Sous Vide Red Lentil Dal
By America's Test KitchenPublished on January 20, 2021
Time
Sous vide: 2 to 4 hours; active cooking time: 30 minutes
Yield
Serves 4
Sous Vide Temperature
194°F/90°C
Ingredients
Before You Begin
Do not substitute other varieties of lentils here; red lentils have a much different cooking time and consistency. Be sure to double bag the lentils to protect against seam failure. For more about sous vide cooking, refer to our sous vide guide.
Instructions
- Using sous vide circulator, bring water to 194°F/90°C in 7-quart container.
- Cook oil, coriander, cumin, cinnamon, turmeric, cardamom, and pepper flakes in large saucepan over medium heat, stirring often, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in onion, garlic, and ¾ teaspoon salt and cook until onion is softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in ginger and cook for 30 seconds. Off heat, stir in water, scraping up any browned bits.
- Place onion mixture and lentils in 1-gallon zipper-lock freezer bag. Seal bag, pressing out as much air as possible. Place bag in second 1-gallon zipper-lock freezer bag and seal. Gently lower bag into prepared water bath until lentils are submerged, and then clip top corner of bag to side of water bath container, allowing remaining air bubbles to rise to top of bag. Reopen 1 corner of zipper, release remaining air bubbles, and reseal bag. Cover and cook for at least 2 hours or up to 4 hours.
- Transfer lentils to bowl and add butter. Whisk lentils vigorously until mixture reaches porridge-like consistency. Stir in tomatoes and cilantro and season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve with lemon wedges and extra cilantro.To Make Ahead Lentils can be refrigerated for up to 3 days. To serve, bring to a simmer in medium saucepan or heat in microwave for 2 minutes, stirring halfway. Proceed with step 4.
Time
Sous vide: 2 to 4 hours; active cooking time: 30 minutesYield
Serves 4Sous Vide Temperature
194°F/90°CIngredients
Ingredients
Ingredients
Why This Recipe Works
Dal is a class of soups or stews native to the Indian subcontinent made from split beans, lentils, peas, and other legumes. Since red lentils break down relatively easily, we chose them for our take on sous vide dal. First, we tried cooking them for just a couple hours in a hot bath. This yielded evenly cooked and tender lentils—but when we poured them out of the bag, the overall texture wasn't quite right. These lentils were cooked, but still fully intact and the liquid was watery. Fortunately, we found a simple solution: whisking. Whisking the mixture briefly after cooking broke down the lentils, thickened the mixture, and resulted in the ideal consistency—porridge-like but still loose. After a bit more trial and error, we pared down the spice blend to a combination of coriander, cumin, cinnamon, turmeric, cardamom, and red pepper flakes. To brighten the dish, we added chopped fresh tomatoes and cilantro plus a little butter to replicate some of the flavors typically provided by ghee.
Before You Begin
Do not substitute other varieties of lentils here; red lentils have a much different cooking time and consistency. Be sure to double bag the lentils to protect against seam failure. For more about sous vide cooking, refer to our sous vide guide.
Instructions
- Using sous vide circulator, bring water to 194°F/90°C in 7-quart container.
- Cook oil, coriander, cumin, cinnamon, turmeric, cardamom, and pepper flakes in large saucepan over medium heat, stirring often, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in onion, garlic, and ¾ teaspoon salt and cook until onion is softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in ginger and cook for 30 seconds. Off heat, stir in water, scraping up any browned bits.
- Place onion mixture and lentils in 1-gallon zipper-lock freezer bag. Seal bag, pressing out as much air as possible. Place bag in second 1-gallon zipper-lock freezer bag and seal. Gently lower bag into prepared water bath until lentils are submerged, and then clip top corner of bag to side of water bath container, allowing remaining air bubbles to rise to top of bag. Reopen 1 corner of zipper, release remaining air bubbles, and reseal bag. Cover and cook for at least 2 hours or up to 4 hours.
- Transfer lentils to bowl and add butter. Whisk lentils vigorously until mixture reaches porridge-like consistency. Stir in tomatoes and cilantro and season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve with lemon wedges and extra cilantro.To Make Ahead Lentils can be refrigerated for up to 3 days. To serve, bring to a simmer in medium saucepan or heat in microwave for 2 minutes, stirring halfway. Proceed with step 4.
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