About once a month we like to go to an Indian restaurant, it’s at about 30 miles away but it’s worth the trip.
My favorite dish there is dal palak, I order it each and every time I go. It’s a lentil soup made with split chickpeas, spinach, tomato, and spices.
I tried many recipes but just couldn’t find a satisfying one, it was either too soupy, too spicy, or the texture was off. Last time I went to the restaurant, I had a quick talk with the chef and got the chance to squeeze out some tips out of him. So I made a mission to recreate it the traditional way, more or less. I’m very happy with the results and it tastes just like the one I love!
Don’t be scared by its dark green color, this dal is insanely delicious.
What I like about this dal is how rich it is in spinach. It makes it lighter than other dals, plus you get your daily dose of greens. For a more interesting and pleasant texture, I recommend blending 2/3 of the spinach with some water until fully smooth. This way you get a super creamy consistency while still having some whole spinach leaves here and there.
Dal Palak is often made with split chickpeas, they cook a lot faster than whole chickpeas and don’t require any soaking. They are a bit bigger than lentils and add a nice texture to this dal.
The combination of spices with garlic, ginger, and onions make this dal VERY aromatic. For the spices, I went with turmeric, coriander, garam masala, and fenugreek (I love this spice! Have you tried it yet?)
You can eat this dal on its own, or serve with rice on the side. Top with a dollop of cashew cream, fresh parsley and a squeeze of lemon juice and enjoy!
Fore more Indian-inspired recipes, check out these Veggie Balls in Creamy Masala Sauce, Chickpea Crepes with Creamy Lentil Dal, of this Instant Pot Cauliflower Tikka Masala!
Let me know in the comments if you try this recipe!
Easy Dal Palak
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup split chickpeas also known as chana dal
- 1/4 cup red lentils
- 2 and 1/4 cup water
- 2 tbsp oil
- 1 onion diced
- 3 cloves of garlic minced
- 1 tsp minced ginger
- 1 to mato finely chopped
- 1 tsp each: turmeric coriander, garam masala, fenugreek
- 1/8 tsp chili or more if you like it spicy
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 9 cups baby spinach
- 2 tsp nutritional yeast
- for serving: fresh parsley lemon juice
Instructions
- Start by rinsing the split chickpeas and lentils 2-3 times.
- Combine the split chickpeas, red lentils, and water in a medium-size saucepan. Bring to a boil and let simmer 20-25 minutes until the chickpeas are cooked and there is almost no water left. Remove from heat and drain excess water if needed. Set aside.
- Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and sauté for 3-5 minutes, or until soft. Next, add the garlic and ginger. Cook for another 2-3 minutes.
- Add the chopped tomato, spices, chili, salt, and tomato paste and cook until the tomatoes become soft, stirring regularly.
- While the tomatoes are cooking, wash and drain the spinach. Roughly chop 3 cups of spinach and add it to the skillet.
- Place the other 6 cups of spinach in a blender with 1/2 cup of water. Blend until smooth and transfer to the skillet.
- Add the cooked chickpeas/lentils and nutritional yeast to the skillet and continue to cook for another 5-7 minutes, stirring regularly until the spinach is soft. You can cook it longer if you prefer a less soupy consistency. Taste and adjust salt if needed.
- Serve topped with fresh parsley and a squeeze of lemon juice. Dal Palak goes very well with rice.
- Leftovers will keep for up to 3 days in the fridge or up to 2 months in the freezer.
Dal is one of my favorite Indian recipes. I made it before but with lentils and I have to try your recipe with chickpeas. Also, I didn’t know; there were split chickpeas. I have never seen it in the supermarket. Love love your photos!
A big Happy Anniversary!
I found your site via FBP and glad I did. Dal is such a homey warming dish and can be made in so many ways as well as spiciness. This one is pinned to my “Indian Dishes board and we’ll be making it soon.
Keep up the excellent work.
FYI: Nice photography.
