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This Red Lentil Dahl is a full-on comfort meal that your whole family will love. It requires common ingredients, minimal prep, and it'll cook up beautifully in 30 minutes or less!
I'm coming right at you with another easy dinner recipe to try out and I think you're going to love it. If you've never had Red Lentil Dahl before, you're in for a treat!
It's fragrant, satisfying, and filled with soul-warming flavor! It's just as easy and flavorful as my Vegan Chickpea Curry that I posted last week. It is a great addition to your weeknight dinner rotation.
Most of us are cooking at home full-time now which can be really hard. So, I want to help make it quick, easy, delicious, and FUN! This recipe fits the bill.
- Garlic – I prefer fresh garlic, but if you don’t have it, you can use frozen or jarred.
- Ginger – Frozen, paste, or jarred will work fine.
- Curry Powder – if you don't have it, you use 1 teaspoon each of cumin, turmeric, and coriander. A few pinches of cinnamon, cardamom, and black pepper are a nice addition, too.
- Crushed Red Pepper – Cayenne pepper is a great substitute. Just add a few pinches.
- Tomato Purée – Crushed tomatoes or 1.5 cups of canned diced will work too. You can also dice 3 medium tomatoes and cook with their juices.
- Red Lentils – You can use yellow lentils, but they will take longer to cook. Just simmer until tender.
- Coconut Milk – You can use homemade cashew cream or any store-bought vegan cream that’s unsweetened. Lite coconut milk will work too. Just use 1 ¼ cups instead of the full can.
- Lemon Juice – Fresh lime juice will work too.
How to make Red Lentil Dahl
See how to make this dahl recipe in just six easy steps and all in one pan.
- Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and sauté until softened and lightly golden.
- Add the garlic and ginger. Sauté for 30-60 seconds until fragrant.
- Add the curry powder, cumin, and crushed red pepper. Sauté for 30 seconds until fragrant.
- Now add the tomato purée.
- Cook the purée for about 5 minutes until it thickens up.
- Add the broth, coconut milk, red lentils, and salt. Gently simmer for 15-20 minutes or until thickened and the lentils are tender.
Red Lentil Dahl Success Tips
You'll love how easy this recipe is to put together. Here are some tips to help you along:
- Don't overcook the lentils or they will lose their texture and become mushy.
- For a thinner consistency, add a few splashes of broth or water to thin.
- Keep everything at a moderate simmer. If you boil it, the coconut milk may curdle and the liquid will cook down too fast.
- If you want a thicker consistency, reduce the vegetable broth and coconut milk by ½ cup each. Note: the lentil dahl naturally thickens up as it cools down a bit.
- To make this dahl kid-friendly, you can reduce or omit the crushed pepper and reduce the cumin.
Flavor Enhancing Ideas
I kept this dahl recipe simple, but it still has a wonderful flavor. Just make sure to sauté the onions well until they are lightly golden, and sauté the garlic and spices until they are fragrant. Also, make sure your spices are not expired and choose a quality brand.
If you want to add additional flavor, you can add ½ teaspoon of cumin, coriander, or garam masala to the curry powder.
This lentil dahl is mildly-spiced, so if you want more heat, you can add 1 small jalapeño or serrano pepper with the garlic and ginger. Deseed the peppers first, then dice or slice them. You can leave some seeds for extra heat.
Recipe FAQs
Yes, you can, but the texture may change slightly due to the coconut milk. However, if you're cooking the dahl specifically to freeze it, you can leave out the coconut milk and add it when you thaw and reheat. It'll keep in the freezer for 4-6 months.
Dahl is very hearty on its own, but it pairs nicely with rice, naan, lemon or lime wedges, and fresh-cut cilantro
This Red Lentil Dahl also goes perfectly with quinoa, salad, cauliflower rice, artisan bread, roasted or steamed veggies, Bombay potatoes, and more!
More Indian-Inspired Recipes To Try
Did you make this recipe? Let me know what you think by leaving a star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating and sharing your feedback in the comment section below. It would really make my day!
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Recipe Video
📖 Recipe
Red Lentil Dahl
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons avocado oil or preferred oil
- 1 large onion , finely diced
- 4 cloves garlic , minced
- 1 tablespoon ginger , grated or minced (fresh, frozen or paste)
- 1 tablespoon curry powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper , more to taste (sub ¼ teaspoon cayenne)
- 4 cups vegetable broth , low sodium
- 2 cups red lentils , rinsed well and drained
- 1 cup tomato purée , jarred/canned (not paste or sauce)
- ¾ teaspoon salt , more to taste
- 14 ounces coconut milk , canned (full-fat)
- 1 lemon , juiced (sub with lime)
- ¼ cup cilantro , chopped
For Serving (Optional)
- Naan
- Fresh-Cut Cilantro
- Lemon Wedges
- Rice (about 3 cups cooked)
Recommended Equipment
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large skillet (or Large Pot) over medium heat. Once the oil is shimmering, add onion and sauté until softened and lightly golden. About 4-6 minutes.
