This red lentil stew (masoor daal) is fat free, gluten free, and of course, vegan. Jump to Recipe
I signed up my Ma for the 21 day vegan kickstart India. I also get their daily mails, menu plans, and regularly check their Facebook Page for some wonderful information. Last week, they posted a recipe video for a fat free Daal. Video linked below. I thought, maybe I should give some fat-free cooking a try too.
I use minuscule amounts of oil for the tempering in general. You should see my mom’s expression when she looks at the almost invisible amount in the pan:). The oils that we currently use for cooking are virgin coconut, organic expeller pressed(non chemically treated) canola , virgin olive and sesame.
Places where I usually look to find about fat free recipes are Dr Nandita Shah at Sharan and Susan at FatFreeVegan. Most oils or fats that we use in cooking, baking are usually quite refined. The canola, olive, shortening, vegan butters etc. There is already fat in its natural form in all the food that we eat, the beans, fruits, veggies, nuts, grains. When we eliminate the added refined oil, the dish is not exactly fat-free, it is free of processed and refined fats. hence eliminating the chemicals and alterations that happen to the oil during the refining process. For more information about why and how to cook fat-free, the benefits, the taste, substitutions and more see Susan’s fabulous blog Fat Free Vegan Kitchen.
All my Daals/Stews collection here.
Like most people, I take my own time to make changes as well. I dont know if I will go a completely fat-free way or not yet, but that does not stop me from experimenting and trying out different ways of cooking 🙂
Here is a simple pink lentil daal, that I made without any oil. The taste is just slightly different, but it did not bother me or hubbs at all, as a part of a whole meal with a dry veggie side, some Roti flat breads and rice.
Fat-free Red Lentil Stew with Garlic and Shallots. Masoor Daal. Vegan glutenfree
This red lentil stew (masoor daal) is fat free, gluten free, and of course, vegan
Servings: 2 servings
Calories: 191kcal
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup (96 g) pink lentils split red lentils, Masoor dal Washed and soaked for 1/2 an hour.
- 1.5 cups (375 ml) water
- 1/3 teaspoon (0.33 teaspoon) salt or to taste
Tempering
- 1/2 teaspoon (0.5 teaspoon) mustard seeds
- 1/4 teaspoon (0.25 teaspoon) cumin seeds
- 4-5 (4 ) curry leaves chopped
- 2 Shallots finely chopped
- 2-3 cloves (2 cloves) of garlic chopped
- 1/2 (0.5 ) green chili pepper or chili flakes to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon (0.25 teaspoon) turmeric powder
- a generous pinch of asafoetida Hing
- 1/2 teaspoon (0.5 teaspoon) coriander powder
Instructions
- Heat a large pan on medium heat.
- Add the mustard and cumin seeds and stir once. Let them start to pop a little.
- Add the curry leaves, green chili, shallots and garlic and cook stirring every few seconds until golden. (add a few drops of water if needed)
- Add in the hing, turmeric and coriander powders. Mix well for a few seconds.
- (you can add some chopped tomato as well. Add 1 medium tomato, mix well and cook for 2-3 minutes until soft and then add the lentils).
- Drain the lentils and add to pan. Add salt and water. Mix well.
- Cover and cook on low heat for 15-20 minutes.
- Stir, taste and adjust salt and spice, add water if the daal is too thick.
- Cook partially covered, for another 10 minutes or so until required consistency is achieved(I stop at about the 10 minute mark when the lentils are soft, and not too mushy. Cook longer for a really soupy consistency).
- Garnish with chopped green onion or cilantro and dash of lemon juice.
- Serve hot with Rice, or dry veggie subzi and Flat breads.
Notes
Nutritional values are based on one serving
Nutrition
Nutrition Facts
Fat-free Red Lentil Stew with Garlic and Shallots. Masoor Daal. Vegan glutenfree
Amount Per Serving
Calories 191
% Daily Value*
Sodium 441mg19%
Potassium 513mg15%
Carbohydrates 33g11%
Fiber 14g58%
Sugar 3g3%
Protein 12g24%
Vitamin A 75IU2%
Vitamin C 46.3mg56%
Calcium 54mg5%
Iron 4mg22%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
This Daal is being shared at Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays, Hearth and soul blog hop, Allergy Free Wednesdays, Ricki’s Wellness Weekends.
Video below of Dr Nandita Shah from Sharan India(Sanctuary for Health and Reconnection to Animals and Nature ) , and Dr Barnard cooking up a fat-free Daal as a part of the 21 day kickstart.
I also found this wonderful video below, of Dr Nandita Shah visiting Google India, and answering all questions asked by the Googlers, as they call themselves apparently.
Its a fairly long video(skip first 5 minutes as thats just a read out of the list of all questions), but there are some interesting statistics and points which apply to India. I usually always find a whole lot of US stats or general world stats in most posts or blogs, or other reading. This video has some specific Indian stats(Find more on the Sharan website). If you think your neighborhood cows are happy and the Doodhwala and Gaushala are so nice… Please watch.
Richgail @AstigVegan says
June 11, 2012 at 6:32 pmYour lentil stew looks delicious even for someone who loves fatty foods like me hehe. I think that’s great that you’re trying out fat free recipes. Health is wealth as they say. Keep it up!
