This Lentil Dal with Spinach Sauce is one of the most delicious, soul-satisfying plant-based, Indian meals! This version is fragrant, flavorful and packed with nutrients- think of this like Saag Paneer, but substituting black lentils instead of the cheese! Super tasty and healthy. See 30-Second Video!
This recipe for Spinach Lentil Dal, which I’ve nicknamed “Emerald Dal” because of its beautiful rich color was such a comforting meal to make this week. Somehow it feels so grounding and nurturing. Not only is it wholesome and nutritious, but it is also bursting with authentic Indian flavor -and honestly, I can’t wait to make it again!
To make this Lentil Dal with Spinach “Sauce” you’ll need a full pound of spinach. You can use frozen spinach if you like but fresh spinach is in the season I am taking advantage of it.
How to make Emerald Dal | 30-second video
Chop the onion, garlic, ginger and chili pepper.
Saute these in ghee and add the spices. Here I’m using black mustard seeds, cumin seeds and garam masala which you can make at home.
Then add the fresh spinach, a little water, cover, and wilt over low heat for just a few minutes.
A pound of spinach will wilt down into about 2 cups- if that.
At the same time as I’m making the dal- I’m also simmering the black lentils, pan-searing naan bread, and cooking basmati rice to go with it.
Blend the spinach sauce with a little water to form a spinach puree. It doesn’t need to be smooth unless you prefer it that way.
Pour the spinach sauce back into the pan.
Then add the cooked caviar lentils– I add somewhere between 3-4 cups of cooked caviar lentils. And I love these little black lentils most of all because they cook so quickly!!!
Using 3 cups of lentils (instead of 4) will lend a more flavorful, “saucier” dal which I prefer. But if you have 4 people in your family, I’d just add another cup of lentils. 🙂
If you are wondering how I cook lentils- I basically use the pasta method. I cook in ample salted water until tender, then strain. That way you don’t have to have exact measurements with the water to lentil ratio. It is very forgiving!
Then stir in a little plain yogurt which will add creaminess and a touch of tanginess.
So simple and tasty and can be made in 30 minutes if you cook the lentils ahead!
The leftovers are tasty too!
What to serve with Lentil Dal?
- Basmati rice
- Naan Bread
- Indian Potatoes and Cauliflower
- Instant Pot Tikka Masala
- Raita!
- Mint Chutney
- Indian Butter Chicken
- Rajasthani Potatoes
- Authentic Chai!
- Chai Cookies!
You may also like:
- Palak Paneer!
- Indian Fried Rice
- Indian Shepherds Pie
- Frankies (Bombay Burritos)
- Naan Bread
- Indian Basmati Rice
- Raita
Enjoy the grounding nourishing Lentil Dal this week and let me know what you think in the comments below!
xoxo
Sylvia
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Spinach Lentil Dal
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 30
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 3-4
- Category: vegetarian, main, legumes
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Indian
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
Spinach Lentil Dal- an Indian lentil recipe with a flavorful spinach sauce that is full of flavor and nutrients and that can be made in 30 minutes. Serve with Basmati Rice, and naan bread!
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons ghee
- 1 onion, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, rough chopped
- 2 tablespoons ginger, finely chopped
- 1 medium jalapeno, finely chopped (or 1 serrano)
- 1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
- 1 teaspoon black mustard seeds
- 2 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 2 teaspoons garam masala
- 1 lb BABY spinach (fresh or frozen)
- 10 mint leaves
- 1 teaspoon dried fenugreek leaves
- 2 tablespoons water (if using fresh spinach)
- —–
- 3/4 cup water
- —–
- 1/2 cup plain yogurt
- 3 –4 cups cooked black lentils (or aka caviar lentils, beluga lentils or French green lentils)
- 1 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- If cooking black lentils and basmati rice, start them first (see notes)
- Make the Spinach Sauce: Sautee the onion in ghee, in a large pan, over medium heat for 3-4 minutes, then add garlic, ginger and chilies. Saute until fragrant and golden. Add the fennel seeds, mustard seeds, cumin seeds and garam masala and stir two minutes. Lower heat to low. Add the fresh spinach, mint, fenugreek and water. Cover pan, 2-3 minutes, letting spinach wilt. Give a few stirs.
