I spent the summer in Israel when I was 15 years old, and while I know I did all of the expected stuff–day trips, stays at hostels and kibbutz, the big cities and the desert–one of the things that stands out most clearly in my memory is something sort of random–the way the Israeli kids dressed on hot days: black jeans and often long-sleeved shirts. I’d look at them, so covered, so dark, and want to scream. “Don’t you know how HOT it is here? I’m melting in my Tevas and tank top and you’re there wrapped as tight as you can in WINTER clothes.” Clearly this penchant for melodrama isn’t a recent phenomenon.
I feel the same way on days like we’ve had this week, when the air is so oppressively thick and stagnant (seriously, I think the breath I left on our front step last night greeted me there this morning) and I see people, probably dressed for important jobs in aggressively air-conditioned offices in these woolen suit layers and shoes with covered toes and sleeves (fine, I’m talking about Alex) and I want to melt for them at the thought of having to walk more than a block in such a getup. My Eastern European genes are inconsolable in this swelter, thus if you need us we’ll be over in the corner, hugging it out with the a/c this weather stops being such a brat.
And what to eat? If common sense demands cold food, fresh fruit, raw vegetables, why am I craving Indian food? All jokes about my lack of sense aside, why do I only want thick, spicy curries? How can I crave dal when it’s 95 immobile rain-longing degrees out? But maybe this has more to do with the denim-clad Israeli kids than I think: we all handle the heat differently, and they chose to cover their skin rather than expose it to the sun’s teeth. I had a Vietnamese friend in college that used to drag me out McLean, Virginia on hot days for some pho, which along with the soothing sweetened iced coffee, he considered the only proper cure for heat exhaustion, and I have to admit, it worked like a charm. If any culture has down what to eat when it’s hotter than a monkey’s butt outside (I say this theoretically, of course), it’s gotta be India.
Seriously, don’t knock it until you try it. Despite the fact that you’re actually cooking with heat when there more than enough to go around, there is something immensely satisfying about eating spicy, wholesome food when all the ice cubes in the world aren’t cutting it. I grabbed these recipes from a San Francisco Chronicle about pairing wine with Indian food a few weeks ago, and–so unlike me–tried them without giving any thought to whether they’d work or not. My leap of faith was duly rewarded, as the Everyday Yellow Dal is going right into the recipe folder, next to the Red Split Lentils and Cauliflower and Potatoes. The Black-Eyed Peas, which I was most dubious about as I don’t really dig coconut milk outside the realm of dessert, were also delicious despite my nagging feeling that might not actually like these vaulted peas. And the salad, slaw really, is exactly what’s been missing from my Indian recipe battery–something crunchy, raw and complementary to these hearty dishes. It’s kind of a gateway drug to summer dals, refreshing in a way that my lunch of cold salad and raw fruit never is. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.
Everyday Yellow Dal
- 1 cup yellow split peas, soaked in cold water for 1 hour
- 1 large tomato (about 8 ounces), cut into 8 wedges
- 1/4 cup canola oil
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 1 medium red onion, finely chopped (about 1 1/2 cups)
- 5 large garlic cloves, thinly sliced
- 1 teaspoon coriander seeds, finely ground
- 3/4 teaspoon ground turmeric
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne (I used 1/4, thought it was plenty, although I may be a wuss.)
- 1/4 cup minced cilantro leaves (I abhor cilantro, and always replace it with flat-leaf parsley.)
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 1 teaspoon salt
Drain the dal (split peas) and place in a large saucepan. Add the tomato and 3 cups of water and bring to a boil.
Reduce the heat to a simmer, cover and cook until peas are tender, 45 minutes to 1 hour. Pick out any tomato skins and whisk dal to emulsify it. Keep warm over very low heat.
Heat the oil in a medium skillet over high heat. When the oil begins to smoke, add the cumin seeds, covering the pan with a lid or splatter screen. After the seeds have stopped sputtering, add the onion and saute over medium heat. About 3 minutes later, add the garlic and saute until most of the onion has turned dark brown, about 5 minutes altogether. Add the coriander, turmeric and cayenne, stir and pour mixture over the dal. Add the cilantro, butter and salt to the dal and simmer for another 5 minutes. Serve hot.
Tangy Shredded Cabbage Salad
- 2 cups tightly packed, shredded green cabbage (use the large holes of a grater)
- 1 small serrano chile, seeded and minced
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, or more as needed
- 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon fine sea or table salt
- 1/2 teaspoon sugar
- 1 tablespoon canola oil
- 1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds
Heat the oil in a small skillet or butter warmer over high heat. When the oil begins to smoke, add the mustard seeds, covering the pan with a lid or splatter screen. When seeds top popping, immediately pour the oil over the cabbage salad and toss well. Let the salad sit for at least 15 minutes before serving, to allow the flavors to blossom.
Serve cold or at room temperature.
Black-Eyed Peas in a Spicy Goan Curry
Adapted from Ruta Kahate via SFGate.com, 6/8/07
Serves 4 to 6
1 cup dried black-eyed peas or two 15-ounce cans, drained
2 tablespoons, canola oil
1 small yellow onion, minced (about 1 cup)
1 teaspoon coriander seeds, finely ground
1/2 teaspoon finely grated garlic (about 1 large clove)
1/2 teaspoon finely grated ginger (about a 1-inch piece)
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/2 teaspoon cayenne (I always start with the half the suggested cayenne, and then decide if it needs more. Mine didn’t.)
1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds, finely ground
1/4 cup minced tomato (1 small tomato)
2 cups (or 1 cup if using canned peas) hot water
1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste if using canned peas
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 cup canned coconut milk
2 tablespoons minced cilantro leaves
1 tablespoon lemon juice
If using dried black-eyed peas, rinse and soak them in enough water to cover for 6 to 8 hours. Drain.
In a large saucepan, heat the oil over medium-low heat and saute the onion until it turns dark brown, about 8 minutes. Add the coriander, garlic, ginger, turmeric, cayenne and cumin, and stir for 2 minutes. Add the tomato and stir over low heat until it disintegrates.
Add the peas and mix well. Pour in the hot water, if using, add the salt and sugar, and bring to a boil. Turn the heat down to low, cover, and simmer until the peas are cooked through, about 20 minutes. If using canned peas, simmer for only 10 minutes (it is essential to simmer the canned peas, too, so that all the flavors blend better). Stir in the coconut milk and simmer uncovered for another 8 to 10 minutes, again allowing the flavors to come together.
Add the cilantro and lemon juice, simmer for 1 minute more, and remove from heat. Serve hot.
What’s a kibbutz exactly? I only have a half baked memory from that show The Nanny, and Fran Dresner says it’s just hot Isreali guys everywhere. Or at least I only remember the good part! aha ha ha
Anyway, food looks good. See you tonight!
A kibbutz is an Isreali form of co-operative community living, historically rural. Y’all might want to google this.
on the hottest of days, i will want soup or to make a big pot of my chili. i don’t know why. i don’t want ice cream in the summer but i do in the winter. i just thought my thermostat was broken.
