Baked dhal
Preheat the oven to 180°, 350°F, Gas 4.
Heat the sunflower oil in a large casserole over a low-to-medium heat, add the finely chopped onion and the crushed or finely grated garlic, whichever you're using. Cover and cook for 8-10 minutes, until the onions and garlic are soft.
Increase the heat, add the ground coriander seeds, the ground cumin seeds, the black mustard seeds, the grated ginger, the finely chopped chilli, the pinch of ground cinnamon, the crushed cardamom seeds and the turmeric. Stir.
After one minute, add the tomato puree and the red lentils and stir, then add the chicken stock or vegetable stock, whichever you are using. Bring to the boil, season with salt and freshly ground black pepper, cover and bake in the oven for 8-10 minutes or until the lentils are cooked and have soaked up all the liquid.
Add the chopped coriander and the squeeze of lemon and season to taste.
Ingredients
Serves 4-6
3 tablespoons sunflower oil
1 onion, peeled and finely chopped
3 cloves of garlic, crushed or finely grated
2 teaspoons coriander seeds, ground
2 teaspoons cumin seeds, ground
1 teaspoon black mustard seeds
2 teaspoons grated ginger
½-1 red chilli, de-seeded and finely chopped
Pinch of ground cinnamon
The crushed seeds of 4 green cardamom pods
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 tablespoon tomato puree
250g (9oz) red lentils
700ml (1¼ pts) chicken stock or vegetable stock
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2-3 tablespoons chopped coriander
Squeeze of lemon