Green Spinach Lentils

My Nisha auntie in Chandigarh, India gave me the recipe for this dal. Talk about packed with nutrition!

It mixes the whole, green moong lentil with iron-rich spinach to create a dish you’ll love making again and again!

Slow cooker size: 5-quart/ Cooking time: 7 hours on high/Yield: 14 cups

INGREDIENTS

3 cups whole dried green lentils with skin, cleaned and washed thoroughly

1 medium yellow or red onion, peeled and finely chopped 1 medium tomato, diced 1 (1-inch) piece ginger, peeled and chopped or grated

2 or 3 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped or grated

3 or 4 green Thai, serrano or cayenne chilies, stems removed, finely chopped 1 tablespoon cumin seeds 2 tablespoons salt ½ teaspoon garam masala

1 teaspoon turmeric powder

1 teaspoon red chili powder 12 cups water 4 cups firmly packed spinach leaves, washed and chopped

INSTRUCTIONS

Put the lentils, onion, tomato, ginger, garlic, green chilies, cumin, salt, garam masala, turmeric, red chili powder and water in the slow cooker. Cook on high for 6½ hours. Add the spinach and cook for 30 more minutes. Serve over steaming basmati or brown rice or eat with roti or naan.

Try this! Make this dish without the spinach—the more traditional way to eat it. To make this dish in a 3½-quart slow cooker, halve all the ingredients and proceed with the recipe. A half recipe makes 8 cups.