These dishes look delicious! I’ve actually read that eating spicy food on hot days is a well known traditional way to actually cool the body off. I don’t recall the science of it, or the details really, but it has something to do with internal regulation of body temperature that adjusts the feeling of how humid it feels externally. Does that make sense? I’m sorry if it doesn’t…. Just know you are doing the right thing!
Also, congrats on winning the contest! I wanted to vote but found this blog on the day the votes ended. You are inspiration to my lil blog and I love reading your site now, daily. Keep on keepin’ on!
You’re so right about the Indian food; I like it extra spicy in the summer. I might like the Goan curry better with chickpeas than with the black eyed peas, what do you think? Also, I have a Madhur Jaffrey recipe for a carrot salad that is almost exactly the same as your cabbage, I think I’ll try it with the cabbage, but people not liking the slaw might like it better swapped with shredded carrots. BTW, your new lens is giving us some awfully good eye candy.
Glad I am not the only one who hates cilantro.
I think the spicy food on hot days thing has to do with the fact that the spices simulate heat and stimulate your body’s response to heat–sweating, sending blood to the surface of the skin and so on–so it can actually cool you off, even though it seems counter-intuitive. I think I remember reading that sometimes eating cold foods can stimulate your body’s attempts to warm up, so cold things don’t always succeed at cooling you off. (I’m not sure if any of this is real science, or if I made it up because it sounded good at the time. Either way, it kind of makes sense to me, anyway.) Your food looks marvelous, as usual.
i completely understand this hot in heat phenomenon: it has been 95+ in DC this whole week, and all i’ve been craving is a pot of soup!
ps, i hate cilantro too and everybody thinks i’m crazy.
This looks fabulous, I love Indian food and you don’t seem crazy to me… well maybe the cooking over a hot stuff part – but certainly not the eating spicy food. I am all over that on a hot day.
I was wondering did you have to babysit the dal while it cooked? I have only made dahl once but I found if I wasn’t really careful it was apt to burn on the bottom.
no saffron basmati rice?
It is not crazy, while I am no scientist but perhaps eating hot food makes your body start a cooling process [not to mention if you heat really hot food and sweat and by ingesting very cold foods, your body will then want to warm itself.
Ok, I just read Elizabeth’s answer…so yes, I agree with her…
Everyone thinks I’m crazy for eating hot foods in the summer.
By the way, beautiful photos and site.
A couple comments today –
First, did anyone else notice that in the picture of the split peas, Deb’s new and oh-so-amazing lens/talent caught with impeccable clarity the tiny bubbles of gas the peas were giving off in the water?!? That’s SO COOL!
Second, it’s a proven scientific fact that spicy food cool the body. Now if only I could remember what source to reference to back up all my fancy pants science talk. Anyway, it’s true.
Third, I’d adore some indian food right now but can’t bring myself to light the stove right now, for fear I melt into a puddle on my already way too mysteriously sticky kitchen floor.
Perhaps tomorrow will be cooler….
I’ve so been craving Indian food lately (I’ve recently moved back to my small, hometown–and away from a favorite Indian place). So, thanks. Instead of jumping into my untested Indian cookbook, I’ll plan on trying these! I think there might be magic to spicy, hot meals on warm days.
I too (like Farah) have had soup a handful of times here in steamy, steamy FLA and I third, or fourth or whatever it is – the distate for cilantro.
But that salad – looks refreshing and crunchy (of course with a bowl of soup!)
I was paging through the grill issue of Food & Wine today while I was getting my hair done and immediately thought of you when I saw these. Make sure you click on “view finished product”. Incidentally, I want the cow one.
http://www.williams-sonoma.com/products/sku7999436/index.cfm?pkey=xsrd0m1%7C15%7C%7C%7C0%7C%7C%7C%7C%7C%7C%7Cice%20cream%20sandwich&cm%5Fsrc=SCH
mais non, c’est pas vrai! In other words, how did you know? We are moving to Geneva in a month and it’s my goal to eat all of the nonperishables in the house so that a) i don’t have to buy so much food this month b) we don’t have to carry them to a new kitchen.
I looked this afternoon, and in the bean shelf I have left, black eyed peas and yellow split peas and not a clue – NOT A CLUE – what to do with them. And then you appeared, magical mystery of a food blogger, and solved my problem in one fell swoop. may I send you a swiss chocolate bar? this is fantastique!
Yum, I think I’m going to have to make the potatoes and cauliflower dish again soon, the everyday would go with it well. And the cabbage salad, Yum! Now, if I can get the Indian restaurant give me the recipe for their pistachio na’an, all will be right with the world. (BTW, Pistachio na’an is bread crack – so good!)
Huh! I never would have considered using spicy food to beat the heat (especially in the nightmarishly hot Chicago), but now I’ll be looking for an Indian restaurant on my lunch break.
Jessica – I am one of the two people responsible for Deb being here … sorta in a way. Anyway, you can send the swiss chocolate bar to me! :-)
Deb, I was looking for new Indian recipes & these look so yummy! This weekend looks like a great time to try them out.
Jessica, (commenter # 14) I am buying those molds you linked to at this moment. So adorable and perfect for a party we are having in July.
I come from the caribbean – and we always soup or eat spicy food when its super hot outside b/c it makes you sweat and sweat is your body’s way of cooling off- so you’re not nuts
I agree with everything you stated here! Having grown up in Arizona, I dislike direct sunlight, but I despise humidity. Maybe it’s that spice make you sweat, but I also start craving spicy food when it gets hot (and I crave creamy, dull, dairy filled foods when it’s cold).
Also, a product suggestion for this hot weather, or for Indian dishes. I am completely, entirely in love with Trader Joe’s pre-cooked, vacuum sealed lentils locatable in the fridge section by the fresh veggies. The ingredient list is “lentils and natural seasonings”, and they are amazing – hot, cold, with any flavor you can imagine, whatever… even cold without seasoning. No boiling required.
P.S. That picture of the corn is amazing! I heard rumors of a new lens? What kind?
Okay, the scientist in me couldn’t help it. Maybe an answer about spicy food:
http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?sec=health&res=9800E5D71138F932A1575AC0A965948260
Yum. I wish my husband was into lentils. I can’t believe you hate cilantro! I made salsa this weekend, with boatloads of lime and cilantro, and it is so good I was swooning. But that also could be because I am a sissy and I always make my salsa too spicy for myself, not spicy enough for the husband (who can eat habaneros plain without wincing).
I share your violent dislike of heat (must be the Eastern European lineage). I lived in Asia for five years, where summers are a humid hell (worse than NY, I think, though when you’re in a humid NY summer it doesn’t seem like that could be possible). Most afternoons I lay down on the floor in front of the fan and begged whatever friend was around to “just kill me now!”
Perhaps I should have tried Indian food instead?:-)
Sweat is natural air conditioning! Thats why we sweat when we excercise, and get overheated. Eating spicy foods causes us to sweat. That is why the hottest regions of the world tend to also have the spiciest foods. Eating them counter-intuitively served to cool off the people in their hot weater!
Oh, pho in McLean. Best.Hangover.Cure.Ever!
It’s probably been a few weeks since I’ve had it, but just your mention of it has made me crave some this weekend!
Gorgeous! Have you read The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri (I think I have the name right)? You mentioning dal reminds me of the book. I just finished it–wonderful. (And your towering strawberry cake from a few days ago makes my mouth water.)
