This simple vegan two lentil Dahl requires only easy-to-find ingredients and little more than a few chops and several stirs to make. It's the perfect protein-rich meal to prepare on a Sunday and enjoy throughout the week, and it can easily be doubled or even tripled and then frozen.
This time of year—the dreaded "fall back"—always makes me a little bit nervous. If you've read the intro to my cookbook, then you know I consider myself to be a SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder) warrior.
For me, the seasonal shift manifests as anxiety rather than depression, but I've generally kept it well-managed with a combination of diet, exercise, and meditation.
What you probably don't know is that I had a resurgence of icky SAD anxiety postpartum. Only it didn't go away when the springtime came. It lingered, and lingered, and lingered. And you know what, I've got it under control now and it's still lingering.
But instead of pushing it away, instead of resisting it like I was in the beginning, I've surrendered to it. Not in a defeatist way, but in a peaceful way.
The funny thing about anxiety? It's the resisting of it, the trying to make it go away that strengthens it and allows it to persist. The more I argue with my anxiety, the more I try to rationalize why I actually have nothing to worry about, the more persistent and engrained it becomes. The more deeply it creeps into my mind.
It's in the acceptance of it, the humoring of it, that a sense of peace can be found. How counterintuitive, right?
I recently read a post that Angela Liddon shared in which she said, "there's no shame in struggling with the things you may have thought you'd beaten," and my goodness did that resonate. During the first few months postpartum, I really beat myself up. I felt ashamed to admit I was struggling with this thing I'd associated with a former version of myself.
But then I realized how silly that was. Anxiety, love it or hate it, will always be a part of me. In fact, it's part of what makes me who I am. It might not always be at the forefront of my mind, the most perceptible part of me (sheesh, let's hope not), but it will always be there is some way, shape, or form. It's not something to make go away but something to make peace with.
And while this lentil dahl has nothing really to do with anxiety, I find it to be incredibly comforting this time of year. It wafts the most glorious scent as it simmers, and it's incredibly satisfying to eat. Packed with protein, fiber, and flavor.
Also, I have yet to buy an Instant Pot (even though many of you have been begging me—I promise I will as soon as we're in a more permanent living situation), but I have a hunch this would make an excellent Instant Pot meal. And you could probably cut the simmer time in half by using one. If you try it, will you let me know how it works out? I'd love to add tips and tricks into the recipe notes for others who might want to give it a go!
📖 Recipe
Vegan Two Lentil Dahl
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil
- 8 scallions, trimmed and thinly sliced
- 1 large white onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- ⅛ to ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper, to taste
- 2 teaspoons sea salt or to taste
- 1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes
- 6 cups filtered water
- 1 cup green lentils, sorted and rinsed
- 1 cup split red lentils*, sorted and rinsed
- 1 bunch cilantro, stemmed and roughly chopped
Instructions
- Heat the coconut oil in a large stock pot over medium-high heat.
- Add the scallions and onion, and cook for 7 minutes, or until softened.
- Add the garlic, cumin, coriander, paprika, cayenne pepper, and sea salt, and continue to cook for another 3 minutes, or until beginning to brown and caramelize.
- Stir in the diced tomatoes and water, increase the heat to high, and bring to a boil.
- Add the lentils, reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer for 1 hour, stirring every 10 minutes or so to break down the lentils.
- Taste and season with more salt and cayenne pepper, if desired.
- Turn off the heat and stir in the cilantro.
- Serve over warm basmati rice, if desired.
Nissrine says
First of all I love a good dahl and make one for my toddler and I weekly. Perfect plant based protein and iron rich meal. Second of all, I'm right there with you ok the post partum stress train. I don't call it depression or anxiety bc for me it always manifests itself instress. My daughter is almost 3 and I stiĺl struggle with it although it's definitely much more manageable these days. I've always struggle with stress and as you said about anxiety, it has always been and always will be a part of me and while I've learned to keep it at bay mostly, there are times when it's bigger than me and I just let myseld feel it instead of resisting it. I acknowledge my emotions and i let them pass and it seems to work far better than getting angry with myself for it. Duh! So thanks for sharing and allowing us this space to open up. It's so important. I used to be so ashamed to talk about it bc I'm a recovering control freak and perfectionist and a Hoistic nutritionist so how dare I not be perfect. But fortunately we grow and we learn. xo Nissrine
Ashley says
Nissrine, thank you for sharing so candidly. It means so much, and I hear you, especially the part about "how dare I not be perfect"! Have moved through those exact feelings myself. It can be such an isolating feeling and it's so easy to think "I must be the only one," but I've found (as I'm sure you have, too) that the more I talk about it, the more others open up and say, "hey, me too!" And I wouldn't wish the experience on my worst enemy, but my goodness does it feel good to know we're not alone! xo
William Hoskins says
Hello,
So glad that these , well, health issues are less
Condemned by society, its tough enough for us as sufferers, we really can do without the judgement of others. My SAD shows itself in my
Depression , winter is just shy of unbearable when alone , which of course is just what we tend toward, but afflicted friends and therapists are a God send . Knowing that your not alone is a lifesaver for someone with the affliction. And openness knocks it back.thank you for sharing your story.
