Anna's Family Kitchen was inspired by my love of food and desire to feed my family healthy, home cooked wholesome meals that are beautifully presented and appealing but don’t require hours of prep in the kitchen.
Tarka Dal with Cheats Chapattis
Tarka Dal with “AFK Cheats Chapatis. This is my absolute favourite vegetarian curry. So cheap and easy to make, it’s great as a side or serve it with rice and/or these chapatis to make a hearty meal. I’ve been making Dal for years and each time I make it I tweak the recipe in an attempt to achieve the toasted garlic flavour I associate with the Tarka Dal I order in a local restaurant. I should have asked them sooner what their secret was! It turns out I have been missing out the Tarka stage! That is roasting slithers of garlic and cumin seeds in butter then drizzling over the top at the end. It’s a game changer! The cheats chapattis you see here are actually tortilla wraps, warmed, wiped with butter and sprinkled with Nigella Seeds. Not sure my local restaurant would approve of those!
Serves: 4
Prep: 5 minutes
Cooking: 30 minutes
Total: 35 minutes
Difficulty: easy
INGREDIENTS
250g red lentils
1 onion chopped
6 garlic cloves peeled and thinly sliced
5 small plum tomatoes quartered
1/2 tsp Turmeric
1 tsp ground Cumin
1 tsp Coriander
1/2 tsp salt
500ml stock (veg or chicken)
1 tsp Garam Masala
1-2 red chillis, chopped
1 tsp cumin seeds
2 tbsp butter (coconut oil if Vegan)
Fresh coriander leaves to serve
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Soften the onion in a lug of oil for 10 minutes. Add half of the garlic, the chilli and all the dried spices apart from the Garam Masala and Cumin Seeds.
Give the pan a stir then add the lentils and tomatoes. Cover with the stock and simmer for 30 minutes.
Stir in the Garam Masala.
For the Tarka in a frying pan melt the butter and add the cumin seeds and remaining garlic slices. The garlic will colour quickly.
Take the pan off the heat as soon as the garlic slices start to go brown. Drizzle the Tarka over the Dal and serve.
