tarka dahl

Preparation time 15 minutes

Cooking temperature high

Cooking time 3–4 hours

Serves 4

250 g (8 oz) red lentils

1 onion, finely chopped

½ teaspoon turmeric

½ teaspoon cumin seeds, roughly crushed

2 cm (¾ inch) fresh root ginger, peeled and finely chopped

200 g (7 oz) canned chopped tomatoes

600 ml (1 pint) boiling vegetable stock

salt and pepper

150 g (5 oz) natural yogurt coriander leaves, torn, to garnish

warm naan bread, to serve

Tarka

1 tablespoon sunflower oil

2 teaspoons black mustard seeds

½ teaspoon cumin seeds, roughly crushed

pinch of turmeric

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

Preheat the slow cooker if necessary; see the manufacturer’s instructions. Rinse the lentils well with cold water, drain and put into the slow cooker pot with the onion, spices, ginger, tomatoes and boiling stock.

Stir in a little salt and pepper, cover with the lid and cook on high for 3–4 hours or until the lentils are soft and tender.

When almost ready to serve, make the tarka. Heat the oil in a small frying pan, add the remaining tarka ingredients and fry, stirring, for 2 minutes. Roughly mash the lentil mixture, then spoon into bowls, add spoonfuls of yogurt and drizzle with the tarka. Sprinkle with coriander leaves and serve with warm naan bread.

For tarka dahl with spinach, cook the lentils in the same way as above, adding 125 g (4 oz) washed and roughly shredded spinach leaves for the last 15 minutes. Fry the tarka spices as above, adding ¼ teaspoon crushed dried red chilli seeds, if liked.