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Red lentil dal with lemon

Store cupboard cooking at its best: dried lentils, spices and a tin, turned into something soft and comforting for about eighty pence a portion.

Prep
5 min
Cook
30 min
Serves
4
Difficulty
easy

Worked out from the ingredients below. Always check the label on what you buy.

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Ingredients

Makes 4 servings

in your kitchen · store cupboard staple · you would need to buy

Nutrition, per serving

Carbohydrate
41.6g
9.7g fibre · 6.8g sugars
Energy
288.9 kcal
Protein
17.4g
Fat
4.8g
Saturates
0.6g
Salt
1.5g

Estimated from the ingredients listed. A guide for choosing what to cook, not a clinical figure: brands and portion sizes vary more than this number does.

Method

  1. Soften the onion in the oil over a medium heat for 8 minutes. Add the garlic, ginger and spices and cook for another minute.

    About 9 minutes

  2. Add the lentils, tomatoes and water. Bring to the boil, then turn down and simmer, uncovered, for 25 minutes. Stir now and then so nothing catches on the bottom.

    About 25 minutes

  3. When the lentils have collapsed into something thick and soft, take it off the heat. Add the lemon juice and salt, taste, and adjust both until it tastes bright rather than flat.

    About 2 minutes

  4. Scatter over coriander if you have it.

    About 1 minute

Tips and storage

Thickens a lot as it cools. Loosen with a splash of boiling water when you reheat it.

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Dietary requirements