Richa says
June 11, 2012 at 9:21 pmits mainly removing the refined stuff:) i love some good fat in the food:) most oils in our house are already unrefined or cold or expeller pressed.
Caitlin says
June 11, 2012 at 6:44 pmthis dall looks so thick and delicious and i’m sure i would absolutely love it! it’s on my list!! i find it amazing how the daal only consists of lentils, water, and spices. it is SO THICK!
Richa says
June 11, 2012 at 9:23 pmyou can make it now with your stash;) most dals are usually just that.. with a little different tempering here and there. you can add veggies to make it a complete meal!:)
Kristy says
June 11, 2012 at 8:37 pmIt’s so funny that you brought up the subject of refined oils- I just began researching (yesterday) because I’d heard some talk of it. I make changes slowly as well, but this recipe looks like a fantastic starting point! This daal just looks sooo rich, but with no oil! Great recipe!
Richa says
June 11, 2012 at 9:25 pmThanks Kristy.We use almost all unrefined oils already. There still so much more reading to do though about how unrefined is it really 🙂 and if its really good for you or not.
Nupur says
June 11, 2012 at 9:39 pmI often makes such Daal at my place for dinner.. Serve it along side some heavy veg dish.
When I advise people to make such variety without fat, they sometimes dont believe me thats its actually possible and then your taste buds adopt the fine taste. I infact love it sometimes.
Anyway,, a good start .. Keep it up.. Very neat pictures too
Srimathi says
June 11, 2012 at 10:29 pmLooks very nourishing and comforting.
Reshmi Mahesh says
June 12, 2012 at 1:30 amHealthy and delicious preparation…Great start…Love the clicks..
Bobbie {the vegan crew} says
June 12, 2012 at 2:17 amSuch a beautiful dish, Richa! Lately I’ve been interested in adding more fat-free/reduced-fat dishes to out menu (mostly I realized we should scale back when I saw how quickly we went through our last bottle of olive oil–yikes!). This sounds like a great dish to try!
Shira says
June 12, 2012 at 2:25 amYum Richa – this looks so yummy! I love all of your savary dishes that you post here..it looks amazing 🙂
anne says
June 12, 2012 at 3:13 amWe’ve been using canola for years but the last few months we switched to sunflower seeds with extra virgin oil . Not really that much difference but I can use the later for making breads that calls for evoo 😀 Much as I love some fatty foods , when I stir fry some dishes at home , I just used as little oil as possible . The oil ( 3×900 ml bottle ) we use usually last for more than 3 months and I’m cooking almost everyday !
Anyway , that lentil stew sure looks very appetizing ! Lately , I’ve been eyeing some lentils at the market maybe sometime I will try to cook it ! lol
MyFudo™ says
June 12, 2012 at 7:28 amDelicious meal…Very rarely do I try complete vegan dishes. This is something I am excited to try. Worth the try, I am sure.
Debs @ The Spanish Wok says
June 12, 2012 at 7:57 amThis sounds and looks delicious, even though I’m not vegan LOL.
You are welcome to join in my monthly food blogger event THE SOUP KITCHEN, here offering a new theme each month. All bloggers are welcome, hope to see you participate soon.
Mihl says
June 12, 2012 at 9:34 amI have to admit I am not the biggest fan of fat-free cooking. Especially when it comes to Indian recipes I feel like the fat really has a place there and adds so much depth and flavour. I’d still love to try your dal recipe. I love dal so much. We just introduced our daughter to red lentils and when she looked a bit sour the first time, she happily ate the whole bowl the second time we tried.
Spice up the Curry says
June 12, 2012 at 2:02 pmvery healthy and delicious stew recipe
glutenfreehappytummy.com says
June 12, 2012 at 3:01 pmwow that looks so lovely! hearty and delicious! mmm! thanks for sharing!
Kavi says
June 12, 2012 at 3:46 pmthe daal looks delicious! not fat free at all 😀
Sunday Morning Banana Pancakes says
June 12, 2012 at 8:33 pmFat Free or not this looks so good Richa! I didn’t reealize that India has its own 21 day Kickstart – that is so neat!
Kiersten @ Oh My Veggies says
June 12, 2012 at 10:23 pmYour pictures are always so gorgeous–they make me hungry! I don’t really make many attempts to cook fat free. I go through olive oil like water. 😉 Like you, I spend a little extra to get the quality kind!
Anonymous says
June 13, 2012 at 11:11 pmLooks great. To be accurate, though, it wouldn’t be “fat-free” considering even the lentils have 5% of calories from fat. It’s just no ADDED OVERT fats.
Richa says
June 13, 2012 at 11:47 pmthat is exactly what i said in the post. It is refined fat free.:) Thanks.
EA-The Spicy RD says
June 14, 2012 at 3:45 amI have become such a lentil fan lately. This lentil stew with all the yummy seasonings looks absolutely delicious!
gwenlearns says
June 15, 2012 at 11:28 pmDo have any secrets to storing the asafoetida? Or do you have a certain kind you recommend? I found that it is so strong it smells up my whole place!
Richa says
June 15, 2012 at 11:33 pmsome versions are less smelly as they have some added starches. I usually store in an airtight container and it works fine. Maybe we are just used to that smell.:)