This was easy to make and delicious. I followed the directions exactly except used one can of chickpeas which i added to the spinach along with the cooked red lentils then served over riced cauliflower. This recipe fed 4 adults. Though we all could have eaten more and would have liked leftovers!
Serving over riced cauliflower sounds great! Try with split chickpeas next time, I’m sure you will love the texture 🙂
Thanks for the feedback Laurie!
This looks fantastic! I’m super excited to try it. Two things – as a blogger please embed links to the recipe in your pictures. I am kind of lazy, at least as much as your average vegan web surfer, we don’t want to have to find the corresponding words to go with your lovely pictures. Really, if it didn’t look so yummy I would have gotten frustrated and moved on (and not everyone is as patient as me!) Second – the print button leaves off the instructions. 🙁 Boo. Luckily, I can pin it for later. Thanks for the post!
Hi Liza, thanks!
Which internet browser are you using? I don’t have any problem with the print option…
What kind of chili are you using? I’m excited to try this!
I’m using ground chili, which is a spice blend with cayenne, paprika, cumin, garlic, etc.
I just made this tonight and it’s delicious! I couldn’t find split chickpeas, but I added in some chunks of potato which was a nice addition.
This is for sure going into my regular recipe rotation!
Thanks Brittany! Happy to hear you liked it 😉
You can probably replace split chickpeas with other beans like green lentils.
Thank you for the recipe. This turned out even better than i expected. So delicious and full of flavor.
Awesome! So happy you liked the recipe! Thanks for the feedback Marie 🙂
I have a question re the nutritional yeast – what is it replacing and/or what flavour is it adding? I’m not a vegetarian but like to cook mostly vegetarian foods at home and so replacing cheese/cream has never been needed. Does nutritional yeast make this a creamier recipe? Thanks!
It doesn’t make it creamier, it adds a very subtle cheesy flavor, it’s not essential to this recipe so you can omit if you want. I used it because usually, they add some cream + cheese in Dal Palak, at least at the Indian restaurant I go to.
Very good recipe for health and fitness as well tasty.
It one of most know vegetarian food in India
Thanks Banu! Dal Palak is my favorite Indian dish!
This made a very good vegan dinner!
Tip: Chana dal/split chickpeas are actually not that easy to find so you may be stuck using either whole chickpeas (much longer to cook), canned chickpeas, or another legume.
Question: What consistency should the lentils be? Mine were essentially blown up at the end, should they remain whole?
Suggestion: I served this with quinoa that I boiled with some cremini mushrooms and onions that i sautéed in olive oil for some extra flavor. That allows the dish to have more complete proteins, less overall carbohydrates, and additional fiber.
Love the site!
Glad to hear you liked it Steve!
I agree, it can be hard to find if you don’t have an Asian or Indian store nearby. Regarding the consistency, the split chickpeas should be soft, but not mushy like red lentils would be. They should remain whole, yes.
Thanks for sharing! Happy to hear you like the blog 🙂
Hello!
Since the sesame crusted tofu was a big hit with my family, I wanted to try this dal palak. I double the recipe, for my family of 5. Served it with brown basmati rice. My supermarket doesn’t carry split chick peas. But I had those dried little Desi chick peas. I just cooked them in the pressure cooker, and I was good to give this dal a try.
We really loved it. We have left overs for my hubby’s lunches. It’s healthy, flavourful, easy to make.
Hi Julie,
I’m so happy you and your family liked this dal! Thanks for the feedback!
Hey Thomas,
Glad to know someone so passionate about indian cuisine. Well there are many but I personally don’t know who are into cooking it.
well I tried the recipe step by step. luckily i had all the ingredients and it turned out to be delicious but the colour changed a from dark green to little brown. as per my knowledge, spinach turns brown when it’s overcooked. I would be thankful to learn a tip about this. Thankful.
Amrita
Hey Amrita,
Glad to hear you liked the recipe! I’m afraid I can’t help you here as I never had spinach turn brown, it can turn dark green though. One way to keep its vibrant green color is to blanch it, bring a large pot of water to a boil, then add the spinach and leave it for 1-2 minutes, then drain and transfer the spinach to ice cold water.
