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Dal adas
Red lentil curry with dried lime
Dal adas (دال عدس): southern Iranian red lentil curry with turmeric, tamarind and dried lime
Along the Persian Gulf coast in Bushehr, Bandar Abbas and the towns of Hormozgan, centuries of trade with India gave rise to dal adas, a red lentil curry that is now a favourite lunch and a popular vegetarian dish in Muharram nazri cooking. The lentils cook down with onion, garlic, turmeric and warm curry spices into a thick, golden stew, sharpened with tamarind and the musky sourness of dried lime, and are eaten with rice or flatbread. A portion gives about 21 g of protein from the red lentils, with a little more from the potato. The most common mistake is leaving the dried limes in too long or uncracked: they turn the dal bitter, so pierce them and lift them out once the sourness is right. Chef's tip: fry the spices in the oil with the onions for a full minute before the lentils go in; the curry flavour depends on it.
- Total time
- 50 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
- ⅞ oz tamarind pulpseedless
- ¾ cup hot waterto soak the tamarind
- 3 tbsp sunflower oil
- 2 onionsfinely chopped
- 5 cloves garlicchopped
- 1 green chillichopped
- 1 tsp ground turmeric
- 2 tsp mild curry powder
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tbsp tomato purée (concentrate)
- 11 ½ oz red lentilsrinsed until the water runs clear
- 1 potatopeeled, in 2 cm cubes
- 2 dried limes (limoo amani)pierced a few times with a knife
- 4 ½ cups water
- 1 ½ tsp salt
- ½ oz coriander leaveschopped
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Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Soak ⅞ oz tamarind pulp in ¾ cup hot water for 10 minutes, then squeeze and rub it through a sieve, keeping the thick liquid and discarding the fibres.
10 minStep 2: Meanwhile, heat 3 tbsp sunflower oil in a heavy pot over a medium heat and fry 2 onions for 8–10 minutes, until soft and golden brown at the edges.
10 minStep 3: Add 5 cloves garlic and 1 green chilli and fry for 1 minute, then add 1 tsp ground turmeric, 2 tsp mild curry powder, 1 tsp ground cumin and 1 tbsp tomato purée (concentrate) and stir for a full minute, until fragrant and darker.
2 minStep 4: Add 11 ½ oz red lentils, 1 potato, 2 dried limes (limoo amani) and 4 ½ cups water. Bring to the boil, skim off the foam, then simmer with the lid ajar for 20 minutes, stirring often so it doesn't catch, until the lentils have collapsed and the potato is tender.
20 minStep 5: Stir in the tamarind liquid and 1 ½ tsp salt and simmer for 5 minutes more, until it is thick enough to hold a trail from the spoon. Taste: once it is pleasantly sour, lift out the dried limes so it doesn't turn bitter.
5 minStep 6: Scatter with ½ oz coriander leaves and serve hot with rice or flatbread.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 430 kcal
- Protein
- 21 g
- Carbs
- 64 g
- Fat
- 11 g
- Fibre
- 11 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does dal adas take?
- About 50 minutes in total: 10 minutes to prepare and 40 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of onions?
- 2 shallots per onion.
- What can I use instead of garlic?
- ½ tsp garlic paste or ⅛ tsp garlic powder per clove.
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