Vegan and Vegetarian

My ‘go to’ South Indian dal recipe

01.05.2015 by georgie // 10 Comments

When I published my dal makhani recipe a month or so ago a friend said she loved the sound of it but didn’t have the time to make it (it does take several hours), and do I have any other dal recipes that are quicker? Well, I love nothing more than a request, and of course! I’m just ashamed it’s taken me so long to upload to be honest (I blame the madness of Christmas and New Year).

So, my ‘go to’ South Indian dal. It isn’t strictly authentic, but it is based on several trips to South Indian and eating lots of dal laden with mustard seeds, curry leaves and coconut. This is a real store cupboard comfort food recipe for me; I always have yellow split peas in the cupboard, (it covers so many cuisines – Greek Fava, Swedish soup, Pease pudding, Indian dal…), low fat coconut milk is a key dry store staple for me and my biggest tip? Buy a big bag of curry leaves when you find them and pop them in the freezer. They freeze well and it means they’re always on hand. (You’ll find them in any Indian supermarket or sometimes online. You can use dry if you have them but they’re not as punchy and don’t fry as well).

It might not look like much but this dal is incredibly comforting and really is delicious. It is wholesome, filling and packed with iron and it freezes wonderfully, so perfect for a rainy day. Sarah, I hope you like it!

MY ‘GO TO’ SOUTH INDIAN DAL

Serves 4 – 6 (serve it as is for a filling and hearty soup or with basmati rice as a meal)

300g yellow split peas, soaked for 20-30 minutes before cooking
Groundnut oil or coconut oil
2 onions, peeled and finely chopped
4 cloves of garlic, finely sliced
a thumb sized piece of ginger, peeled and finely chopped
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 heaped teaspoon ground cumin
1 heaped teaspoon heaped ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tin of low fat coconut milk
20 curry leaves
1 teaspoon black mustard seeds
1 green chilli, deseeded and finely sliced
Half a lemon
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Pour a lug of groundnut or coconut oil into a large non-stick saucepan and place on a medium low heat. Add the onion, ginger, most of the garlic and saute the veg for 10 minutes until softened but not coloured. Add the turmeric, cumin, coriander and cinnamon and fry for a further 2- 3 minutes.

Drain the yellow split peas, rinse and add to the pan along with the can of coconut milk. Add 600ml of water to the pan, or more, ensure that the split peas are completely covered. Gently bring to the boil and then lower to a simmer and cover the pan. Cook over a low heat for around 1 hour and 15 – 20 mins, so that the split peas have completely cooked through and have turned to mush. Check the dal every so often during cooking, and top up the water if it feels like it is getting too thick. You’ll probably need to add a splash here and then. Squeeze in the lemon juice, season to taste and leave to one side.

EDIT/ NB: Someone just asked me on Instagram if I pureed my dal, as it looks so smooth, which I didn’t. But having said that I did use yellow split peas I bought in Greece which become very creamy. If your peas haven’t completely broken down then do try pureeing them with a hand/ stick blender for a smooth finish.

Add a few tablespoons of groundnut or coconut oil to a small frying pan and place on a medium heat. After a minute or so add the mustard seeds and fry for around 30 secs – 1 minute until the seeds start to pop. Once they do add the garlic, curry leaves and chilli and fry everything for a few minutes, until the garlic and chilli are golden and the leaves look translucent.

Check your dal, as it will probably have thickened a little as it cools, so add a splash of boiling water if it feels too thick. Serve the dal in bowls, and drizzle a little of the temper over the dal- the flavoured oil and leaves, chilli and mustard seeds.

TIPS:

l love this recipe with spinach added at the end of cooking. Stir in a handful of frozen spinach balls for the last 5 – 10 minutes of cooking, or a large bag of baby spinach chopped up for the last few minutes. Great for an added iron boost.
I didn’t have any fresh green chillies to add to my temper for the picture above, so I ended up just giving it a drizzle of chilli oil before eating, which is totally acceptable too!

Healthy cinnamon, fig and coconut granola

12.01.2014 by georgie // 9 Comments

Bar a vat of coffee, I was never much of a breakfast person until I started dating Pete. (Pete is one of those naturally skinny people who has to eat every few hours or becomes mute and/ or grumpy). Now however it is my favourite meal of the day. For the last few months we have started the day with a bowl of chopped seasonal fruit and yoghurt, which has been perfect but now that the days are getting colder we’re finding we need something a little more filling. Porridge has made a welcome wintery return, however you can only have porridge for so many days on the trot without feeling like you are living off wallpaper paste. And cereal is pretty much a no-no in the Hayden household now (Sugar! Sugar!), and although some are ok, a lot of my dear boys favourites have been kicked to the curb. What to do?

Cue: homemade granola. With Pete’s nut allergy it wasn’t easy finding a granola or muesli that was nut free and wasn’t full of sugar. And when I did find one that was ok, it was crazy expensive! Much cheaper and more satisfying to make your own I say. So today I set about creating a delicious and healthy nut-free granola, to pimp up our fruit and yoghurt breakfast. It is incredibly quick to make, you know exactly what goes into it and, without blowing my own trumpet, it is pretty bloomin’ good.

