Creamy Broccoli Dal / Tots / Beer

A totally inauthentic meal: Janet's broccoli dal--which contained not only soymilk and broccoli but in my iteration, sriracha-- went excellently with tater tots and curry ketchup (I just mixed some curry powder into my ketchup).

I'm not yet ready to admit I have a tater tot problem.

This dal was great.  Having both florets and lil chunks of broccoli trunk means that your soup has several kinds of mushy--lentils, onions, and stemchunks--and several kinds of crunchy--mustard seeds, cumin seeds, and florets.  The inclusion of soymilk as well as red lentils meant that it was really creamy as well.

Although the texture was awesome, the first batch I made was a little bland.  Partly this was because I'd forgotten the soy sauce, but I also found myself wanting more bitey flavors to balance the pungent and creamy ones.  The second time around, I added garlic and a dried chili.  I also added a squirt of sriracha at the end, as well as more lemon juice.  And cilantro.  And now I am indeed on team broccoli dal.

I also found that I needed to add some extra water during cooking to keep it from drying/burning.

This recipe is delicious, easy, nutritious, and cheap as hell.  It has definitely been added to my repertory.

Creamy Broccoli Dal

(adapted from taste space)

Ingredients

2 tsp vegetable oil

1 tsp cumin seeds

1 tsp black mustard seeds

1 dried red chili, stem removed

1/2 c onion, finely chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 c red lentils, rinsed

2 c broccoli stalks and florets, finely chopped

2.5 c water

1 c unsweetened soy milk

1 TB soy sauce

1 TB fresh lemon juice (or more)

1/2 tsp turmeric

1/2 tsp garam masala

1/2 tsp Aleppo chili flakes

salt to taste

sriracha to taste

cilantro as garnish

Instructions

1. Add oil to a large pot over medium heat. Add in the cumin and mustard seeds, and cook until fragrant, around a minute. Add in the onion and garlic and cook until softened and lightly browned, around 5 minutes. Add in rinsed lentils, broccoli, and water and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce heat to maintain a simmer. Cook for 20-25 minutes, until the lentils are soft.
2. Remove from heat and add in soy milk, soy sauce, lemon juice, turmeric, garam masala, and pepper flakes. Add salt, sriracha, and additional lemon juice to taste.  Garnish with cilantro.  Serves 2-3.

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Beer porn.  I actually can barely stand Chimay, and it's probably not even vegan, but man, does it look nice in a chalice!