Sous Vide Palak Dal

Lentil dals are one of my favorite easy comfort foods once the temperature gets cooler. This particular recipe was inspired by a recipe on 101 Cookbooks, and it makes use of a bag of vibrant green spinach that showed up in my CSA this month. Cooked in the Anova Precision cooker, the lentils emerge tender and infused with aromatics. White urad dal is available in Indian grocery stores; if you can’t find it, you can substitute yellow split peas.

Author

Kate Itrich-Williams

Prep Time: 00:15

Recipe Time: 03:00

Temperature : 190F / 87.8C

Ingredients

• 2 cups water
• 4 ounces spinach, washed and chopped
• 1/2 cup white urad dal
• 2 teaspoons minced fresh ginger, divided
• 1 small red chile, sliced in half to the stem (keep both halves intact)
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon dried turmeric
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/4 teaspoon cumin
• 1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• Juice of 1/2 lime, plus more to taste
• Cilantro leaves, for serving
• White rice, for serving

Directions

1. Set the Anova Sous Vide Precision Cooker to 190ºF (87ºC).
2. Combine water, spinach, dal, 1 teaspoon ginger, chile, salt, and turmeric in a large zipper lock bag. Seal the bag using the water immersion technique.

Finishing Steps

1. When the timer goes off, remove the bag from the water bath. Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the cumin, red pepper flakes, and remaining 1 teaspoon ginger, and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
2. Add the entire contents of the bag to the pot and remove from the heat. Using a wooden spoon, smash some of the lentils on the side of the pot to thicken. Season the dal with lime juice and additional salt to taste. Garnish with cilantro leaves and serve over white rice.