Ah – this would explain why I am making soup today.
Joc — Kibbutz are collective farms communal living groups in Israel, though a lot of them have gotten away from farming. Apparently, they account for about 2 percent of the population. Israeli guys are indeed hot.
candy — I LOVE chili in the summer. And a couple weeks ago, when I had the great honor of meeting Shuna from Eggbeater, she ordered cabbage soup at Veselka and I couldn’t bring myself to because it was so hot out, and I’ve craved it INCESSANTLY since. I’ll report when I finally get my own bowl–it’s worth raving about.
miss mangia — I think it makes sense. Whenever I eat highly-spiced Indian foods, summer or not, I always feel kind of fuzzy and calm afterward. (I swear, it’s not just the gin.) It seems amplified in the summer.
Mary — I might, but for chickpeas, I’m still trying to get the perfect chana masala recipe down. (Though I loved Orangette’s Brandon’s one I made a while back.) I think I’ll always pick a tomato-y sauce over coconut milk, but I can’t imagine that chickpeas, or even kidney beans wouldn’t make an excellent swap.
Maura — Oh, it’s so not you. I swear, it’s something genetic. Most people think it’s great, and the rest think it tastes like tinny dirt, n’er between the two seem to meet. People who love cilantro do not get that to others it tastes putrid, and vice-versa. Fortunately, I’ve found that flat-leaf parsley is a perfect swap.
Farah — Cilantro-haters unite! It really doesn’t bug me that I don’t like it so much as I am bugged by people who think I’m crazy, because I know I don’t taste what they do. Ah, well.
Katerina — Let’s see, I still have non-stick pans so I don’t have to worry as much about burning on the bottom but still, I don’t go that far from the pot once they start thickening up.
Tara — I am just not loving the breads, noodles and rice over the summer, I have to admit. We often toast up some naan with dals, but weren’t feeling it at all.
Jessica — Those are adorable! (But they scream “clutter!” I confess. But cute clutter!)
jessica — Geneva! What a cool reason to clean out the kitchen. You don’t need to send me any Swiss chocolate bar, but my father, a few comments below, might disagree. ;)
Jenifer from Houston — Pistachio naan sounds awesome. We need to get Tabla on that! (Though their rosemary, sourdough and mustard seed versions are none too shabby themselves. Mm, ghee and sea salt…)
Rachael — That sounds great. I’m going to add those lentils to my thousand-long list of things to try if I ever make it the nine whole blocks to Traders Joes. Tsk-tsk, I know. Oh, and macro lens! We’re in LUV.
Recovering Overachiever — We used to go to this place called Pho 75. I believe it cost $4.75. We thought that was brilliant.
Lauren — I did, and I loved it. I loved the movie, too. Also her first book. Me, obsessed? No, not at all.
Despite being from Eastern Europe, I don’t really mind warm temperatures. However, humid and hot and please-kill-me-I-can’t-bear-it-anymore is no fun at all. My cure for it is Iced Cappucinos (from a chain of coffee shops in Canada called Tim Hortons, they’re everywhere in Canada and probably the national symbol after beavers and maple leafs). Thankfully, it’s cooled down a bit here in Southern Ontario, so I’ll try to send the breeze your way.
Indian food sounds so great right now, your curry and dal look amazing. :)
yup im indian, my mom feeds us all spicy food in the summer because it promotes cooling. no idea how that works but its traditional. those beans look soooooooo good btw.
I just did a saffron basmati rice that would go great with that…chock full of nuts and currants. Yum! http://cooknkate.wordpress.com/2007/06/29/sweet-saffron-pilaf-with-currants-and-nuts/
That dal looks delish, and I am going to have to try it as I love good lentil-y type meals. Cheap, filling and flavorful. Can’t beat it.
Good point! I forgot to mention how blown away we consistently are with our grocery bills when we cook Indian food. I think this one was $10, and it fed us for two days. Once you’ve bought four or six spices, you’re set for an indefinite amount of budget, healthy meals.
Your pictures are to die for. What camera do you use?
Hi Nici — I have photo information over here: http://smittenkitchen.com/about#Photos
i tried the dal this weekend. I used the full amount of chile powder but maybe mine has outlived its spiciness in my spice cabinet b/c i could have used more kick in the dal. I alos used the dreaded cilantro….
Indian flavors and legumes, my favorite combination! Looks fan-flippin-tastic.
I’m digging my dried black eyed peas out of the pantry right now…
You’ve defined my pantry . . . can’t wait to make this! I swear, by the way, your photos are getting better and better. I thought of you leafing through the July Gourmet, as I was drooling over the gorgeous photo spreads.
Cheers,
Lia
deb– what is the white stuff in the middle of the picture. looks like a yummy cool relief, but I am not familiar enough with indian fair to pick it out.
Whoops. That would be a dollop of cucumber raita. http://smittenkitchen.com/2007/02/confessions-of-a-cumin-junkie
The Everyday Dal was absolutely delicious- thanks for posting. Goes great with the frozen naan at Trader Joes. Love your site, congrats on Napa.
The Everyday Dal was delicious! You have really turned me on to Indian food ever since the Indian Spiced Potatoes and Cauliflower. I served the dal with steamed kale greens and pillowy zucchini pancakes from Mark Bittman. So good!
I thought that both the dal and the Goan curry could have used a LOT more spice. They were far to bland for summertime!
Next time for the dal, I’ll throw a pepper or two in. I don’t know if there will be a next time for the Goan Curry – better coconut recipes exist (especially from Kerala) and the beans never got to the right consistency despite appropriate soaking.
The cabbage slaw, however, was a big hit!
Let me tell you a story. I lived in India for a year, and “everyday” yellow dal was my absolute least favorite dish. I am ashamed to admit that I cried when I was served it for dinner on “thanksgiving.” I love Indian cooking now, but haven’t attempted a yellow dal because I found them way too heavy on the cayenne yet bland at the same time, if that makes sense. I made this dal with hesitation but wow- it FAR surpasses the “everyday” dals that I suffered through. And the black eyed peas are fabulous as well. Like Carol, I thought both were a little bland so I pumped up the spices and also added about a teaspoon of garam masala to each and they were perfection. Thanks for sharing these!
made this menu yesterday (been trying to get into indian cooking a little bit). I liked these quite a bit…they didn’t quite pack the punch that i usually like in my indian food, but the flavors were still nice. I was surprised i like the cabbage slaw as much as i did…it was the one i thought i’d like least…but it was my favorite.
I made the slaw and the yellow dal for a dinner party the other night, and hoo boy was the dal delicious! i added more onions and more pepper, and it was terrific. i actually saved a little bowl for myself for work the next day, and it was still awesome after spending the night in my fridge and being zapped in a microwave.
i am allergic to tomato (actually the whole nightshade family, which includes tomatoes, potatoes, bell peppers, chile peppers and eggplant) and wonder if you have some idea of how these dishes would turn out without using any tomato (or cayenne) and/or if you have any substitution suggestions, thanks for any ideas you might have!
I made this dal last night for dinner and it was so good. I posted about it on my new food blog if you’re interested. Thanks for a great recipe!
