Every now and then I find myself craving for a specific type of food and I always think it is my body speaking to me, telling me I’m in need of some kind of nutrient. Apparently, there’s no scientific support for this theory, since our cravings are totally tied to our eating patterns that are in turn more related to psychological mechanisms and cultural baggage than to actual physiological needs. In spite of it all, although I’m a science believer, I usually follow my impulses when it comes to food cravings. Particularly a couple of weeks ago, when I was strongly fancying lentils, and couldn’t think of a single bad thing about lentils nutritionally speaking.
I had had a dal dish pending in my “to try” list for ever so I went for a refreshing vegetarian one and totally loved it. *In case you’re wondering, dal means lentils, but for Indians the term is generic to lentils, dried beans, chickpeas, split peas both skinned and unskinned and split peas flours. Dal is an everyday source of protein for most Indians and it can be as soupy or as thick as desired. (*Source: Madhur Jaffrey. 2010. “Curry Easy” Ebury Press. pp. 178-179.)
Would you like to give it a try? It’s a great one pot complete meal!
Dhal Shorba with Summer Veggies
- Servings: 2
- Time: 45 minutes
- Difficulty: easy
Ingredients
- a dash of olive oil
- 1/2 onion,chopped
- 1 garlic clove, pressed
- 1 tsp fresh ginger, grated
- 1/4 red pepper + 1/4 green pepper, chopped
- 2 tomatoes, diced
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 & 1/2 tsp turmeric
- 1 & 1/2 tsp curry powder
- Chilli powder to taste (adjust to your spiciness tolerance)
- 1 liter vegetable stock
- 200 g Dal (lentils) of your choice (I used brown lentils)
- 1 carrot, sliced
- 1/2 eggplant, diced
- 1/2 zucchini, diced
- Lemon wedges to serve
- a dollop of greek or plain yogurt (optional, skip for vegan option)
- Fresh cilantro to garnish (optional)
Preparation
- Heat the oil in the pressure cooker pot* and sauté the onion, garlic, ginger and peppers until translucent over medium heat.
- Add the tomatoes, season with salt and pepper and stir fry until soft.
- Incorporate powder spices, stir to mix and cook some seconds till fragrant.
- Pour the stock, stir in the dal and the rest of vegetables.
- Pressure cook* for 15 minutes (adjust to your pressure cooker specifications)
- Serve with a dollop of Greek yogurt and garnish with cilantro if desired
- Enjoy!
PS. I like to notice my dal and veggies while eating them, but at step 4. you can also pour stock, add the dal, and pressure cook it* for 15 minutes. Once ready, roughly blend it using an immersion blender and add the vegetables and simmer until they have softened. Repeat step 6 and 7.
*Always follow your pressure cooker instructions and manage it with due care.
Filed under: Indian Tagged: cheap and cheerful, clean eating, food cravings, healthy food, high fiber, lentils, low fat, pressure cooker, quick and easy, spicy food, vegan option, vegetable protein, vegetarian, whole food
