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Dal Palak

Lentils and Chopped Spinach leaves is a wonderful combination, and surprisingly so, considering both have very different tastes. However, when cooked together they make for a very healthy, nutritious and protein-rich gravy.
Prep Time10 mins
Cook Time20 mins
Total Time30 mins
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Indian
Servings: 4
Author: Bhawna Maharshi

Ingredients

  • 1/4  Cup Yellow Moong Dal (Split)

  • 1/2 Cup Toovar dal
  • 250 grams Spinach Leaves, chopped
  • 1 inch Ginger, chopped
  • 1 tsp Turmeric Powder (Haldi)
  • 1/2 tsp Cumin ( Jeera )
  • 1/2 tsp Garam Masala
  • 2 Green Chillies, chopped
  • To taste Salt
  • 1/2 tsp Lemon Juice (Optional)

Ingredients for tempering

  • 1 tbsp Ghee
  • 1/2 tsp Cumin Seeds ( Jeera )
  • 2 Dry Red Chillies
  • Pinch of Hing ( Asafoetida )

Instructions

  • To begin making the Dal Palak recipe we will first cook the lentils (dal) using a pressure cooker using 3 cups of water, Turmeric powder and little salt.

  • Next we will cook the spinach with the spices.Into a pressure cooker or Pan, add a teaspoon of oil add the Cumin Seeds, ginger, green chillies, turmeric powder,  garam masala powder, salt and spinach.

  • Stir all the ingredients together just to combine them.

  • Once combined, cover the pressure cooker, place the weight on. Pressure cook until you hear one whistle Or Cover the pan and cook until the spinach is soft.

  • Now that you have the spinach and lentils ready, if your cooker is large enough, add the cooked dal into the spinach and give it a stir. Bring the Dal Palak to a quick boil. 

  • For Tempering, Into a small saucepan, heat a tablespoon of ghee. Add in the cumin seeds , Hing and dry red chillies. Roast them until they crackle and sizzle.

  • Add this seasoning to the Dal Palak and give it a stir. Add lemon juice if you want.

  • Serve dal palak hot with rice or roti. 

Notes

Dal- You can change the lentils to make the Dal Palak . You can replace it with Hari Moong Dal, Dhuli Masoor Dal, Chana Dal or Tuvar Dal.
Greens – Along with Palak or Spinach, you can also add greens like Bathua (Chenopodium), Methi or even kale Leaves. Radish Greens  can also be added in this Dal.
Tempering – You can give a very simple tempering of Hing and Jeera to this Dal. If you want it more complex, add onion in the tempering as well.
A tempering of Panch Phoran will also give it a new style.