I stumbled upon your site a few weeks ago, and am really tempted to make the everyday dal, but I don’t have cumin seeds–only ground cumin. Can I just make the substitution, or should I really go out and try to find cumin seeds?
Hi – I just wanted to say, thank you thank you for posting the dal pictures and recipe! I found this post off of foodgawker just now and as soon as I saw the photo of that beautiful yellow dal my jaw literally dropped and my heart broke a little b/c I wanted some so badly! I had tried making dal before and it was a disaster b/c I had used lentils instead of split peas – obviously I don’t know much about Indian food! Really looking forward to trying out this recipe though, so thanks again :)
Yes! Another cilantro hater! So many people think I’m crazy too, and I also have been doing the flat leaf parsley substitution for a long time, ever since I discovered guacamole. ;)
FYI, w/r/t the cabbage salad, i found 1 teaspoon to be WAY TOO MUCH SALT. maybe it should have been kosher salt, not regular salt? i added some splashes of vinegar, which helped, but it still tasted a little weird to me. the toasty mustard seeds were delicious, though.
Just tried the Everyday Yellow Dal tonight and it was delicious!
Only made the black eyed to go with rice and man oh man, delicious! Instant home run.
I need to say, thank you. I continually make this cabbage salad and am becoming famous for it even though I always refer to this site to people who compliment it. It is one of the best recipes I’ve come across in years. It’s cheap to make a lot of for guests, I’ve quadrupled the quantities for picnics. People constantly ask me if there are exotic ingredients in it like wasabi or sushi vinegar. I have made it at least 10-20 times since reading this.
My variations: I tend to use jalapenos which are milder and easier to find hot peppers, I get black mustard seeds from an Indian spice store instead of standard ones, I use olive oil for better taste, and I tend to prefer to use a mandolin for strands of cabbage rather than a fine grate.
The dal recipe is also great. Although I’m thinking of switching to more traditional mung or pigeon peas for it. My local split peas seem to be old and take twice as long to cook.
oh as other commenters said, I also tend to use half the salt listed and I’m a salt person. If I actually do end up using Serrano peppers I use half because they are way spicier and don’t seem to double well when making quantities.
I made the black eyed peas and they were good; I added a chopped yam and my husband, who claims to hate yams, said it really added some delightful sweetness. I also used chicken broth instead of water and added a tablespoon of butter at the end. I was suspicious of the cook time before I started- 20 minutes for dried beans? Maybe in a pressure cooker? I simmered this dish for over an hour, even after soaking the beans over night. They still could have cooked a little longer. Undercooked dried beans feel chalky and taste like dirt. Good recipe though, and healthy. I love Indian food, and it’s so much more affordable when you make it yourself. I want to try the yellow dal next!
I tried the “everyday yellow dal” last week and loved it! I think I could eat it almost every day. Thanks for sharing such a simple, delicious, and budget-friendly recipe.
We tried the yellow dal last night for dinner with quinoa and these: http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/grandmas-crushed-potatoes and it was all amazing. It was perfectly spiced and seasoned and all three of my kids (9,3 &1) loved it. My husband said it was the best meal he’s had in months (though, what does that say about the rest of the food I’ve been cooking?!)
Deb,
you’ve been my hero since i started reading your blog,
but i just read in this post that you “abhor” cilantro–I think I just
added another 10 pedestal for you to be on!!! you’re my HERO. :)
So delicious! I made all three tonight for a dinner party, along with your cucumber scallion raita and a big pot of basmati rice. It was a hit with everyone! The yellow split peas I used actually needed to be quick soaked with boiling hot water for an hour, or soaked for 6-8 hours instead….but I failed to note that until after I had been simmering them in the pot with the tomatoes and the cooking time was at least an hour or two longer than expected. Doh! I know better and don’t know why I didn’t think to check my bag of split peas first. The end result was still on the “firm” side, but done enough to eat. No one complained though, I suspect it was because the flavors were so tasty otherwise. :)
an easier way to deal with the tedium of mincing ginger and garlic into tiny enough pieces to suit an indian dish is to puree them together in a food processor. or you could even crush them with a mortar and pestle. during my two years living in india i learned how to make what they call “ginger garlic paste” (which, incidentally, is the flavor base of most dal or curry, giving it that really authentic taste). you just puree equal parts of ginger and garlic in the food processor- it will store freshly made for up to a week in the fridge (for those who have a penchant for indian food- its just easier to have it already prepared). also, one specialty ingredient that i love to add to daily dal is called curry leaves, or kuddyapa. they can be found fresh in most indian stores, and have a distinctive flavor that i have never found in another herb. love all three of these recipes!
I’ve made both the cabbage salad and the dal and they are both fantastically delicious! The dal is on the menu again tomorrow night. Question: it being winter and the tomatoes being both incredibly expensive and tasting of cardboard, would you recommend using some amount of tomato sauce, paste, or canned tomatoes?
I just made the yellow dal! La la loved it! And I love your blog. I just blogged about it and you! Thanks!
Great flavors in the dal. However, I had to stop cooking them at 2 1/2 hours, when they were mostly cooked for lack of time. Deborah Madison recommends soaking 3 hours –I’ll do that next time.
I love this yellow dal– thank you. It’s the first time I really believed it possible to make Indian food to rival a restaurant’s at home. My 11-year-old daughter liked it so much that she took the serving bowl and ate the dal like soup. One quick question. Any clues for making basmati rice? Brand? Ingredients to add? Mine is fine but nothing special
No idea if you check all new comments, even if the posts are old, but I’d love some feedback. I made the slaw last night, and while it was really tasty, it was incredibly SALTY! This could have been because I used Chinese cabbage, which was much leafier and less sturdy than your standard grocery store head, but I thought I’d at least ask whether 1 tsp was accurate – it seemed like a lot for two cups of shredded veggie (and I love salt).
I do! It does look like 1 teaspoon is accurate to the original recipe, which means I used it too. However, it does sound like a lot in hindsight… I need to make this again soon and see how that amount holds up for me. Regular green cabbage lets off a lot of water when it is salted — which might have allowed more of the salt to sort of “slip off” into the bowl as it releases its water and wilts — so using a leafier one might have affected it.
I made this trio of recipes lat night. The cabbage was amazing and the black eyed peas were also great. However, both my peas and dal turned out very soupy. I’m not sure what I did wrong, they just didn’t turn out as thick and delicious looking as the pictures here. The black eyed peas also took about 40 minutes to be cooked (with overnight soak). I think a bit more spice would have really made these two recipes awesome. As they are I still thought they were quite good. I’ll have to try again with some adjustments in spices and amount of liquid.
Deb – Do you think you could use the slow cooker on the this? My split peas are taking forever to get soft and they seem to be cooking very uneavenly. This is a problem that I’ve had with many types of beans until you solved the issue with your slow cooking beans advice. Do you think it could be applied here?
I made the black eyed peas using a 16oz. bag of frozen guys and 2 cups of water. It turned out kind of soupy, but it was DELICIOUS over brown rice. Next time I will make it spicier so the absurd amount of cucumber raita I eat with it seems more rational. Thanks Deb!
