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Sri Lankan Red Lentil Curry. Creamy Dal curry Spiced with fenugreek seeds, cinnamon & black peppercorns. Coconut milk adds cooling creaminess. Easy Vegan Gluten-free Soy-free Recipe. No garlic recipe. Jump to Recipe
Its getting cooler out here. I am loving warming soups and stews. Lentil soups/Dals are a staple in the house whether winter or summer. During summer, the lentil soups are made less spicy and served with kachumbar salad (chopped cucumber onion tomato cilantro tossed in salt, black pepper and lemon juice), raita (non dairy yogurt lightly spiced with cumin, salt, cayenne with onion, cucumber, tomato or shredded summer squash mixed in) and or other cooling sides. Cooler months call for warm spices, black pepper, quick cooking lentils.
This creamy spiced Dal curry is delicious and easy. It is spiced with whole cinnamon and fenugreek seeds. Fenugreek Seeds 
add a smooth bitter and garlicky flavor profile to the soup eliminating the need for added garlic. You can also sprout the seeds to add to sandwiches or add to salads. They have a bitter flavor profile that if used well is pleasing. Make a big bowl of this creamy curried lentil soup and serve with crackers, flatbread, roasted veggies or rice.
More lentil soups from the blog
- Dal Fry – Spiced Indian Lentil Soup Restaurant style Recipe
- Moroccan Lentil Soup
- Oil-free Spicy Garlic Dal
- Black eyed pea Lentil Soup
The current issue of Thrive Magazine showcases various vegan chefs including a 2 page spread on yours truly…Excerpt here!
Make this Sri lankan inspired Red Lentil Curry. Creamy, spicy, easy and so good! Inspired from some recipes from the web and Vegan Eats World
cookbook.
Sri Lankan Red Lentil Curry
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup red lentils, masoor dal - these are split lentils (red/pink)
- 1/4 tsp fenugreek seeds
- 1/3 tsp black peppercorns
- 1/3 tsp cayenne or to taste , or 1-2 dried red chilies. California red for mild, cayenne or bird eye red chilies for hot
- 1/4 tsp turmeric
- 1 tsp oil
- 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
- 6 to 8 curry leaves, fresh or frozen or dried
- 1/2 small red onion, chopped
- 2 inch cinamon stick
- 1 1/2 cups water
- 3/4 tsp salt or to taste
- 1/4 cup or more coconut milk , or other non dairy milk
- 1 tomato, finely chopped
- 1/2 to 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1 tbsp shredded coconut
Instructions
- Wash and soak the red lentils.
- Grind the fenugreek, black pepper, cayenne/red chilies, turmeric into a powder and keep aside.
- In a saucepan, heat oil over medium heat. When hot, add the mustard seeds and let them start to pop. Add curry leaves carefully and mix in. Add the fenugreek seed powder, stir and cook for 5 to 10 seconds.
- Add onions, cinnamon stick and a pinch of salt. Mix to coat with spices. Cook for about 3 minutes.
- Drain and add the lentils to the saucepan. Add water, salt and coconut milk. Mix in. Partially cover and cook for 12 to 14 minutes.
- Add in the tomatoes, lemon juice, taste and adjust salt and spice. Lower the heat to low. Cover and cook for 12 to 15 minutes. Stir once in between.
- Garnish with shredded coconut and pepper flakes (optional). Serve as a soup with crackers or as dal with rice or flatbread.
Notes
Variations: Add more coconut milk instead of water for creamier soup.
Add in chopped veggies. Instant Pot/Pressure Cooker: Follow steps 1 to 4 (IP on saute, deglaze the onion with a tbsp of water or broth at step 4 if needed as the IP gets hot). Add the lentils, milk, water,salt, half of the tomato and lemon juice, mix. Close the lid, pressure cook for 3 mins. Then quick release after 5 mins. Fold in the rest of the tomato and lemon. Taste and adjust. Add some shredded coconut and serve. Nutritional values based on one serving
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
When you say “mustard seeds” in a recipe with no qualifier, do you mean yellow or black (or brown)?
Black mustard seeds
This recipes sounds authentic and delicious. Sri Lankan curries activate all the taste buds, and your recipe seems more like what I have eaten in good Sri Lankan restaurants. Will certainly try it.
We had this last night with leftovers for lunch today. My husband loved it! I thought it was a bit too hot so will probably tone it down slightly in the future.
Had a question about curry leaves, which I never used before (got them from Amazon since there are no Indian markets near me). Do you take them out of the dish before serving like bay leaves?
You can take them out before serving. You can also eat them, but they are a bit chewy.
Just made this for dinner. Love the unique flavour that the cinnamon brings! It kept my 11 year old guessing, but she loved it too. She already asked if we can make it again in the future, and we definitely will.
yay!
This was sooooooo incredibly delicious
thank you! glad you enjoyed!
Hi Richa, been trying to make a lof your dishes lately. Tried this dal recipe since I wanted to change the usual taste.
I got loads of compliments ☺️
My brother said he couldn’t describe the taste since his mouth was bursting with flavour!
Thank youuu! You got an amazing talent!
yay! 🙂
We commonly add Pandan leaves (Pandanus amaryllifolius) to lentil curry, in addition to curry leaves. Also, pearl onions are preferable to red onions.
Hai
Instead of red lentil which Dal can I use
Moong dal
Beautiful
Please do add a rating when you make again!