Vegetable Dhansak
A vegetable dhansak is a classic dal from India's small but culinarily gifted Parsi community. It is made with four types of lentils and flavored with warm spices and pureed vegetables.
Servings: 8 servings
Calories: 216kcal
Equipment
- Instant Pot or pressure cooker or large pot
- Immersion blender or regular blender or potato masher
- Large Dutch Oven or saute pan or any large pot
Ingredients
- ½ cup toor dal (arhar dal or split pigeon peas)
- ¼ cup moong dal
- ¼ cup chana dal (Bengal gram dal or split Indian chickpeas)
- ¼ cup masoor dal (red lentils)
- 1 cup butternut squash (cubed)
- 2 medium potatoes (yellow or red, cubed)
- 1 cup methi greens (fresh fenugreek leaves, chopped. If using frozen use ½ cup. See ingredients list above for substitution)
- ½ cup cauliflower florets
- 2 medium tomatoes (roughly chopped)
- ¼ cup packed cilantro + 2 tablespoons more for garnish.
- 4 cloves garlic (peeled)
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric
- 2 tablespoons avocado oil or any neutral oil (you can cut down to 1 tablespoon but 2 really helps brown the onions nicely)
- 1 large onion (finely chopped)
- 1 heaping tsp ginger garlic paste
- Salt and ground black pepper to taste
For dhansak masala spice blend
- 2 teaspoons coriander seeds
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
- ½ teaspoon caraway seeds (shahi jeera, optional)
- 1 teaspoon poppy seeds
- ¼ teaspoon fenugreek seeds or methi seeds
- 1 dry red chili pepper
- ½ inch piece cinnamon
- 1 bay leaf
- 3 green cardamom pods
- 1 black cardamom pods
- 3 cloves
- ½ teaspoon black peppercorns
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- A pinch of saffron
Instructions
Cook the vegetables and lentils
- Place all the lentils, cauliflower, squash, methi, potatoes, tomatoes, ¼ cup cilantro and garlic in a pressure cooker or in an Instant Pot liner. You can also do this in a regular pan but it will take much longer.
- Add three cups of water to the pressure cooker or IP (or water to cover by two inches if doing this in a regular pot). Allow three whistles of the pressure cooker, or, if using an IP, set to the "beans" function. Allow the pressure to release naturally or force-release 10 minutes after cooking is done.
- If you are doing this in a pot, bring the water to a boil, cover and cook, stirring every five minutes or so, until the lentils and veggies are very, very tender. This should take about 40-45 minutes.
Make the dhansak spice blend
- Place all ingredients for the spice mix, except the turmeric, nutmeg and saffron, in a dry skillet and toast for five minutes over medium-low heat until aromatic. Don't let the spices color too much.
- Remove the spices to a plate to cool and stir in the turmeric, nutmeg and saffron.
- Once cooled, place the spices in a blender jar or spice grinder and blend into a fine powder.
Make the dhansak
- Heat the vegetable oil in a large saute pan or pot or Dutch oven. Add the onions with half a teaspoon each of salt and pepper. Saute, stirring frequently, until the onions are golden-brown and well-caramelized. This is really important for your dhansak to get that characteristic brown color and deep flavor.
- Add the ginger garlic paste and saute a few more seconds.
- Add the cooked lentils and vegetables to the pot with three cups of water. Mix well.
- Turn off heat and use an immersion blender to blend the lentils and veggies. I like leaving in a little bit of texture, as is done traditionally, but you can blend to a smooth puree, if you wish. You can also do this by transfering the lentils and veggies to a blender. Be careful when you blend hot liquids and exercise all necessary precautions. If you can't do either, use a potato masher to thoroughly mash the veggies and lentils.
- Bring the dal to a boil, then stir in the dhansak masala mix you just prepared. Add salt to taste. For more color you can stir in a teaspoon of paprika, if you like. You can add more water if the dal is too thick--I use 4-5 cups in all. Remember, it should be thick but pourable and definitely not soupy.
- Cover the dhansak and cook for 30-45 minutes, stirring frequently to ensure it doesn't stick, until the dal looks glossy. Check seasoning at this time and add more salt if needed.
- Garnish with remaining cilantro and serve hot.
Nutrition
Calories: 216kcal | Carbohydrates: 35g | Protein: 10g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Sodium: 20mg | Potassium: 508mg | Fiber: 9g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 2147IU | Vitamin C: 24mg | Calcium: 68mg | Iron: 3mg