I’ve just discovered your website a week ago and i’ve been perusing through your posts for a couple of days now. I’ve made the dal and black-eyed peas today and they were completely awesome. I substituted the butter in the dal with yoghurt to make it even lighter. It seemed to work fine. Thanks for all your effort making this site!
B
Made this tonight and it was delicious. My husband didn’t know what I’d been up to in the kitchen as said he felt like he’d walked into an Indian buffet!
I’m Indian and cook Indian food all the time, and tried out the dal and the goan curry. I was not impressed with either! They are certainly fine but nothing special. If you’re looking for great Indian recipes, consider ones by Madhur Jaffrey. Her recipes are consistently excellent.
Lovely Goan curry! If you want to really speed up the process (and be really Desi!) you can cook the black-eyed peas in a pressure cooker without even soaking them – so easy! I did it the long way though, as I had started soaking the peas first and then found a recipe I wanted to use. The coconut milk was a nice touch (apparently Goans put it in everything). I’ll make this again for sure. Very happy with it! Thank you!
In response to Clerky – I’m definitely not Indian, but my friend from Mumbai came over and cooked with me. She thought the curry was good, and I agree. I don’t know that it’s SUPER special, but it’s definitely tasty and worth making. Thanks again!
Loved the dal and the slaw, but I’ll have to second the “too salty!” comments (and I oversalt everything). I would recommend maybe just using half at the start, and salting to taste after.
I thought the dal needed more salt, so I just alternated bites and it all evened out.
i love the dal. when my husband and i made this for the first time, we insisted that we were eating something from a restaurant, not something we made in our home!
I just made this yellow dal! It’s delicious, and the fresh cilantro REALLY brings out the flavor! If you like cilantro, make sure you include it. yum yum.
deb, I’ve made the yellow dal twice now and the flavors are delicious … but for some reason my yellow split peas REFUSE to get soft. have you ever had this problem? the first time I thought I hadn’t soaked them for long enough, so this go-round I soaked them for several hours before cooking. still no dice. cooked for almost two hours and they were still crunchy. (btw, the peas are a recent purchase–have only been in my cabinet for a little over a week.) any thoughts?? I would so love to get this recipe to turn out the way it’s supposed to!
jenny — The store might have kept them around forever before you bought them. I look for beans and other dried things in vacuum-sealed packages where I can.
thanks … good call. meanwhile, I discovered another solution in my molecular gastronomy book: baking soda! apparently dried beans won’t cook down if your water is hard, but baking soda takes care of the problem. now I’m even more excited to try this again. :)
Made the black eyed peas and the slaw tonight and both were fantastic! I went heavy on the cayenne (about the 1/2tsp) and it was amazing over brown basmati. It’s going to become a standard around here, probably almost as much as the chana masala which I’m obsessed with. Obsessed.
Deb..I was wondering, will we be seeing a valentines day link, you know for brunches or dinners?… :0) *hint hint*
(P.s tomatoes are expensive and gross right now in New England, so I used a 1/4 of chopped whole tomatoes and it was fine!)
This is my new favorite way to cook black eyed peas! It is delicious with an extra 2 teaspoons of fresh ginger.
Instead of split yellow peas, I used Indian split red lentils (Masoor Dahl). They don’t require any soaking and cook in 20 minutes tops.
Deb, I despise cilantro too! I am so happy to hear that you don’t use it in your recipes. I was beginning to fear that I might be all alone…
The Goan Curry was great! I added collard greens to make it a meal, w/ rice. The flavor of the collard greens was really nice with the curry.
This was all absolutely delicious! Next time I’ll double or triple the cabbage. We really felt that a small bite of it with each bite really made everything taste fresh. Two of us ate all the cabbage! I can’t wait for lunch today to have leftovers!
I have to agree with some of the previous posters re: salty slaw. It was almost inedible as written! I had to add another cup of cabbage and increase the sugar and lemon juice just to make it tolerable. I have no idea how other people are eating it as written. Love the idea though, next time I will cut the salt by half and see how it is.
Yikes. I will add a note that many have found it too salty. Thanks for the feedback, sorry it came at your slaw’s expense!
hmm… Can I use a pressure cooker instead of that 1 and 1/4 hour of simmering ?…I usually do with the dals that I make … not sure about this one though …
This really answered my problem, thank you!
I can’t begin to thank you for these recipes – I keep coming back to them! I also have a newfound appreciation for cabbage from the slaw recipes on this blog.
This was so so amazing!!! It was different and exciting. I made all 3 recipes and they were all amazing. I found the cabbage a little two bland so added some extra sugar and rice vinegar. You’re incredible!
I made the curry and the slaw last night and both are excellent! Thank you!
Hi deb, I made the dal tonight and had a major problem. As I was boiling the tomatoes with the split peas, I noticed a really funky smell. I’ve never done a dal before and so was unsure if this was normal. Well, after dal finished it had a funky taste as well. The tomato I used appeared to be fresh, only a couple days in the fridg and had a firm feel. Do you know how this could have happened?
Did you use a reactive pot (such as aluminum)?
Hello :) I cooked it in a stainless steel pot. I didn’t peel the tomatoes first and used romas, I believe. Weird.
Hm. Is it possible that your spices could have been old or musty? (I don’t mean to insult your kitchen, btw! I am just running through the list of things that I suspect could cause the problem.)
Thanks! All my seasonings are pretty fresh. Must have been the tomato … I’m def trying this baby again soon though. I’ll report back, captain!
I hope it goes better next time. I am definitely stumped otherwise.
Hi Deb,
I’ve made this dal recipe many times now, and love it. Last night, I tried making it with canned tomatoes for the first time (it was late, I was lazy, the nearby store was closed, etc etc), and it came out TERRIBLE. Like, inedible. The flavor was really off and the peas came out whole and crunchy even though I cooked it for an extra hour.
Any thoughts on whether canned tomatoes could cause all that, or whether they should generally be a no-no for this type of recipe? It might also be that the peas were old, but I used the same brand from the same store as always.
So weird, as in the last few comments before yours, I discussed with someone ways that the dish’s flavor could be thrown. Do any of those ring true for you? I wish I knew what the problem was.
Thanks — didn’t mean to make you repeat yourself. I was thinking that maybe the acidity is somehow different in fresh vs. canned tomatoes, and that might make the peas break down differently? No idea. Anyway, I’ll go back to fresh next time, just in case!
Not a problem! I’ve only made this with fresh ones, and now I clearly need to retest it with canned. I wish I could get my son to love Indian food as we do; I would have retested this much sooner!
Hi, I know I’m a few months late, but I wanted to let you know that I used canned tomatoes (actually the kind with chilis included in the can, haha) in this recipe with great success! It was delicious, so that must not be the answer to Meridith’s problem. Good luck to Meridith, and to Deb: thanks for helping me add another amazing recipe to my repertoire!
Embarassed to admit that I use recipes like this even though I’m Indian! But mom always taught me “a little of this” and “a little of that” which resulted in everything being “a little off.”
Proud to say this turned out amazing and, in my husband’s words, “just like mom’s!” Only thing I did that I learned from mom was add a little (1/4 tsp) garam masala to the onion mixture at the end of cooking (not too early or the spice will burn) and add a touch of turmeric (1/4 tsp) to the boiling dahl while it’s cooking with the water and tomatoes. Otherwise, totally authentic and totally delicious. Thanks so much!
