Vegan Coconut Dal (Low-Carb Recipe)
An incredibly delicious vegan coconut dal that has just 10 grams of net carbs in each serving, and could be worked into the diet of even those who are severely restricting their carbohydrate intake, like keto dieters. To make this dal I used urad dal or black gram lentils with their skin on, which adds lots of fiber. I supplemented the healthy protein and fiber with edamame beans, which add flavor and texture while keeping the carbs low.
Servings: 10 servings
Calories: 212kcal
Equipment
- Pressure cooker or pot for cooking lentils
- Large pot or dutch oven
Ingredients
- 1 cup urad dal (split or whole, but with skin on)
- 2 bay leaves
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
- 1 medium tomato (chopped)
- 2 crimini mushrooms (chopped)
- 2 tablespoon coconut oil
- 4 green cardamom pods
- 1 brown cardamom pod (optional)
- 4 cloves
- 1-inch piece cinnamon
- 1 small onion (diced)
- 1 teaspoon ginger garlic paste
- 12 oz edamame beans (shelled. Frozen)
- 2 teaspoon garam masala
- ½ teaspoon Kashmiri chili powder (or any moderately spicy ground chili pepper)
- ½ teaspoon paprika (optional, for color)
- 14 oz full fat coconut milk (from can)
- Juice of ½ lemon
- Salt and ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Cook the urad dal until tender. This is best done in a pressure cooker, but you can do it on the stovetop. If using the stovetop method, try and soak the dal for 3-4 hours as this will speed things up. Add water to cover the lentils by at least two inches, add the turmeric and bay leaves, and cook until tender.
- While the dal is cooking, place the chopped tomato and mushrooms in a blender and blend into a smooth paste. Set aside.
- Heat the coconut oil in a large pot or Dutch oven. Add the whole spices--cinnamon, cardamom and cloves and saute until the spices are slightly darker, a few seconds.
- Add the onions with salt and pepper to taste and saute until they turn golden-brown.
- Add the ginger garlic paste with the blended tomato-mushroom paste. Cook, stirring frequently, until the tomatoes darken and the oil appears to express.
- Add the edamame beans to the pot and mix well. Cook a couple of minutes.
- Add the cooked urad dal to the pot along with two cups of water or vegetable stock. Mix well, then stir in the garam masala, Kashmiri chili powder, and paprika, if using. This is optional, but to make the dal creamier, you can blend a cup of the cooked dal and add it back to the pot.
- Stir in half the coconut milk.Bring the dal to a boil, cover, then simmer for 10 minutes until the flavors have melded. If the dal is too thick for your liking you can add more water or stock.
- Finish off by adding the remaining coconut milk and lemon juice. Add more salt if needed.
- Serve hot.
Notes
- To make the recipe lower in fat, you can reduce the amount of coconut oil to as little as 1 teaspoon and cut the coconut milk by half.
- To make the recipe higher in fat, serve the dal with more coconut oil drizzled over.
- If you're a low carb eater, serve the dal over a bed of cauliflower rice. Shirataki rice, made from soluble plant fiber, is also an option. Dal is always served with a sabzi or vegetable side. You can choose a sabzi like these Kashmiri Collard Greens or this Spinach Kootu-- both have just 5 grams of net carbs in a serving.
- If you're a keto dieter, eat the dal by itself, like a soup, with salad on the side.
- For those watching their health but not necessarily their carbs, this dal would be great served over quinoa or brown rice. This coconut dal can be refrigerated for 3 days. Always reheat before serving and add more water if needed as dal tends to thicken as it stands. If you add water, you might need more salt, so be sure to check.
- For longer storage, you can freeze the dal in a freezer-safe container. Thaw and reheat and again, add water and salt if needed before serving.
Nutrition
Calories: 212kcal | Carbohydrates: 15g | Protein: 9g | Fat: 13g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 12mg | Potassium: 317mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 152IU | Vitamin C: 7mg | Calcium: 40mg | Iron: 6mg