Slow cooker dal makhani
Lentils and kidney beans cooked low and slow with ginger, garlic and tomato, then finished with butter and cream, the rich, velvety restaurant dal you can set up in the morning.
- 510 min total
- 25 min hands-on
- Follow-a-recipe easy
- Serves 6
- About $1.29 a serving
- 500 calories
- Good the next day
- Vegetarian
- Gluten-free
Dolly says: Make the full amount. It’s just as good for lunch the next day.
Ingredients
For 6 servings.
- 1 cup lentils, brown or green, rinsed
- 1 can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 yellow onion, finely chopped
- 5 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp fresh ginger, grated
- 1½ cups crushed tomatoes
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 3 tbsp butter
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 1½ tsp garam masala
- 1½ cups basmati rice, rinsed
- 2 tbsp cilantro, chopped (optional)
From your pantry
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- ½ tsp ground turmeric
- 2 tsp paprika
- ¼ tsp cayenne pepper
- 6¾ cups water, divided
- 2½ tsp salt, divided
Each serving has about 500 calories, 17 g protein, 76 g carbs and 14 g fat, and costs about $1.29 at typical US grocery prices. Both are estimates from what the recipe uses.
Missing something?
- No kidney beans? Pinto beans or black beans work.
- No yellow onions? White onions or red onions work.
- No crushed tomatoes? Diced tomatoes work.
- No butter? Ghee works.
- No basmati rice? Jasmine rice or long-grain white rice works.
- No cilantro? Fresh parsley works.
Steps
Tap an underlined word for a quick explanation.
Pick through the lentils for any small stones and them in a strainer.
Rinse. Rinsing means running cold water over rice or canned beans in a strainer while you swish them around. It washes off loose starch and can liquid, so rice cooks up fluffy and beans taste clean.
How you’ll know: The water running out goes from cloudy to mostly clear; it doesn’t have to be perfect.
Put the lentils, kidney beans, onion, garlic, ginger, tomatoes, cumin, coriander, turmeric, paprika, cayenne, 4 cups water and 1½ teaspoons salt in the slow cooker and stir.
Cover and cook on Low for 7 to 8 hours or High for 4, until the lentils are completely soft and starting to fall apart.
Timer: 420 min
Stir hard with a or wooden spoon for a minute to break up some of the lentils and make it creamy.
Whisk. Whisking means beating quickly with a whisk or a fork to blend things together. It smooths out lumps and mixes eggs, oil or sauces evenly.
How you’ll know: It all looks one even color and texture, with no streaks or lumps.
Dolly’s tip: This is what gives dal makhani its velvety texture.Stir in the butter, cream and garam masala, cover, and cook 15 minutes more.
Timer: 15 min
About 25 minutes before serving, put the rice, 2¾ cups water and 1 teaspoon salt in a and over high heat.
Saucepan. A saucepan is a pot with tall, straight sides and one long handle. It’s for things that need depth, like rice, sauces or a few boiled eggs.
How you’ll know: The food fills it about halfway, leaving room to bubble without spilling over.
Bring to a boil. It means heating a liquid on high until it’s fully boiling before you move on. A lid on the pot gets it there faster, which makes it a good moment to chop something.
How you’ll know: Big bubbles break all over the surface, and they keep coming when you lift the lid.
High heat
Stir once, cover, and cook on low for 15 minutes. Leave the lid on off the heat for 5 minutes.
Low heatTimer: 15 min
Taste the dal for salt and serve it over the rice with cilantro on top.
Plan this in Dollop, and get the grocery list
Dollop puts this dinner on a night that suits your week, lists only what you still need to buy, and walks you through each step while you cook.
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