I loved the Spicy Goan Curry sauce! I added a dash or two of Thai fish sauce, which really brought out the sweet and savory notes of the dish. I forgot to add the coconut milk, but it turned out great anyway. I highly recommend it, and will be trying this out again with other beans and legumes. Also, I’m thinking of getting a cone of palm jaggery from the Asian food market nearby and seeing how that tastes when used in place of sugar. Thanks for the great recipe!
I own the cookbook these recipes were adapted from. It was the first cookbook I ever bought, and is still my favorite. But I lost the pages with the yellow dal and black-eyed pea recipes several years ago. They were my favorite recipes, and I missed them, but I never thought to write them down. You cannot realize how made my day was when I found them here. Thank you so much!
My black-eyed peas in curry turned out more soupy than you would assume from the picture. I used dried beans + 2 cups of water and simmered covered for about 30 minutes. Yummy, but soupy…
I just made these tonight, and they were so so so delicious!! I’m always looking for a new use for black-eyed peas (my husband’s family grows them in abundance), and I have had a bag of split-peas (they did happen to be green instead of yellow, but it didn’t seem to matter) in my cupboard begging to be used for some time now. Mmmmm! Thank you! I was wondering though–how do you serve this? All three recipes together? With naan? Rice? And the photo shows something white and creamy-looking in the middle. Did I miss something? What is that?
Janelle — It was a raita, the recipe is the last one in the post.
Thank you! Ooh-one more question if you have a sec–I’m new to making Indian food, but I’m in love! Would you recommend a cookbook for me??
now that i’m reading the comment guidelines (sorry…) maybe I shouldn’t have posted either of those comments! :(
I just finished making the yellow dal. Tears of joy and gratitude! At first I thought, No way will this taste anywhere near restaurant quality — that would be too good to be true for a recipe this manageable. But it’s not! As an unskilled cook who’s vegetarian and has celiac, thank you, thank you, thank you.
the dal is deeelicious! :-)
I have not yet tried the black-eyed peas, but since I had never cooked these I started looking around, and found a couple interesting things. Several sites suggested that BlackEyed peas do NOT need to be soaked, and that cooking time is only about 40 min.
Then I also found in the comments to this article:
http://www.chezbettay.com/pages/basics1/basics_beans1.html
a discussion of why salt should not be added to bean cooking water until the beans are tender. Fascinating! I wonder if this curry recipe were changed to not include soaking, and not adding salt to the cooking water until the very end – would it work? Maybe a bit longer cooking time, but no soak?
I’ll have to try – btw here is the text that about salt that I found most interesting (hope you do, too):
“Update June 2012: Several knowledgable scientific minds have sent me the technical data as to why I avoid adding sea salt to the dried bean cooking water. This explaination is the BEST I’ve read and easiest to understand.
Water Follows Sodium
“Actually it is not the “plugging” by sodium, but instead is due to the osmotic pressure gradient between the sodium solution in which the dried beans would be cooked and the water in the dried beans themselves. “Water follows sodium” is a phrase medical students learn to understand this process. The cell membranes of the bean are semi-permeable. They allow water to move freely on both sides of the membranes (in the dried bean and in the cooking water) when the concentration of sodium on both sides of the membrane is the same. This is what you want for cooking dried beans. However, once there is a difference in the concentration of sodium on one side of the membrane, in this case the cooking water, the water molecules flow toward the sodium to try and equalize the concentration on both sides of the membrane. This means the beans won’t absorb the water needed to cook them properly.” —Rich Howard
So add the salt and seasonings AFTER the beans are tender and the consistency you want the finished recipe to represent.”
Hi Deb,
I’m about to make this delicious-looking dahl, but couldn’t find yellow split peas anywhere. What do you think of using small red lentils instead? Any advice about cooking with them as opposed to the yellow split peas?
Thanks!
Allison — They should be fine but I do think they’ll cook faster and fall apart even more easily. But they’ll taste delicious.
Good recipe!! I loved your blogpost, especially your cakes :)
LOVE the tangy cabbage. Amazing! I used parsley instead of cilantro because my husband despises it, and I added a fourth of an orange bell pepper which paired nicely with the lemon. I’ve never eaten cabbage with my Indian, but I found it harmonized the heavy spices of the dal. I’m adding this into my Indian food rotation for shizzle.
Allison, I used red lentils. The cook time is, like deb says, shorter, and they form a mash-like puree on their own after about 45 minutes. But I like this texture with the aromatic rice I usually make to go with dal.
I am a new fan! And I am a reverse fan! I found the book last Sunday while strolling through a little independent bookstore, and it was love at first sight and will compete with my complete series of Jamie Oliver books. I totally relate to every word you say about your cooking meanderings Deb! This Blog is amazing.
I just happened to read above comments about the “funny smell” of the Dal. My husband is Indian, so I do cook quite a bit of Indian food (not enough for him though..I am German, I like good simple food based on good ingredients, and believe the presentation matters) – so I am always happy to try out something new. As one of the Indian girls mentioned above, any Indian mother/aunty/mother in law never has a recipe but just “some of this and some of that”…! Anyhow, I don’t think the choice of tomato, canned or fresh, makes a different unless you pick a really rotten one which is unlikely, as this would be noticable right away. I have sometimes soaked my lentils in water and then did not get to cook them, so kept them in the water for too long and the smelled really bad after a while so I tossed them out. But whenever I cook them as planned, there is no issue. I do however not cook them in plain water but hot broth (vegetable or chicken) and then only add a pinch of salt in the end if needed, but I like it less salty, and my husband will cover it in salt once on his plate regardless. You just need to make sure you heat the broth first before mixing with the lentils, else they may not soften ( I think..my mom told me once..)!
The dal is one of the best things I’ve ever tasted — INCREDIBLE! Thanks for the recipe!
I never trust a person who doesn’t like coriander.
Ben — You must not trust a whole lot of people!
We LOVED the black eyed peas and the cabbage salad! Thank you Deb, so much, for these recipes. We made the red kidney bean curry from your site a few nights ago and loved it so much that we wanted to keep the Indian food going and tried these recipes tonight. :) You have certainly boosted our confidence for making delicious Indian food!
I only had time to soak the black eyed peas for an hour and a half or so, but like other reviewers read that they don’t necessarily need to be soaked like other beans. I found they took about 30 minutes to cook without having had a long soak.
I halved the amount of black-eyed peas, onion, tomato, and liquids, but kept the spice amounts the same as in your original recipe, as we like the spice levels high. It was perfect for our tastes. My husband and I devoured everything between the two of us! Thank you again Deb, these Indian recipes will become regular in our household!
Growing up with a father who loved to cook Indian food, I’ve always tried to do it myself- It would never end up how I remembered as a kid. We made your everyday dahl last night and it was wonderful! This recipe is what I’ll use from now on- thank you! Even the 5 year old picky eater loved it. Thank you!
Made this tonight for dinner and it was a hit with my meat loving flat mate, thanks for a super easy and delish recipe :)
havent read through the comments but I used white vinegar since we had no citrus in the house and the salad was awesome (although made a HUGE mess with the mustard seeds, not quick enough with the pot lid!)