You can add a little sugar, it will prevent browning
I made Dal palak as per your recipe,it has become very yummy
Thank you Anil!
I made dal palak as per your recipe, it has become so yummy
Hi Thomas,
Thank You for sharing this delightful recipe! I am from India and I was looking for Palak-based recipes on google when I came across Yours! It definitely got my attention and i gave it a try minus the nutritional yeast. As I didn’t mind using butter I cooked it in little butter and I didn’t need to add any cream to it! It is light and delicious beyond words! Was definitely surprised by the aromas, flavours and textures!
Will definitely check out more of Your recipes! There is a simplicity and beauty in your approach to food which I respect…
Keep up the good work! Keep on sharing
Warm Regards,
Tanya
Hi Tanya,
Thank you so much for your kinds words! Dal Palak is one of my favorite dal! I’m glad you liked the flavor 🙂
I cooked this, and it really does taste restaurant-quality! The only change I made was to add the turmeric and salt in with the lentils at the beginning of cooking, which is my habit when cooking dal (or lentils of any kind) — I find it seasons the dish more uniformly, and you wind up needing less salt. The final result was beautiful, savory, and delicious. I was eating it with rice and another side dish, so it made a good 5-6 portions for me.
Thanks for your feedback Erica! I’m glad to hear you liked it! 🙂
Do you have any tips on how to measure 9 cups of spinach? Everyone I’ve spoken to at the market has no clue so both times I’ve made this (delicious) recipe I’ve gotten different sizes and consistencies of dish.
9 cups of spinach are about 270-300g 🙂
Amazing!! Whole family gobbled it all up!
Thanks for your rating Estee!
The dish looks delicious. I want to try it for the dinner I’m hosting tomorrow. Please tell me if split chickpeas are gram lentil/daal chana? I’ve never heard of split chickpeas, so please clarify this. Thank you.
Yes it is chana dal.
I printed off this recipe to try several days ago. Now that I am going to make it, I tried to find the source. The printed recipe does not indicate your name or blog. It took some searching to find this again.
Thanks for letting me know Heather, I will check it!
Hello i was surching for recepies wish could approach to what i have in mind and i find you! With my pleasure i will inspired on your recepie! I will let you knomw! We are @alquimiavegana.bcn in insta.. Thanks for inspiring!
You’re welcome!
Awesome, my family loved it. I loved it. Fiber and proteins and with rice it becomes a complete meal.I added a little more chilli powder and instead of fenugreek powder used dry fenugreek leaves. crush them and add.
Thanks for your feedback Shaznin! 🙂
WOW! Yummy recipe, superb presentation and wonderful photography.
Great recipe! I used split yellow peas instead of split chickpeas and it seemed to work well. Also used English spinach instead of baby spinach.
Thanks for sharing your tweaks Sebastian, glad to hear you liked the recipe 🙂
I absolutely LOVED this! I used two 10 oz packages of frozen spinach (to save money) and it worked out great. I also used yellow split peas because it’s all I could find at the store. They seemed the same or similar to the product the recipe linked to for split chickpeas. Turned out fine. This was my first time to make Indian food not in an instant pot, so I was kind of nervous, but it was really easy (I did use an instant pot to cook the lentils, which worked well). I served with Jeera Rice and yogurt, which both complemented this recipe nicely. The husband loved it. Thank you so much – I’m looking forward to trying more recipes on this site!
Thanks for your feedback Danielle! 🙂 Glad to hear you both liked this Dal Palak!
It turned out to be Awesome !! thank you for the recipe
This look yummy, can I use frozen or canned spinach?
Sure, frozen spinach will work!
Fantastic recipe, really good. Took me a couple of tries to get the measurements right as I had to convert cups to grams, which is usually fine, but a bit tricky with spinach! I think I’ve got it right now and will make again for sure.
Thanks Colin!