dal dhokli
One pot meals are the new thing. There are tons of websites and inspiration boards teeming with great recipes for one pot pastas, casseroles etc. They're good, but generally not very...diverse. Don't get me wrong, I like a one pot chilli or tomato basil pasta as much as the next guy. But, when you're going on to your 5th month of cold, snowy weather, sometimes your dinners need a little spicing up.
I don't know about you but Indian food, or any Asian cuisine for that matter, doesn't seem like it could become a delicious and easy one pot dinner. But, it is possible.
This vegan dish, of lentils (dal) and vegetables with amazingly delicious whole wheat dumplings (dhokli) is a real winner. And, aside from a small frying pan, can be cooked entirely in one big ol' pot.
If you look this recipe up, you'll see that it doesn't call for the addition of any vegetables. But, I think the vegetables really add something and make this soup delicious and satisfying as as a complete meal. I've added zucchini and eggplant to mine but you could also add pumpkin or squash, following the same method.
I would serve this on its own, or with some fluffy basmati rice.
Ingredients
Dumplings
3/4 cups whole wheat flour
1 /4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground turmeric
1/8 tsp red chilli powder or cayenne
1 green chilli - washed and chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 - 1/2 cup water
Dal
1/2 cup yellow toor dal - rinsed and soaked overnight
3 cups water
canola oil
salt to taste
1 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp red chili powder or paprika
1 tomato - chopped
2 small eggplants - chopped
1 zucchini - chopped
1 tsp ginger paste or freshly minced ginger
2 tbsp raw peanuts
1 tsp jaggery, palm sugar or coconut sugar (if you don't have these or cannot find them, leave out)
1 tbsp lemon juice
Seasoning
1 tsp black mustard seeds
1 tsp cumin seeds
2 whole dried red chillies
Method
1. to make the dumplings, place flour, salt, turmeric, chilli powder, chopped green chilli, salt and oil in a bowl and combine. slowly add some water and mix with your hands or a fork, until you achieve a dough ball. knead the dough in the bowl for a minute or two, until you achieve a firm, smooth dough, adding more water if required.
2. divide the dough ball into two and, on a lightly floured surface, roll out two 7" circles - approximately 1/8 inch thick.
3. cut each circle into small squares. place the squares on a large plate and cover with cling wrap. set aside.
2. discard their soaking liquid and place the lentils in a heavy bottom pot and add water, 1 tsp canola oil, turmeric, ginger, chilli powder, jaggery or coconut sugar and peanuts. bring to a boil over high heat. once boiling, reduce heat to medium low and cook, simmering, until the lentils are soft and falling apart. approximately 30 minutes. if the pot looks dry, add more water. we want to achieve a soupy consistency.
3. when lentils are cooked, add tomatoes, eggplant and zucchini. cook 10 more minutes or until vegetables are soft.
4. to make the seasoning for the soup, in a small frying pan, heat 2 tbsp of oil. when the oil is hot, add mustard seeds, cumin seeds and dried chillies. once seeds have popped, pour the entire mixture into the dal.
6. add your prepared dumplings to the dal and cook over medium heat for 15 minutes or until cooked through. the texture should be chewy and pasta-like with no raw flour taste. if the dal looks too thick, add some water.
7. season with lemon juice, salt to taste and garnish with cilantro.
Serve with basmati rice.