After simmering the yellow split peas in 3 cups of water there is no mention of draining before mashing. Although cooked for 1 & 1/2 hours it still seemed to liquify to me but what do I know? Never had Dal before and would like to get the consistency right.
Hi bubba — I am not sure how watery yours were but this is a loose dal. (They can be a bit soupy.) However, you can make it thicker by draining off some water if needed. It’s really about how you would enjoy it the most.
I left out the cilantro and added a package of frozen spinich and some ginger. Really good.
I’ve been using this recipe for a couple of years now along with the channa masala and cauliflower. Actually, all of the Indian recipes are delish..thought it was about time to thank you for one of my favorite go to recipes! I’m certainly going to get your cookbook. Thank you again!!
Will green split peas work?
I have made the everyday yellow dal twice now and both times it has been delicious! I, too, find cilantro repugnant and used flat-leaf parsley. It’s divine. I’m bringing it to the synagogue tonight, and hope all those silly vegetarians enjoy it as much as I do! This is a super easy and wonderful dish.
This dal is insanely delicious. INSANELY. It stacks up to the food in India. I used sorrel instead of cilantro because I have a ton of it and it added a lovely lemony brightness. Thank you Deb!
I made your tangy, shredded cabbage salad and it was spectacular! Thanks for a great recipe that I will make many more times. Now I’ll have to try the other recipes here. Yum!
This has been a favorite recipe of ours for years. But lately we’ve been having trouble getting the peas to cook fully. We moved a while back, and reading in the comments here that it may be our water and that baking soda might be a solution to the problem is very encouraging! Thanks Smitten Kitchen readers!
PS: it worked!
I am going to try your black-eyed peas in curry recipe. I usually make hush puppies made with black-eyed peas but have never tried a curry recipe. Interesting!
The dal was good (we served it with buttered white basmati rice and 11% milk fat yogurt) but the cabbage salad was AMAZING. I subbed blackberry honey for the sugar and forgot to toast the mustard seed and it was still amazing. Going to be putting it on regular rotation. Looking forward to trying it with BBQ salmon this summer.
Oh and we also grated a little organic lemon rind into the cabbage salad!
Just made the Dahl – so good! We’ve made lots before, this one is the best yet, thanks!
I will simply echo what so many others have said above.
I made the dal tonight – absolutely delightful! Perfect flavors, and SO dead simple. I told my husband we should make this again soon (not going to lie- the two of us ate it all), and he said, “Like tomorrow night?”
Made our evening great – such tasty food. Thank you, Deb!
I made the dal earlier this week and it was SOOO delicious. As a brown girl, I’m pretty particular when it comes to Indian food, but this recipe nailed it! My toddler son has been devouring it with brown basmati rice. Can’t wait to try the other two recipes!
Such great recipes to celebrate the International Year of Pulses! More pulses recipes in 12301630 #UTOPIA
my husband’s comments on the dal and cabbage, “This is one of the best SK recipes we’ve had, don’t you think? But I guess I say that about all of them.” LOVED IT!
Tried the potato-cauliflower curry-it was good. Might add mustard seeds next time.
Where is this recipe???
Wow, I just made the yellow dal recipe for dinner tonight and it was delicious! I did find that I had to turn the heat up on the lentils a bit to cook the liquid down (I was getting a little impatient probably because I was hungry) If you like Indian food, I highly recommend this recipe.
I’ve made the dal and the cabbage salad several times with basmati rice and find it a very satisfying meal. It’s definitely on my comfort-food list!
Im so making this slaw for christmas day at the in-laws. Its always boiling hot here and this sounds totally perfect! Pous.. flavour surprise :) Xxseasons greetings
Hello! I made your everyday yellow dahl last night for dinner, and shared the leftovers with my sister at lunch today. My sister (my biggest critic of all things curry related) thought is was delicious and asked me to make it again!
I had to use red lentils as I could not find any kind of split pea that was gluten free. Next time I might add a jalapeno to give it some extra kick!
Thanks for the great recipe! I’m definitely adding this one to my recipe book!
I just made the dal tonight, and it is fantastic! So flavorful. Just two tips — first, I simmered the split peas and tomatoes for much longer than an hour before they were cooked enough for me to be able to emulsify them. That’s probably just because I had the heat too low — after I turned the heat up to medium, they cooked very quickly. And second, if you don’t like things spicy, go with the 1/4 tsp cayenne. I thought 1/2 tsp was good, but it definitely has a kick.
I’m making the yellow dal right now, but I’ve been simmering the split peas for more than 2 hours at this point! Anyone else have this issue?
Yes. Me Ugh.
So my boyfriend has been making this recipe for almost 2 years, always takes soooo long to cook. I was really confused one time when I used yellow lentils for a different recipe and they didn’t take long at all. With some research and perusing other recipes, I have learned that apparently acids, such as tomatoes, and salt inhibits the cooking process. While I’m sure part of the complex flavor profile of the dish results from the simmering tomato, I’m going to opt for holding off on adding it till the end! Whaddya think, Deb?
Just making up my shopping list so we can make the Goan Black-eyed peas AGAIN. I think it’s worth soaking the peas. I didn’t change anything (okay, maybe I added a bit more ginger and garlic because I always); used exactly the amount of cayenne in the recipe and it gave it just the right amount of not-too-much heat, but enough to notice. Yay! Another meal to add into the rotation.
Deb, I love this recipe and I make it often, but how on earth do you brown the onions in five minutes. I usually need to give it about half the cooking time of the lentils.
Even finely chopped at high heat? It always goes so fast, especially because the pan is hot and sizzling for a few minutes by then. Regardless, go with the color/appearance, not my time estimate, as you do.
Hi Deb – I’ve been wanted to get some experience with Indian-inspired recipes, and the everyday yellow dal looks like the trick. However, my husband doesn’t like lentils. Would be possible to substitute a vegetable or two for the lentils?
So hard for me to say without testing it, as each vegetable will have a different texture and cook differently. Does he not like green or brown lentils? Yellow split peas tend to break down into more of a rough mashed texture.
I love this recipe for Daal! I’ve made it many times. Any advice for making it in the Instapot?
HI. I made this tonight. My Dahl did not cook enough in the 45 min- 1 hr as suggested. The split peas were still hard. I had to keep adding liquid and simmering for another hour at which point I got too hungry and just ate them. They were still too hard but the flavor was delicious. I got them at Whole Foods so I don’t think they were old. Any other reason why they would not cook more quickly? I soaked them for an hour. Maybe they need additional soaking time? Please let me know. Thanks!
I’ve bought split peas from Whole foods before, from the bulk section, and they too took forever to cook. I think they were old because it has also happened to me with chickpeas. I just buy them from trader joe’s or from Ralph’s (Kroger) now.
Hi thanks so much!
I had the same problem and also got them from the bulk section at a co-op. This is making me feel better about how they turned out – still kind of hard and not that good. I’ll try the rest in the Instant Pot and do extra cooking time to see if I can get them soft, and then purchase them elsewhere in the future to see if they turn out better.
I’ve had this happen to me with yellow split peas from several stores. It would be nice to know if the product is older but not sure there’s a way.
I’m going to try it in the Instant Pot to see if that makes any difference.