- Blend Spinach Sauce: Place the wilted spinach mixture in a blender and add the 3/4 cups water. Pulse and few times (hold lid down tight). If you want a smooth sauce, blend until smooth. I left a little texture here. Pour it back into the pan, set on low heat.
- Combine: Stir in the yogurt, lentils and salt. Taste. Adjust salt to your liking, adding more if necessary! You want this slightly salty because you are serving over rice which will mellow it out a lot. For more heat add a pinch of cayenne or chili flakes. To “up” the flavor add a bit more garam masala spice to taste. If you want a little acidity a tiny squeeze of lemon is nice.
- Serve with the basmati rice and naan bread!
Notes
SPINACH: If using fresh spinach, be sure to use baby spinach, as mature spinach and their stems can be bitter.
Cook black lentils according to package or try the pasta cooking method: simply boil 1 1/4 cups dry lentils in 6 cups of salted water until just tender, strain. Size of lentil will determine cooking time. Little black lentils take 20-30 minutes.
Feel free to sub other whole lentils for the black lentils. Feel free to sub other greens for the spinach.
Cook Basmati Rice the same way!
Yes, you can sub oil or butter for the ghee– but in my opinion, the ghee really elevates and adds so much flavor.
Keywords: lentil dal, black lentil dal, Indian dal recipe, dal with spinach, saag dal, saag dal recipe, spinach dal, lentil dahl
Loved this recipe! Can you combine the rice and dal and freeze it??
★★★★
Sure, I think that should be fine!
Question: at what point do you add the fennel seeds and dried fenugreek leaves?
Sorry I fixed the recipe. It is in there now. 🙂
This recipe is not only delicious, it’s very quick and easy to make. I cooked lentils in a hot pot and served with rice. I’ll have to admit, I almost always use different amount of the spices than what is called for in a recipe. Tasting as I go along.
★★★★★
I am sorry to say this was very blah at best. Ended up throwing it out for something better.
★★
The Spices and salt are meant to be adjusted at the end “to taste”. I’m sorry you threw it out.
Hi there!
Is this a curry that can keep for a few days or is it a make on the day meal?
Yes, it keeps well!
I made the recipe exactly as shown. We enjoyed it but I felt it needed more flavor. I could not find black mustard seed so went with yellow. Would that make a difference?
I will make it again will look for a little more flavor. Any suggestions.
Thank you for the recipe.
★★★★
You could always increase the spices.
Wonderful! So easy to make and the kids ate it all up!
I made this with a combination of spinach and swiss chard and it was delicious.
★★★★★
Had a question on how much dry lentils to use. I think the recipe refers to 3 to 4 cups of cooked lentils. Do you know how much of dry lentils to use to get to the 3 to 4 cups?
1 cup dry = 2.5 cooked. So 1.5 cups dry?
I loved this recipe! I didn’t have some things – like mustard seed or cumin seed – just powdered form and it still came out great.
I added a little brown sugar to bring out the flavor and some cashew halfs for some crunch.
★★★★★
Good, flexible, healthy recipe! I changed the recipe a bit–didn’t use a full pound of baby spinach (probably more like 10-12 oz as another commenter suggested), and I used crimson lentils since that was what I had. Had to use yellow mustard seeds since I didn’t have black so I added a few dashes of cayenne for extra kick. Served it over basmati rice with the home made naan from this site as well (which was delicious!).
