Dal Saag

Serves 2

Dal saag is a delicious Indian curry. Saag is a spinach or mustard leaf base curry and dal are pulses, lentils, beans and chickpeas. Dal is a popular ingredient throughout India, Bangladesh, Nepal and the whole of south Asia, particularly in vegetarian cuisine. It is a great ingredient to thicken up curries or add a creamy delicious texture to dishes. Dal is wonderfully cheap, nutritious and full of protein. Dal saag is a great meal if you are trying to cut down on meat or if you are a vegetarian.

Dal Saag is a sweet delicious curry with a thick texture from both the dal and the spinach. Dal saag is a dish found all over Indian, for anyone wanting to try something different from their usual Indian takeaway, that is authentically Indian, dal saag tastes fantastic.

Ingredients

• 150g chickpeas
• 150g red lentils
• 450g spinach
• 1 onion, chopped
• ½ tsp turmeric powder
• 1 tsp mustard seeds
• ½ tsp cumin seeds
• 1 tsp garam masala
• 1 tsp salt
• ½  tsp chilli powder
• 2 tbsp groundnut oil
• 700ml water

Method

1. Soak the lentils and chickpeas. If they are from cans you can skip this stage.
2. Finely chop the spinach.
3. Boil 700ml water and add the chickpeas and lentils, turmeric, salt and chilli.
4. Cook for 5 minutes and add the spinach.
5. Keep on a medium heat until most of the water has reduced.
6. Meanwhile heat the oil and fry the onions, mustard seeds and cumin seeds till golden. Stir into the lentils and spinach with a tsp of garam masala. Keep on a moderate heat till cooked.
7. Serve with rice and nan bread.