Cinnamon, coconut and fig granola — Healthy cinnamon, coconut and fig granola

HEALTHY CINNAMON, FIG AND COCONUT GRANOLA

Makes around 16 servings

2 tablespoons groundnut oil (or any flavourless oil – light olive oil, sunflower, veg etc)
125ml runny honey
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
275g rolled oats
125g mixed seeds (I use a mixture of sunflower, pumpkin, sesame and poppy seeds. Around 100g of the larger seeds and then a few spoonfuls of the little ones)
50g unsweetened coconut flakes
100g dried figs, chopped
75g dried cranberries

Preheat your oven to 150/ gas mark 2.

In a large bowl whisk together the oil and honey.

Crush the sea salt with your fingers into the bowl and add the oats, seeds, ground ginger and cinnamon. Mix everything together well with a large spoon and divide the mixture between two baking trays. Spread it out as much as possible and then pop into the oven for 20 minutes. Remove the trays from the oven a couple of times during cooking and mix everything up so it goldens nice and evenly.

After 20 minutes the granola should look pretty golden. Stir in the coconut, chopped figs and cranberries and pop the trays back into the oven for a further 6 – 8 minutes, until the coconut has toasted and you have a lovely crisp granola.

Leave to cool in the tray completely and then spoon into an airtight jar or container. It will last up to a month. Serve with milk and/ or yoghurt, with fresh fruit. Dreamy.

Dal Makhani

11.24.2014 by georgie // 20 Comments

India is my total happy place. If I could jump on a plane right now and go anywhere, it would be India – it is beautiful, colourful, fascinating and most of all delicious. (Also with Christmas looming I could really do with not being in this country for a bit). It is the only country in the world I have spent a significant amount of time in and not got bored of the cuisine. Curry for breakfast, lunch AND dinner? Yes. Please.

Rewind a few years and I was lucky enough to go to the opening week of a trendy new London eatery – Dishoom. A dear friend of mine is the brains behind the incredible menu, and invited us along. It blew us away. I can’t even begin to tell you how many times we have been back since, but if there were a loyalty card system I would be platinum by now. There are so many delicious treats on the menu it is unreal. I try and mix it up every time we go but there is one constant and that is the black dal. Black dal and if I am feeling really naught a side of cheesy naan. Washed down with chai, lots of chai.

I’ve cooked various versions of this recipe, however today I have finally settled on a worthy Dishoom substitute. I know the Dishoom dal is cooked for a whole day, so in comparison my 6 hour version is a quick cook meal! And it is totally delicious. This is what I would consider real healing food – in the cooking sense and the meal itself. It is wholesome, warming and meditative. For long lazy days at home and bowls of deliciousness.

DAL MAKHANI

Serves 8 – 10 (you can easily halve this recipe but for the time and effort it is definitely worth making a larger batch and then freezing any extra dal for a rainy day)

500g urad dal
50g butter
2 large onions, peeled and finely chopped
12 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely chopped
A large thumb size piece of ginger, peeled and finely chopped
1 heaped teaspoon mild chilli powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
A heaped tablespoon of tomato puree
A tin of good quality plum tomatoes
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
500ml organic whole milk
Double cream or Greek yoghurt, to serve (optional)

Soak the urad dal in plenty of water the night before you want to cook it.

The next day place the soaked dal in a large saucepan and cover with plenty of fresh water. Bring to the boil and then simmer for 40 minutes until the dal is soft (scooping off any scum that comes to the surface). While the dal is cooking saute the veg. Melt the butter in a large non stick saucepan over a medium-low heat. Add the onion, garlic and ginger and soften for 10 – 15 minutes so it is cooked down and soft but not coloured: you want gorgeous sticky onions. Add the cumin and chilli powder to the pan and cook for a couple more minutes before adding the tomato puree. Cook for a few more minutes and then add the tinned tomatoes. Gently crush the tomatoes, breaking them down and bring to a simmer. Cook for 3 – 4 minutes and season generously.

When the dal is cooked, drain and add to the pan with the veg. Pour in the milk and top with enough water to just cover the dal. Bring the mixture to the boil, giving everything a good stir and then reduce the heat to low, so it is gently simmering away. This is where you need time. You could cook this for 1 – 2 hours and it would be ok. But don’t settle for that, you want crazy delicious dal and for that you need to cook it for at least 4 hours. 5 if you can. 6 would be amazing. You could keep going…

Leave the dal ticking away uncovered, giving it a stir every now and then. If it looks like it is getting too dry top it up with a bit more milk, or a bit more water, alternating the two. After a few hours you’ll notice it start to darken, this is great, let it get darker and thicker (try not to drown it in too much liquid) and keep stirring.

Check the seasoning, it is a vast amount of dal so don’t be surprised if it needs more salt and pepper. And serve with poppadoms, rice, naan, chutney, a swirl of cream or yoghurt, or however you fancy. I just like it straight up, it is that good.