10-minute Vegan Dal with Basic Tomato Onion Sauce

This simple dal is ready in just 10 minutes when you use my basic tomato onion masala sauce. It is full of flavor and perfect with rice or roti.

The tomato onion masala sauce I shared with you last month has been such a lifesaver for me when it comes to getting a quick and delicious meal on the table within minutes after a grueling day at work. Today, I want to share with you an extremely simple dal that comes together in just 10 minutes but is loaded with flavor, thanks to the masala sauce.

All you really need is a teaspoon of vegetable oil (I use avocado oil), mustard seeds and coriander leaves, besides the basic tomato onion sauce. It's so easy and so delicious, you'll want to make it all the time.

I use brown lentils, and I cooked them from scratch which took me longer than 10 minutes, but you can also find these in cans. You don't have to use brown lentils. Use French puy lentils, pink lentils, yellow lentils, or just anything you have on hand or have a mind to eat. I've tried this recipe with many different lentils, and it's worked each time.

If you aren't familiar with the basic tomato onion masala sauce, this is a recipe I make in the Instant Pot and either refrigerate or freeze for longer periods, and pull out when I need to make a quick, nutritious meal. It's truly a magical sauce. You can use it to make quick versions of all your Indian favorites, including an instant chana masala, aloo palak, methi malai paneer, aloo matar and much more. Every dish tastes completely different from the other -- despite the same base -- and is mind-blowingly delicious.

I've been so excited about it, I've been trying to share with you the different recipes I make with this sauce as I cook them up.

More dal recipes

• Creamy moong dal
• Tomato dal
• Easy zucchini dal
• Spicy urad dal
• Or browse all of my dal recipes

Recipe card

10-minute Vegan Dal with Basic Tomato Onion Sauce

5 from 2 votes

By Vaishali · Holy Cow Vegan

Yield 8 servings

A 10-minute vegan dal that's delicious, nutritious and oh so easy. 

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Prep Time 2 minutes mins

Cook Time 8 minutes mins

Total Time 10 minutes mins

Ingredients

 

• ▢ 1 teaspoon avocado oil or any neutral oil
• ▢ 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
• ▢ 1 ½ cups basic tomato onion sauce
• ▢ 2 15-oz cans brown lentils (about 3-4 cups cooked)
• ▢ 2 tablespoon cilantro (minced)
• ▢ Salt to taste
• ▢ 2 tablespoon grated coconut (optional)

Instructions

 

1. Heat the oil in a saucepan. Add the mustard seeds and, when they sputter, add the cilantro and saute for 30 seconds.
2. Add the tomato onion sauce and lentils and salt to taste. Let everything come to a boil, turn down the heat and simmer for a couple of minutes, and turn off.
3. Garnish with grated coconut, if using, and serve hot with wedges of lemon and rice.

Nutrition Information

Calories: 103kcalCarbohydrates: 16.6gProtein: 7gFat: 1.4gPotassium: 316.5mgFiber: 6.3gSugar: 2.1gVitamin A: 50IUVitamin C: 10.7mgCalcium: 20mgIron: 2.5mg

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