Red Lentil Pumpkin Dahl

This is one of the easiest recipes for me to get lentils into my kids! They are still a little picky about chilli, so I usually omit or reduce for them. Its quick to throw together, and the perfect meal to boost the immunity when it starts to cool down. Original recipe from Veggie Desserts, but I have tweaked slightly to make it fit my personal preferences. This freezes great (without rice) so a great one to meal prep and take camping!


PREP: 10 MINUTES | COOK: 20 MINUTES | SERVES: 6


Ingredients:

  • 1 tsp olive oil or coconut oil
  • 1 brown onion, diced
  • 700g butternut pumpkin
  • 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
  • 1 tbsp fresh ginger, peeled and grated
  • ½ finely chopped red chilli (or 1/2 tsp dried chilli flakes, or optional)
  • ½ tsp ground cumin
  • ½ tblsp fresh coriander, chopped
  • ½ tsp wholegrain mustard
  • 2 tsp ground turmeric
  • 1 tsp garam masala
  • 1 cup dried red lentils, uncooked
  • 400ml chopped tomatoes
  • 400ml coconut milk
  • 500ml vegetable broth/stock
  • Salt and pepper
  • Juice of half a lemon
  • 2 handfuls fresh spinach washed

Method:

  1. Preheat oven to 180°. Chop pumpkin into 1cm cubes (discarding skin and seeds). Spread over lined baking tray, drizzle lightly with oil and roast for 20-30 mins until tender and browning. Set aside.
  2. While the pumpkin is roasting, heat the oil in a large pan over a medium heat. Add the onion and cook gently for 5 minutes. Add the garlic, ginger and red chilli and cook for a few minutes.
  3. Add the cumin, wholegrain mustard, turmeric, coriander and garam masala and cook for 1 minute. 
  4. Add the lentils, tomatoes with their juice, coconut milk and broth/stock, then stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper and cook on a medium/low heat for 15-20 minutes until reduced and thick (just stir often and check it doesn’t scorch on the bottom of the pan). Taste and add more chilli if desired. 
  5. Stir in the lemon juice, roast pumpkin and spinach until it wilts. 
  6. Serve warm with rice, naan bread or poppadoms.