving.

Popular Indian dish

Did you make the red lentil dal according to this recipe? I’m looking forward to your result, your star rating and your comment on the recipe below, how you liked the Indian dish.

Indian red lentil dal vegan

Indian red lentil dal vegan

This red lentil dal is incredibly delicious, creamy, spicy, healthy, vegan and filling. You can serve it for lunch and dinner on its own, with various side dishes or with bread. On cold days, this hearty Indian dish will warm you from the inside. Moreover, it is easy and quick to prepare from common ingredients. So be sure to try the lentil dal!
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Course Main Course, Side Dish, Soup
Cuisine Indian
Servings 4

Equipment

  • deep pan

Ingredients
  

  • 300 g red lentils
  • 250 ml coconut milk
  • 250 g tomatoes
  • 1 carrot
  • 1 bell bell pepper
  • 2 onions
  • 4 cloves of garlic
  • 20 g ginger (peeled)
  • 2 tbsp coconut oil
  • 3 tbsp lime juice
  • 1 tsp agave syrup
  • 1 tsp garam masala
  • 1 tsp turmeric powder
  • 1 tsp paprika powder
  • 1 tsp coriander powder
  • salt
  • pepper
  • 780 ml water

Instructions
 

  • Cut carrot, bell bell pepper, tomatoes and onions into small cubes. Chop ginger and garlic. Wash red lentils.
  • Melt coconut oil in a deep pan, add onions and fry until translucent.
  • Add carrot, bell bell pepper, ginger and garlic and stir fry for about 3 minutes.
  • Add garam masala, turmeric, paprika and coriander powder and stir fry for a few seconds.
  • Add red lentils, pour water over it, stir and bring to a boil. Put a lid on the pan and cook everything for about 8 minutes.
  • Add tomatoes and coconut milk, stir, bring to a boil and simmer again covered for about 5 minutes until lentils are cooked.
  • Add lime juice and agave syrup (possibly a little more water if the mixture is too thick), season with salt and pepper, cook for about 1 minute and remove from heat.

Notes

  • Use any good quality spices.
  • In addition or instead of carrot and bell bell pepper goes other vegetables that fit the dish.
  • Instead of coconut milk, you can use soy milk or oat milk.
  • Instead of agave syrup, use any other sweetener. It can also be omitted.
  • Instead of water you can use vegetable broth. In this case, carrot and bell bell pepper can be omitted from the recipe.
  • Adjust the amount of water or vegetable broth to taste to achieve the desired consistency from the dal.
  • Depending on the cooking time of the lentils, which is written on the package, the cooking time given here may differ.
  • Note the detailed tips and tricks for cooking Indian red lentil dal at the top of the post.
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