71
july 2017yogajournal.com.auBengali dal
(chana dal with raisins)
SERVES 6
An aromatic main course served at
weddings and other celebrations in East
India, this flavourful dal contains four of
our five featured healing spices, as well
as panch phoron (a blend of five spices).
1 cup chana dal (split lentils), soaked in
warm water for 1 hour, then drained
1 tsp. ground turmeric
½ tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1 Tbsp. coconut oil
2 Tbsp. panch phoron (to make your own,
mix 1 ¼ tsp. each of black or brown
mustard seeds, cumin seeds, fennel
seeds, fenugreek seeds, and nigella
seeds)
2 dried red chillies, seeded and broken
in half
3 dried cloves
1 stick Ceylon cinnamon
2 tsp. raisins
1 tsp. dried or fresh coconut slices
1 cup basmati rice, cooked according to
package directions, or 8 rotiIn a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan, bring
2 cups water to a boil. Add dal, reduce
heat to medium-low, and simmer, partially
covered. Check on lentils occasionally to
skim foam off surface, and add more hot
water as needed to keep lentils slightly
submerged and soupy. Simmer until lentils
are soft and broken down, 1 hour. Stir in
turmeric and black pepper.
In a small frying pan over medium-high
heat, warm oil. Add panch phoron and cook
until seeds begin to crackle, 15 seconds. Addred chillies, cloves, and cinnamon and fry
for 10 seconds. Stir in raisins and coconut
slices and fry until coconut begins to turn
golden, 10 seconds.
Pour spice-and-coconut mixture over
dal, stir, and bring to a boil; turn off heat.
Remove cinnamon stick, cloves, and chillies.
Serve over rice or roti.NUTRITIONAL INFO 387 calories per serving,
6 g fat (2 g saturated), 65 g carbs, 24 g fibre,
18 g protein, 2 mg sodiumBoost your benefi ts
How you cook your spices affects their
health perks. Microwaving, simmering, and
stewing increase the antioxidant powers
of cinnamon, cloves, and ginger, whereas
dry-heating, grilling, and frying diminish
them, according to research at Kingston
University, United Kingdom.