Living on Dahl: Recipe

The last week I've been eating nothing but Dahl. Mark and Tee are away this last week and I've been trying not to spend any money because I'm really poor now. I've been working away on my practicum which happens to be full time and unpaid (boohoo). Also, since I'm generally kind of lazy when it comes to feeding myself when I'm on my own, I've been avoiding the grocery store and eating what's in the house. So that means pretty much nothing but red lentil stew.

I've also stumbled upon something that is very like a meal that I ripped off one of the traditional Eritrean dishes that an old room mate of mine made for us once. It's a tomato based lentil stew that is traditionally served on a huge round unleavened (i.e. thin) bread thing that is like a huge DeDutch Pannekoeken. The whole works is dumped on top of the bread thing and everyone digs in with their hand. It's awesome! I like to serve this over a bed of chard, both because I don't have 3 days to make the bread/pancake thinger and because my iron is always low.

This week, all I had in the house for tomato-based-something was Clamato (Bartender's mix, actually) so I used it instead of broth and found that it's a great substitute for tomato sauce. Also, it's already seasoned. The one drawback is that it isn't vegetarian or vegan. Sorry! It can be though, try substituting tomato juice or sauce then seasoning with fresh/dried jalapeno or horseradish. Or you can use actual tomatoes, just mase them up before adding them; you will need to cook for longer.

This is fast and healthy and don't be afraid to skip the tomato juice (etc.) and use broth or season as you like it. Go Indian, Lebanese, or anything else. Don't be afraid to experiment.

Ingredients:

1 medium onion, thinly sliced

2 cloves garlic, sliced

1 cup red lentils

2+ cups Clamato, Tomato juice, tomato sauce, tomatoes fresh or canned (etc.)

1 cup chopped chard

topping of your choice! (nuts and seeds will add protein, nutritional yeast adds vitamins Bs)

1. Saute onion and garlic until soft.

2. Add red lentils and cook for a couple minutes.

3. Pour in Tomato Juice/broth (etc.) and spices if using.

4. Cook until lentils are soft, adding more liquid if needed.

5. Season with pepper to taste.

6. Chop chard and scatter on serving plates.

7. Spoon dahl over chard.

8. Sprinkle the topping of you choice on top.