A true comfort food, palak dal makes for the best accompaniment with hot rice and subzi on a weeknight. The apartment we live in right now is very convenient to buy basic groceries and vegetables. On every Sunday, a van full of the freshest vegetables from the farmer’s on the outskirts of Hyderabad come to the road below our place and people flock to it to buy their week’s worth of vegetables. They are cheaper than the stores too! I rush down each time I see the van and although I buy 1/10th the amount of vegetables others buy, the vegetable vendors treat me well 😀
I bought a bunch of palak yesterday and have been wondering what to make with it. I considered palak paneer, but I didn’t have any paneer in hand and was too lazy to buy paneer or make my own. I always have a stock of dal (of course) and decided to take the easy route and make some palak dal instead. No regrets!
Palak Dal Recipe
Ingredients for Palak Dal:
Serves 2
Toor dal/Yellow lentil – 1 cup
Fresh green spinach, chopped – 1 cup
Turmeric powder – 1/4 tsp
Garlic – 4 cloves
Red chillies – 4
Curry leaves – one strand
Oil – 2 tbsp
Salt – to taste
How to make Palak Dal:
1. Pressure cook the dal and spinach with some turmeric for 2-3 whistles.
2. Heat 2 tbsp oil in a kadai, crackle some mustard seeds, add the crushed garlic and red chillies and fry for a minute.
3. Add the cooked dal-spinach and mix well.
Serve hot with rice or rots. Palak dal also goes well with jeera rice or other mildly spiced rice dishes.
Anon – thanks for trying out my recipes 🙂 My husband is a vegetarian-who-eats-egg so I don’t cook non-veg at home anymore. I do have it occasionally when we go out for meals.
But that doesn’t mean I won’t be posting any more non-veg dishes. When I go home to Kottayam on vacation, you will see some recipes coming up 🙂
Next time, please do leave your name!
Hey, I am a fan of your site. Tried many dishes from here and all turned out great. Just a doubth, Have you become totally vegetarian after wedding?
Hey Nags, I love palak in my dal. Your recipe is a little different than mine. Will try yours sometime.
Thats a lovely click. Is the secret a new camera??? Palak daal (especially the one my MIL makes) is an all time comforter. I just love the texture.
I love spinach dal, made in anyway. Thanks for sharing your version.
Spinach dal is one of my favourite dals and you are so right, it goes down really well with some rice (and achar!) 🙂
There is something so soothing about lentil and spinach. Its always been my all time fav. I also love it with masoor dal.
hOw come you retained the colors of dal and palak? looks yum!
Pure comfort food..Any time of the day , i am readdy to have it …really healthy food.I mostly have dal with rice ….
Your dal looks nice.
I know spinach has a lot of things going for it, including old Popeye’s endorsement, but I’m afraid spinach is something I give a wide berth to! I’d rather get my iron from other green veggies.
I like palak in any dish and this is also the right time for trying out palak dishes as we get the best palak during winters
Loved your idea of palak daal, all basic ingredients, yet rich in taste. I add some ginger in my daal.
I love the colour! Seems like you found the perfect balance between the dal and the spinach!
Nags I love spinach with spices it is so tasty. Your picture looks amazing it looks so creamy and delicious!
Looks awesome Nags, I make it with Moong dal though, should try yours.
that is comfort food!!..
palak dal , mango pickle and hot rice HEAVEN nice recipe nags
My palak dal normally turns a very ugly shade of green, it is not all photogenic 🙂 Yours look great!
Daal with palak! Taste bhi , health bhi!! Lovely!
Daal with palak! Taste bhi , health bhi!! Lovely!
comfort food it is 🙂
i made it w/ masoor dal just the other day, same steps, though sometimes i add an onion as well to the cooker 🙂
I love dal with any kind of greens.
With spinach it is also delicious
we make a moong dal version of this with spring onions and spinach.
yours looks yummy.
Palak Dal -yum yum yum …. 😛 .
its my all time favorite.
A perfect entry for con=mfort foods.
stay tuned…
-Pooja
A great greens recipe, Nags! So very healthy. Thanks for participating in My Legume Love Affair!
Dal palak is very easy to make and protien rich too …!You have cooked the dal and palak perfectly without changing the colour!
I love dal of any kind…hey Your pictures seem to be getting lovely post-by-post..care to share the secret????? I meant the food picture and not yours!! 😛
Very simple dish!
photo valare nannayittundu Nags!
comfort food at its best… dal 🙂
dal and rasams are the ultimate comfort food for me…and addition of palak or methi is what i do whenever i feel the need to increasing my intake of greens.
Nags, I love palak in my dal. It truly is comforting. This sounds like a perfect comforting dish at anytime. Lovely!
Thanks for joining the MM!