Ashley says
And thank you for sharing yours, William!
Allison says
This was amazing and super easy prep! The 1 hour cook time was spot on . I will definitely add this to my regular meal rotation. Thank you for such wonderful tested recipes. You are truly an inspiration! Thank you for sharing your struggles, that is also part of nourishing your soul---and it helps others not feel so alone on their journey.
Tori Pintar says
Hi Angela,
Thank you for sharing these words. Reading what you and Angela shared in regards to struggles our our former selves showing up was really eye-opening for me. I realized I'm doing that and it's resistance and like you said resistance makes everything stick around just that much more. As I eat my dal for lunch today I am going to ruminate on them.
I did make this in an Instant Pot. I used sauté mode for the first three steps (took about 10-12 minutes) and then I added in everything else (except cilantro) and cooked on manual high pressure for 10 minutes. It took about 13 minutes to get to pressure, then cooked at pressure for 10, then I naturally released for 10 minutes, and then released it manually for about 5 more minutes. In total the simmer time was just under 40 minutes. I love making dals and I'm not sure if I prefer stovetop or Instant Pot as the cook time is fairly similar. I think Instant Pot is worth it in a real time crunch when you are trying to get dinner on the table for a hungry family quick and because you can walk completely away for 20 plus minutes (I'm sure you could natural release for longer). I used slightly different lentils than you, a mix of moong dal, green and ivory because it's what I had on hand. The moong definitely broke down and the others held shape as was to be expected.
Hope this helps and happy to have another warrior in living a full life right along side our anxiety.
Tammy says
I have all the ingredients and am excited to try this for my weekday lunches! It looks so comforting! This might be a silly question, but do you use both the green and white parts of the scallions? Also, I'm not a huge fan of cumin as I find it to be an overpowering flavor. Would you say the cumin is strong in this dish? I'm thinking of reducing the amount if so. Thanks!
Ashley says
Hi, Tammy! I'm so sorry for the delay. I somehow missed your comment coming through. I use both parts of the scallions, but I do trim a significant hunk off of both ends (and discard). Cumin is definitely the most prominent spice flavor in the dish, but you could certainly reduce the amount and up some of the other spices. Hope this helps and enjoy!
Tammy says
Hi Ashley, thanks for the response! I did end up making it before you responded with just a tsp of cumin, keeping everything else the same, and it was fantastic! I ate it 4 days in a row for lunch and I'm still looking forward to finishing the remaining servings. It froze really well too!
Ashley says
So, so happy to hear you're enjoying it, Tammy! And great to know that cutting the cumin down to a teaspoon worked well. Thanks for taking the time to come back and share your rating and adjustments—very helpful for me and for others, too!
Amelia says
Just made this, and it was fantastic! You're right— it is extremely comforting, especially on a gloomy November evening here in the PNW. I made it pretty much exactly according to the recipe, but I added two veggie bouillon cubes when I added the 6 cups of water. I also squeezed some lime on it before serving. Turned out great! And we have so many leftovers for the rest of the week which makes me happy.
I think it's really cool that you're using your platform to discuss mental health. The more dialogue we have on it, the better. Hope you're doing well. Thanks for the great recipe.
Celeste Jackson says
I believe that almost everyone struggles with anxiety or depression and sometimes even both. I will say that there are some good things about getting older and one of them is that you realize that nothing is ever as bad as it might seem or imagine it to be. Another one is that whatever challenges do come your way can make you stronger if you look for the reason why it needed to happen. Meanwhile, this Lentil Dahl is absolutely delicious and satisfying. Just made it for dinner tonight. Thank you!
Samantha says
Easy to make and delicious! Thanks!
Ashley says
So happy to hear you're enjoying the recipe, Samantha! Thanks for taking the time to let me know.
Angie M says
Wow! This recipe really exceeded my expectations! Served this for a family get-together and everyone loved it! Even the non-vegetarians thought it was outstanding! Only change was I did add extra seasoning.
Ashley says
Happy to hear you and your family enjoyed it, Angie! Thanks for taking time out of your day to come back and comment and rate—means a lot to me and is helpful for others interested in making the recipe, too.
Braden says
This recipe looks simple and delicious. Thanks for sharing Ashley! I can't wait to try it :) BTW, your photography is exquisite.
Ashley says
Well thank you, Braden! Very much appreciate the kind compliment. Hope you enjoy the recipe!
Suzan Vasica says
I’m not going to say I understand, coz honestly I don’t. Whenever I feel down I somehow just snap out of it and that’s that. It’s not often I feel down, but I know when I do it’s not pleasant. So glad my brain is stronger than negative emotions. But I do sympathise with you. Hope you’re feeling better by the time you read this. Thanks for sharing the recipe. I’m going to make it this weekend. All I need to do is buy spring onions, or scallions as you call them
Haris Ali says
Thanks for Such a Great Recipe, For sure Being a Vegan I'm going to give it a try.
I will update here on the post how everything went with this recipe
Regards