Spinach Dal Fry Healthy Ish

Whenever I return from vacation, I crave dal, and not just any dal, dal with tadka (tempering of spices). Dal is simply one of the healthiest, most nutritious, and most comforting meals you can have during the cold winter months.

What is Spinach Dal Fry?

Dal is a lentil and a staple in every Indian household. You won’t find a single Indian person who hasn’t had dal because it’s just a part of our identity. There are many different varieties of dal and my favorite type of lentil is toor dal which is also known as tuvar dal, arhar dal, and yellow split pigeon peas. Spinach Dal Fry is essentially sauteed onions, tomatoes, and spinach cooked down and then added to cooked lentils. It’s absolutely delicious and goes perfectly with white basmati rice. My version of Spinach Toor Dal Fry is made with toor dal, however you can also make this dish with yellow moong dal.

Why You’ll Love this Spinach Dal Fry recipe

Comforting Nostalgic Warming on a cold day Healthy & Nutritious Quick Easy Meal Vegan Gluten-free

Ingredients you’ll need for Spinach Dal Fry:

Toor Dal: You will need yellow pigeon split peas or toor dal for this recipe. You may also use moong dal instead of toor dal. Spinach: You’ll need freshly chopped baby spinach. Spices: Turmeric Powder, Cumin Powder, Cumin Seeds, Coriander Powder, Red Chili Powder, Kashmiri Red Chili Powder, Amchur Powder, Asafoetida (hing), and Salt. Ginger, Garlic, Green Chilies, Onions, and Tomatoes: The most basic ingredients for any Indian dish.

How to make Spinach Dal Fry recipe step by step?

Prep

Soak the lentils in enough water so they’re submerged. Drain and rinse the lentils until the water runs clear. Add the soaked lentils along with 3 cups of water. 2. Close Instant Pot and cook on High Pressure for 8 minutes.3. In the meantime, chop the ginger, garlic, onions, and tomatoes. Slice the green chilies (or you can chop too).4. Set aside the dry spices – asafoetida (hing), cloves, and cumin seeds.

Cook Spinach Dal Fry

Heat up a dutch castiron on medium heat, once hot, add oil followed by the dry spices – hing, cloves, and cumin seeds. Saute for 45 seconds.2. Add the onions, season with a little salt to taste, and cook for 5-6 minutes until slightly brown and caramelized. This brings out the flavor of the dal so make sure you cook the onions properly.3. Add the tomatoes. 4. Immediately add the following spices – a little salt to season the tomatoes, coriander powder, red chili powder, turmeric powder, and cumin powder. Cook for 2-3 minutes.
Now add a 1/4 cup of water so the spices don’t burn and cook down the tomatoes for another 3-4 minutes.6. In the meantime, chop 5 ounces of baby spinach. I simply bought a 5-ounce bag from Whole Foods.7. Check on the dal cooking in the Instant Pot. Stir it.8. Back to the tomatoes – they’ve formed a paste-like consistency.
Now add all the chopped spinach. This will take a minute or two to cook down.10. This is what you should have.11. Add all the cooked dal to the spinach mixture.12. Stir.

Prepare Tadka

In a small tadka pot, heat up oil, and then add Kashmiri red chili powder – this adds color and smokiness, but no spice. Alternatively, you may also use paprika.2. Add tadka to the spinach dal.3. Add garam masala and amchur (mango) powder. 4. Garnish with fresh cilantro, onions, and achaar. Enjoy!

Serving Suggestions

Serve the Spinach Dal Fry recipe with Jeera Rice or plain basmati rice along with papad, achaar (Indian pickle), and kachumber salad. Lentils also pair well with other Jeera Aloo or Bhindi Fry along with roti (whole-wheat flatbread). For a healthier option, you can use brown rice or quinoa.

Tips on making Spinach Dal Fry recipe

This dish is a 2-step process, but trust me the results are well worth it. You will need to first cook the dal in the Instant Pot or if you prefer, use a Pressure Cooker. Then prepare the masala mixture on the stovetop and add the cooked dal to the masala. That’s it!

Soak the lentils for 30 minutes in water. Cook the lentils in the Instant Pot. On the stovetop, make your masala mixture using ginger, garlic, green chilies, onions, tomatoes, and of course, spinach. Add the lentils to the spinach mixture. Adjust water as needed. Finish it off with tadka – don’t omit this step because it makes all the difference.