Coconut Chana Dal

Right now I’m so in like with this cooking blog, Pick Up Limes. I found their videos by accident on Youtube and I straight away got really into it. The recipes look easy too, which is always my number one criteria. I saw this recipe and changed it a bit, and I swear this is basically the best Dal recipe I’ve ever tried. This is the way I made mine, but if you want to check out the original Pick Up Limes recipe you can find it here.

I really didn’t change a lot of it, so it’s only a minor alteration. Sadia the blog writer also said that the recipe is very versatile so you can put whatever you like in it. I decided to use a large red onion instead of brown onions because it sits better in my tummy. I also put a carrot, a potato, and a zucchini because I think they’re nice in a spicy creamy base.

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Coconut Chana Dal

• 2 tablespoon cooking oil
• 1 large red onion, finely chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 red chilli, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon ginger paste
• 1 tablespoon curry powder
• 2 teaspoon turmeric powder
• 1 teaspoon garam masala
• 1 1/2 cup yellow split peas
• 1 stock cube, vegetable or chicken stock
• 1 carrot, diced
• 1 potato, diced
• 1 can coconut milk
• 1 red capsicum, diced
• 1 zucchini, diced

1. Saute onion on high heat until softened, then add in ginger paste, garlic, and chilli.
2. Cook for a couple of minutes, then add in curry powder, turmeric powder, and garam masala.
3. Turn the heat to medium, add in the split peas, the stock cube and 3 cups of boiling water. Please note that I didn’t soak the peas the night before, hence I added an extra cup of boiling water. Let it simmer and cook with the lid partially open for 15 minutes and stirring occasionally to prevent the peas from sticking to the bottom of the pan.
4. Add in carrots and potatoes. Continue cooking partially covered for another 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
5. Taste to see if peas are cook, then add coconut milk and stir in capsicum.
6. Cook for 5 minutes before adding in the zucchini. Continue cooking for another 5 minutes.
7. Serve with a bowl of basmati rice or brown rice.