I really loved this quick dinner! I cooked the yellow peas in the instant pot for 6 minutes with natural release. Probably didn’t need to soak them–they were plenty soft! The onions and slaw were done by the time the pressure released. I then got some rice on while the dal simmered with the onion/spice mixture. I cut back on the water for the IP–2.5 c water which I thought at first was too much but once everyone got home it had thickened up perfectly. Oh, I used the turmeric spiced ghee from TJs and skipped spice due to kid but a little kick would definitely be good. I’ll need to try the black eyed peas soon too.
Oh, so glad you posted this!
I adore this recipe and the dal and wanted to try it in my new IP.
Thank you!!
Your wonderful cabbage salad and black-eyed pea curry get lost in the Everyday Dal recipe. Any chance you could call them out separately in the recipe index Indian section to make them easier to find (and so they stay on readers’ radar for meal-planning)? Thanks so much for putting your writing and recipes out into the world.
I agree! I’m going to work on that this winter.
Sibling called this morning to say she’d made this and it was awesome, and so I did, too. Whoa! Where has this been all my life? Prior to plunging in, I thought, “Do I really want to use my last garden tomato of the summer in this?” The answer is, “YES! I do!” I think the tomato is the most beautiful thing about this, and it is totally worth that last summer treasure. Spouse is a vegetarian and a fan now, too. Thank you!
This turned out great! Thank you for such a delicious recipe. It was easy to make. If a pressure cooker version ever comes out I would be interested : ) Oh, and next time I’ll halve the spice!
You are a genius Deb. I just added the rice and the cabbage salad, the flavours of this meal are on a whole other level. It’s so satisfying. Thank you for your marvelously accessible and effective recipes.
We made this in the Instant Pot tonight (after years of making it on the stove and loving it) and it turned out great, as always! We did 20 minutes on manual but I would try 15 next time as the split peas were more than soft. I might add more water, too, but it was delicious as it was so I might just be used to the stovetop consistency.
It turned out that we were out of cumin seeds, so in place of the cumin & coriander I used a balti curry spice mix that had both of those. It was delicious!! Oh, and I added an extra tomato.
We like to serve with naan.
Thank you for a delicious recipe that we have made again and again!
I just made this and wow is it good. The flavors or incredible. Served with a dollop of yogurt on top + squeeze of lime. Will be making this again!
Great recipe! I made this to accompany a biryani and it was great with a good balance of spices. I just added the onion sauté to the peas as they cooked to infuse the flavours for as long as possible, as well as adding chicken stock instead of water. It’s a keeper!
In my experience tomato should be added after boiling dal not before. Adding dal before it is boiled slows boiling and prevents it becoming tender
Just a PSA for making the cabbage salad–don’t let the oil get too hot or the mustard seeds will burst into flames on contact! Happened twice tonight.
I’ve made this a bunch – it’s perfect! I’m wondering what the cooking time would be for an instant pot? Anyone know? Thanks!!
The yellow dal is delicious – we’ve made it several times now. But it’s the unassuming cabbage salad that I love so much! Trying the black-eyed pea curry next week and will do the cabbage again with that. My daughter now calls Wednesday “Curry Night” since I often make your red bean curry, this dal, the ginger coconut meatballs (green curry vibe there), etc. Thank you!
Anyone try red cabbage instead of the green for the salad? It’s what I have in the fridge and I do t want to go to the store! Thanks!
I needed a black-eyed pea recipe and was happy to find this post on Smitten. I used dried peas, soaked in boiling water for a couple of hours. They took a lot longer to cook than the recipe suggested, probably because of the abbreviated soak. (They weren’t too old.) The result looked great but didn’t have a very interesting flavor or a very rich texture. I happened to have some winter squash about to turn on the porch, so I roasted slices of that with plenty of salt and pepper, made a yogurt sauce with garlic, cumin, lemon, and dried pepper and salt. Topped the curry with the crunchy, caramelized squash and drizzled with the sauce and everyone loved the dish. Next time I’ll make some of the cabbage salad as a topping. The base recipe is something to start with, but not a destination.
Could you cook the split peas ahead of time?
Yes, but do you mean in the curry/sauce?
Suggestions for substitutions for the coriander? I don’t have any on hand. I assume I can just up the cumin. I’m also planning on using curry leaves instead of cilantro (as I was gifted a couple of fresh stems) – will report back on tastiness!
I have made the yellow dal 3 times now and it is amazing! I use red lentils because that’s what my grocery store has, and as per those package directions they don’t need to be pre-soaked, and only take about 30 minutes to cook. Last night I added some cubed white potato to the lentil mix while it simmer – it made the meal more hearty and gave a nice texture. Highly recommend! I also used white onion last night because it’s what I had and no issues there. Served with basmati rice and naan. My somewhat picky husband and our 1 year old both like this meal and it is now in our regular rotation – win!
Just to tag on to the “will it work in an instant pot?” and “will it work if I have red lentils instead of yellow” and “can I double it with the above and not destroy the whole thing??”…
Yes, yep, definitely. Have made this countless times as written, and it’s awesome. And then one pandemic, two kids, and a poorly timed grocery run later… used same amount of red lentils instead of yellow split peas, 2.5 cups rather than 3 cups of water for original amount, and pressure cooked for 5 minutes, natural release for about 5, and then quick-released (because impatient and those kids…). You can’t break this recipe :) Delicious lunch for the whole week.
Thanks for the Instant Pot tips! I made this tonight in the IP and it was the quickest meal yet. Made the “tadka” and fried the onions & spices first, then threw in the (dry, unsoaked) dal with tomatoes & water and pressure-cooked for about 12 minutes. 5 minutes NPR and then a QPR. Stirred in fresh spinach at the end and served over rice for a healthy, complete and comforting meal.
Dal is a staple in every Indian household. If you can get some “Ghee” from any Indian store, I would totally advice trying this recipe with ghee instead of oil.
Doesn’t frying the cumin seeds and onion that hard make them rather bitter?
I’d toast the spice seeds in a dry pan, saute the onion gently until golden and then add the garlic for a few minutes, before adding all the spices.
Hi Deb, probably a long shot, but do you have a purchasing source for the yellow split peas? Are they the same as yellow lentils/mung beans? I’m confused. Thank you!
Mung beans are something different. They are often interchangeably named with yellow split peas, but not always. I’ve bought them from Bob’s Red Mill and Goya. I also buy them locally in NYC at Sahadi’s or Kalustyan’s.
in case it’s useful to anyone, i’m almost embarrassed to say that when i first made this, i thought red lentils were more or less the same things as split peas, and they are NOT. but it kinda worked, so these days i usually substitute 1 cup red lentils for 1 cup split peas, rinsed not soaked. i use double the tomatoes, half the water, bring to a boil, and simmer for 5-10 minutes. probably slightly mushier than this version, but still pretty good especially if you’re in a rush!
Why do you call for “coriander seeds, finely ground” rather than ground coriander? Can I sub one for the other?
Yes.
Would like to echo another commenter that the black eyed peas are a hidden gem here. Possibly need their own tag. I’ve made all 3 of there recipes many times. Great ones!
The salad rules — goes everywhere, plays well with others.