But like they say…necessity is the mother of invention…which came true for me in this case! Now I know Oats Haleem is a thing and I’ve had it. But I wanted something devoid of Animal Protein and still be filling. What started off as an experiment, has now become a regular part of our meal plans in the house. And has given birth to multiple different versions! This version is quite popular hence sharing this one first. This bowl of Lentil and oats uses Red lentils (masoor ki dal) and the tarmarind paste to make it tangy. The texture is pretty similar to that of haleem. Its full blown piece of South Asia in a bowl. The spice mix is also quite similar to that of khatti dal (tangy lentils)
A LITTLE STEP BY STEP WALKTHROUGH
So you probably know how Pakistanis and Indians make dal. We cook dal in spices and then top it off with aromatic spices fried in ghee/oil, which we like to call Tarka. In this particular recipe, we are going to prepare it in reverse. We are going to prepare the Tarka or Tempered Spice mix first and then cook the dal. Start by adding oil, cumin seeds and mustard seeds and sliced onion in a large pot. Saute this at medium flame, till your onions start to turn translucent. Then add Chopped coriander and green chilies and fry the lot til everything turns golden brown.
I like to take out a table spoon of this fried onion herb mix to use later as a garnish and a crunchy topping to my lentil oats. (because you know….fried food feels :S) Next, chuck in chopped tomatoes, garlic paste and all the spices (namely salt, turmeric, red chili powder and flakes) Give it a good stir and add in your red lentils and oats.
Add 5 cups of water, cover your pot and let the lentil oats cook at medium to high flame. It’ll take about 20 to 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, your lentil oats will have a thick consistency. Whisk the whole mix a little bit to make sure it isn’t getting burnt on the sides.
Dissolve 1 tbsp of tamarind in about 1/2 cup of water. Add tamarind to the lentil oats and let it cook at low flame for another 10 mins. Adjust the spices and seasoning and you are done! Serve garnished with the fried onion coriander or you know fry some extra onions to go on top (cz I would legit do that!) Jokes apart, I actually do top it off with chopped salad leaves and other salady things to give me crunch! Cz baby….crunch is important.
RECIPE ALTERATIONS
This recipe yields about 3 bowls or servings of Lentil Oats. Just reduce everything to half if you are skeptical about trying it for the first time. Skip the red chili flakes and green chilies if you can’t handle heat. Add a splash of water when you are reheating it the next day. I absolutely loveeee the Tanginess from the Tamarind pulp, so I mostly go overboard with that….just saying
TANGY SAVORY OATMEAL AND LENTIL BOWL
Oh and If you guys are into mindful eating, click here to check out some other healthy recipes on the blog for inspo. Until next time my loveliess! Byeeee