I will say that both me and my husband felt this recipe is missing something to ‘bite down on’ or really chew–the texture of the spinach sauce vs. the lentils just isn’t much of a contrast. (Maybe if I blended the spinach sauce for less time?) We agreed that next time we would make it the same but add in some paneer or some roasted cauliflower to provide some textural counterpoint to the dal. That’s just our taste preference, though. We typically eat meat so if you’re used to the texture of lentils in sauce your mileage may vary. 🙂 Overall a very tasty recipe and easier to make than I thought it would be.
★★★★★
Glad you enjoyed and paneer and/or roasted cauliflower would both be great additions. 😉
I am trying to eat more vegetarian meals for health reasons and this was a huge hit for the whole family. I followed the recipe exactly except for the jalapeños because I don’t like those. Thank you for the great recipe, will definitely make again.
★★★★★
Delicious!!
I made this dish with baby kale and made it vegan by subbing coconut cream for the yogurt and coconut oil for the ghee. YUM!
★★★★★
This was delicious. I thought I had kinda killed the recipe with all the changes I made due to what I had on-hand (red lentils, vegan butter, chopped spinach instead of baby spinach, vegan {kinda sweet} yogurt, brown instead of black mustard, no mint), but it was great. We’re trying to eat lower carb, so we just put it in bowls and had it like soup/stew. My husband went back for 3rds! 🙂 Thanks for another winner!
★★★★★
Used baby spinach. Sooo good! Thank you.
★★★★★
Very yummy!! I’ve made this recipe 3 times. I had the best results with slightly less baby spinach- about 9-10 oz. I like the sauce creamy, and super fresh spinach made it a little too fibrous. I leave the spinach in the fridge for a couple days before use. I also add a little extra ginger and an additional red chili pepper. I’m so glad I found this recipe!
★★★★★
this was so easy to make and soooo delicious! THANK YOU! I will be making it again for sure!
★★★★★
If you strain the lentils you are removing the nutrition from it.
You can use yello mung daal instead of black. Its lot more creamier
I love this, so delicious, hearty, and the sauce is such a gorgeous green color!
★★★★★
Hi Sylvia,
I came across your website the other day and am so excited.
So many recipes that I can’t wait to try!
I recently got an interest cooking Indian food. After reading what you had to say about it, I went to a local spice store, bought all fresh spices to make the garam masala and threw away the old. I made your Emerald dal and our family loved it! So healthy and hearty. It tasted authentic. The flavor was perfect. Not too spicy.
I can’t wait to try more of your recipes! ❤️
Glad you enjoyed.
Not sure where to find the video link? Was it removed?
Refresh the page and scroll down a bit. 🙂 Sometimes if you have adblocker on, it will prevent it form popping up
Can I use black urad (matpe) in place of black lentils?
Thanks!
Is that a split black lentil? If so I worry about them getting mushy? If not split, should be fine!
We made this for dinner last night with homemade naan. Great recipe. Thanks!
Soooo delicious! I subbed out the black lentils for sprouted green lentils and added an extra jalapeño for an extra kick! So delicious!!!
A new family staple!
★★★★★
Followed the recipe exactly and it is SO bitter. Any suggestions how to save it?
That is so strange Tracie. I’m sorry and I’m not sure what would make it bitter? Did you use baby spinach?
It was also quite bitter for me. I’m not sure why. I did use baby spinach.
Not sure what would cause that- sorry Brandon.
This dish has come out nothing like the photo. I’ve used the exact measurements and followed the instructions.
I’m sorry about that Helen. Can you be more specific about what was differnt? How were the flavors?
This turned out delicious !!! Going into my favorite recipe book!
★★★★★
Not really a fan of this dish but it was edible. With that being said this will be the first and the last time I will be making this dish.
★★★
Oh dear. Sorry not for you I guess.
Followed the recipe (except for almost over-toasting the spices) and the result was very flavourful. My friends were delighted I had enough to share.
★★★★★
I love the recipe – I’ve adapted it by tripling the amount of spinach and increasing the spices. This way, it’s more spinach than lentils. I agree the black hard lentils are key – other types will turn to mush so be sure to not over cook them and check them frequently.