Serves 4 to 6
Any purée or souplike dish of spiced lentils, thin or thick, hotly or mildly spiced, is called dal. The variations on this theme are endless.
• 1 cup lentils
• 1 qt. water
• 1 tsp. salt
• 2 Tbs. peeled and grated fresh ginger
• ¼ tsp. ground turmeric
• crushed seeds from 4 cardamom pods
• ¼ tsp. cayenne pepper
• 2½ Tbs. butter
• ½ tsp. crushed dried red pepper
• ½ tsp. ground cumin
• 2 Tbs. chopped fresh cilantro (coriander leaves)
• lemon juice
1. Rinse the lentils and combine them in a medium-sized saucepan with the water and salt. Bring the water to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 1 hour, skimming off the top as needed. Add the grated ginger, turmeric, crushed cardamom seeds, and cayenne and continue simmering until the lentils are perfectly tender. Add more water if the mixture gets too thick—it should have the consistency of a thick soup or thin gravy.
2. Melt the butter in a small skillet and sauté the crushed red pepper and cumin in it for a few minutes. Stir the butter and spices into the lentils, along with the fresh coriander leaves and a little lemon juice.
3. Serve the dal hot with curries and rice.