- Lower heat one notch and add the garlic and ginger. Sauté for 30-60 seconds until fragrant.
- Add the curry powder, cumin, and crushed red pepper. Sauté for 30 seconds until fragrant.
- Now add the tomato purée. Cook for about 3-5 minutes until it thickens up. Stir often to prevent sticking or burning. Lower heat if needed.
- Add the broth, coconut milk, red lentils, and salt. Stir well to combine. Raise the heat to get things moving, then lower the heat to maintain a mild-moderate simmer. Cook uncovered for 20-25 minutes, or until the sauce is thick and the lentils are starting to fall apart. Stir occasionally.
- Remove from heat and add the lemon juice and cut cilantro. Let it sit for a few minutes to thicken up. Serve with rice, naan lemon wedges and more cilantro if desired. Enjoy!
Summer
Delicious, easy and something I’ll make again. Thanks!
Melissa Huggins
Thanks for the feedback Summer, glad you liked it. 🙂
Emily
This comforting red lentil dahl was delicious with basmati rice and homemade naan! I loved how easy it was to make with ingredients I already had in my pantry. Thanks for sharing this recipe!
Support @ Vegan Huggs
Hi Emily! We are so happy to hear that you loved the recipe - thanks so much for trying it 🙂
Karina Mahoney
I just made this for my kids and they both absolutely loved it. I have portions in the freezer and they can't wait to have it again. I'll be printing and laminating this recipe for my collection, I will definitely be making this again and again. Maybe I'll learn how to make some kind of flatbread to go with it.
Melissa Huggins
Love the feedback, Karina! Thank you for the kind words. 🙂 It would be amazing with homemade flatbread for sure.
Serafina J-W
The absolute best Dahl recipe I've found! I'm only 17 but I make this for my family all the time and we all adore it!! It's incredibly comforting and is perfect in any season, whether it's a warm bowl by the fire in winter or a summer meal sitting outside with the crickets. We've been making this once every 1-2 weeks for a while now and it's always something to look forward to. The coconut milk adds the perfect touch of creaminess, while the onions are a crispy treat. I highly recommend this recipe!
Support @ Vegan Huggs
Hi Serafina! What a wonderful compliment, and so nice that you are cooking for your family! We are so happy to hear that the recipe is a hit with everyone, thank you for stopping by to leave a review 🙂
Melissa
Delicious! I made this along with the Chickpea Curry and both were outstanding! I made Forbidden Rice with The Dahl and Saffron rice with the Curry!! My husband is asking if we have leftovers as he loved it! He said he feels like we were eating in an Indian Restaurant in India! Thanks so much, I’m excited to try more of your recipes!!
Support @ Vegan Huggs
Hi Melissa! This made our day, thank you so much for the review! We are so happy you loved the recipes 🙂
Mark Carboon
Having been a lover of Indian inspired food I cooked this for the first time tonight
and not only did I love it, all of my family did too. Being vegan for 6 years this is
not only a well balanced and beautifully textured meal, it is a family friendly dinner
that all ages can enjoy. My rating is normally reserved to recommended or
not recommended. On this occasion I feel compelled to change my rating to
highly recommended. Enjoy!
Melissa Huggins
Hi Mark, this is the nicest compliment. I'm so happy your family loved it! Thank you. 🙂
Russ
Awesome!!! Came out incredible!!
Have you made similar with green or yellow lentils? Would love to find a Dahl recipe like yours with green lentils!
Melissa Huggins
I'm so glad you liked it! The yellow lentils are similar to the red ones in the way they cook (may take a few minutes longer) and their texture. The green ones will work, but the texture will vary. They will remain somewhat firm. It'll still be delicious though. Thanks for stopping by 🙂
HMC
Oh wow!!! Just made this. It’s so delicious! I added a like bit of cinnamon at the end like mentioned and it was so good. I am adding this to my recipe box!
Melissa Huggins
Yay! I'm so glad you liked it. Thank you for making it and sharing your feedback 🙂
Mercy Vegan
Ive been vegan for over 30 years andI've made dhal lots of times, usually without a recipe, but not for ages and thought I'd give your recipe a go and I have to say that I would have given it 100 out of 100, it was so delicious. We even ate the leftiovers again the next day, it was so good. I've used coconut cream in curries a lot but never in dhal and it really added so much to it.
I had to tweak the recipe as had run out of ginger and cumin (we are under lockdown and only shopping once a week) but I used a bit of extra curry powder.
Well done and thank you so much for this lovely recipe, which all my kids loved too,
Melissa Huggins
This is the nicest compliment! I'm so glad you liked it so much (and the kiddos). Thank you for trying it out and sharing your feedback. Have a lovely Sunday! 🙂