Festive Toor Dal with Coconut, Ginger and Pomegranate

A festive Indian dal made from yellow toor lentils, creamy with coconut milk and mildly spiced with ginger and chili. The cumin-mustard tadka and the pomegranate seeds make it a special dish for the holidays.

By yumbelo · 2 servings · 45 minutes

Ingredients

• 150 g Toor dal (yellow split pigeon peas)
• 1 tsp Ground turmeric
• 1 pc Tomato
• 20 g Fresh ginger
• 2 pc Garlic cloves
• 1 pc Red chili
• 200 ml Coconut milk
• 150 g Fresh spinach
• 1 tsp Garam masala
• 1 pc Lime
• 2 tbsp Cooking oil
• 1 tsp Cumin seeds
• 1 tsp Mustard seeds
• 2 tbsp Pomegranate seeds
• 1 bunch Fresh coriander
• Salt
• Black pepper

Method

1. Rinse the lentils in a sieve under cold water until the water runs clear. Place them in a pot with 600 ml water and the turmeric and bring to a boil.
2. Skim off the foam, reduce the heat and simmer the lentils for 25 to 30 minutes until they fall apart. Add a little more water if needed.
3. Meanwhile, dice the tomato, finely chop the ginger and garlic cloves, slice the chili into fine rings and roughly chop the coriander.
4. Stir the lentils with a whisk or immersion blender until slightly creamy, leaving some pieces intact. Stir in the coconut milk, diced tomato and spinach and simmer for 3 minutes until the spinach wilts.
5. Season with garam masala, salt and pepper and stir in the juice of half the lime.
6. For the tadka, heat the oil in a small pan over medium heat. Add the cumin and mustard seeds and wait until they sizzle, then briefly fry the garlic, ginger and chili rings until fragrant.
7. Divide the dal between two bowls, pour the hot tadka over it and sprinkle with coriander and pomegranate seeds. Serve the remaining lime cut into wedges on the side.