You can enjoy this hearty, healthy and nutritious Palak Dal, Spinach Lentil soup year around. Yellow Lentils are cooked with baby spinach and then flavored with an array of spices The taste, texture and flavor of this oh-so-comforting soup dal will elevate your taste buds.
And this Palak Dal, Spinach Lentil Soup can be made with Insta Pot or Pressure Cooker in less than 30 minutes. No only that, This is one Vegan, Vegetarian, Protein Rich Soup that you will keep coming back again and again.
My friends and family never let go of a chance to tease me about my love for any variety of dal or lentil soup. They lovingly chide that – Aish is on a “dal diet”. Fact is, I never diet. I eat what I like to eat and Dal is one of my favorite comfort food. I can easily survive on dal. What’s not to love about lentils!! It’s healthy, yummy, nutritious and super easy to make. They easily absorb flavors from other foods and seasonings. As a result, you can never really run out of ways to make them.
INGREDIENTS:
- 1 cup Lentils (I used, chana dal but any other lentils can be used)
- 2 cups baby spinach (Palak) finely chopped
- 2 big tomatoes chopped
- 1 tbsp grated ginger
- 2 to 3 Dried red chilies
- 4 tbsp oil (I used olive oil)
- 1/2 tsp jeera powder (cumin)
- 2 to 3 tsp dhaniya powder (coriander)
- 1/4 tsp garam masala (optional, if want to make more masala rich chana dal)
- 2/3 tsp turmeric powder (haldi)
- 4 cup water
- Salt to taste
METHOD:
- Wash the lentils thoroughly and soak for 30 mins.
- Boil the lentils with 4 cups of water, chopped spinach, turmeric, salt, chopped tomatoes until the lentils get soft. Takes about one hour without a pressure cooker and about 20 minutes if pressure cooked.
If you using INSTA POT:
- Place the dal, tomatoes, water, salt, baby spinach, turmeric in the Instant Pot.
- Close the lid, set valve to sealing. Press the manual button and then select high pressure and set time to 12 minutes.
- Cook on high pressure for 12 minutes and then let the pressure release naturally (NPR).
- Open the lid and give a stir. Press the “keep warm/cancel” button and then press the “saute” button.
TEMPERING:
- Heat oil in a large frying pan and put it over medium heat.
- After a minute add cumin seeds, 1 tsp hing and 2 to 3 dried chilies.
- Then add the grated ginger and cook for about 3-4 minutes stirring frequently.
- Add the lentils and spinach mixture to the large frying pan and turn the heat to high, stir it well. When it starts boiling, turn the heat to low, cover the pan and cook further for 8-10 minutes.
- Sprinkle it with garam masala, jeera and dhania powder. Stir well and further cook for 2 mins.
Variation:
- Use any lentils you wish to use. Red or brown lentils are best here because they break down to give that lovely oozy texture.
- I usually don’t use onion or garlic in my lentil dishes, but I have tasted some great lentil soups made with onion, garlic. So limit yourself while using spices.
If you are into Lentils, try
Spicy Lentil and Potato Croquettes
Lentil Soup (Dal) with Green Mango
PIN for Later:
Reblogged this on MyYellowApron and commented:
With updated Pictures.
Dal chawal- any time comfort food. Aish, you are not alone in terms of dal diet. 🙂 – Sreelatha
Aesome
Oh this looks interesting! Pinning for later! 😀
This sounds amazing . It looks like it could be a good winter soup too
This looks like a gorgeous soup!
This is a stunning dal – I’m a huge lentil fanatic, so I know I’m going to love this!
I love all kinds of lentil soup – and this sounds wonderful! Have to try your seasoning.
I could go on a dal diet too, Aish! Yesterday I bought beluga lentils, and I’m so excited to try them… Have you prepared beluga lentils? You Palak Dal looks fabulous!
This sounds (and looks!) amazing. I’m not sure where I’d even go to find all the ingredients thou…must look into it!
XO
http://www.lehoarder.com/
one of my fav dal..nice pictures..pinned it.
I love soup and I have finally mastered it. This looks yummy.
Wow, this soup looks amazing. I have never tried it before, but I surely will!
I love a good lentil soup- and this looks like a fun version I’ll have to try!
omgggg lentil recipe jackpot! I love lentils but have only recently begun eating them. I’m doing a diet where I’m vegetarian monday-friday so I’ve been seeking out ways to dress up beans and lentils into more interesting dishes, and I can’t wait to try this one! Thanks for posting, I’m so excited about this one 🙂
It turned cold here overnight and I’m in the mood for cozy soups. This one sounds so comforting right now!!
Wow. So full of spices and flavors it looks delicious!
This has great flavors and is soooo healthy. I put a ton of garlic in when I make this. Thanks.
What a heartwarming and delicious dhal healthy with the protein from the dhal and the vitamins from the spinach.
its my favorite way to eat palak, looks yummy
This soup look delicious – I am trying to eat more lentils
Yay! It’s perfect soup weather right now–I still have a couple bags of lentils left (whew!), so I’m definitely going to need to try this out! It looks delicious!
Soup is the best for this time of year. My husband just made some this past weekend. I love the bowl you used, so cute!
This sounds so great! I must try it as soon as it feels like Fall here in Texas!
This looks so good! I love all the flavors going on in it; so tasty!
Yumm.. This soup looks so delicious! I would love to try out this recipe!
Omg can we say yum?!?! Tis the season of soups and stews so I will have to give this a try!
My goodness, that sounds like a delicious soup that my husband would love right away as he is obsessed with anything that is bit spicy. The combination is quiet amazing that I wanted to give it a try right away!
This looks so good! And perfect for fall. Can’t wait to try it, thanks for sharing!
My mum is a huge fan of lentils. I need to show this recipe to her. I bet she will love it.
Stunning pictures, as usual, and a yummy recipe. Thanks for sharing!
Mmmm I love lentils! I am going to have to try your yummy soup sometime very soon.
Dal is such a great meal. Both filling and delicious! I remember a few years back, I’d make a huge batch of it in my slow cooker and eat it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner! Haha 🙂
I am a HUGE fan of soup so I need to make this. It looks so delicious.
Oh man we love soup in our house and lentile soup is so good!
Omg can we say yum?!?! I just love lentil soup!!! Must give your recipe a try
This looks like a great dish to try! Warm and comforting – perfect for it being winter where I live!
My daughter is crazy for lentils. I will have to make this for her. She could eat them everyday.
Perfect for cold snowy days!
It looks so delicious OMg I am going to have all ingredient and prepare that for the weekend
My husband would love this. I am not really a veggie fan. 🙁
This is a nice recipe! I know lentils are really good for you and this recipe gives me a good excuse to eat more lentils. My friend usually eats lentils and rice. She will love this recipe to change things up.
Oh, this looks simply amazing! I am bookmarking this so that I can make this. I don’t know much about how to cook with lentils but I am trying to get my husband to eat them because they are so good for his health.
Yum! So that is what Palak dal is. Is this an indian cuisine? I love it!I will try this for date night with the true love.
I always love dal when I have my rotis, parathas or naans, but I never made my own. This recipe might come in handy when I decide to cook more one day.
These photos are amazing. Did you take them? I absolutely love the DOF and the post processing. The recipe sounds enticing, but you should definitely considering doing food photography tutorial, I’d be the first one to read it!
I’ve been trying to find more ways to cook with lentils lately, so this is perfect! Looks different than my normal!
I love a good lentil soup and this dish looks so yummy! Makes me hungry now. Thanks for sharing this recipe.
Mmmm, I love myself a good curry. I may make this one, as it is vegan!!
This looks like a very tasty soup. I like spinach but with all those spices I am interested in how it will taste. Corinder and cumin I have but, I don’t have any tumeric. I would probably skip the chiles.
oh wow this looks and sounds amazing I may just have to give this a try for myself one night this coming week
I love the two recipes I’ve seen you post so far. I love lentils and spinach, so I guess I’ll try this one too.
Sounds like a perfect soup for my family. I should try this for them on weekend Glad you share this recipe with us
What a yummy soup! I can’t wait to try this at my own, Glad you share this recipe