Sweetcorn and Spinach Dhal Recipe

Tim says: “This is a great moment to incorporate those half-used bags of grains in the back of your cupboard. Simply add them to the dhal while cooking (making sure you extend the cooking time to the grain that takes the longest to cook), and you’ll have even more plants in your dish, plus you’ll be reducing food waste.”

Prep time:

10 minutes

Cook time:

30 minutes

Plants:

Serves:

Ingredients

2 x 195g tins sweetcorn and their liquid
4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp garam masala
1½ tsp chilli flakes
160g red split lentils
2 cubes of frozen spinach
2 tbsp cumin seeds
1 tbsp dried curry leaves (optional)
Salt and black pepper

Method

1. Empty 1 tin of sweetcorn and its liquid into a blender, add 550ml water and blend until smooth.

2. Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a saucepan over a medium heat and sauté the onion for 3 minutes, until soft and translucent. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds more.

3. Add the ground spices and cook for 30 seconds, then stir in the lentils, frozen spinach, the blitzed sweetcorn stock and the remaining tin of sweetcorn and its liquid. Bring to the boil then lower the heat and simmer gently for 15–20 minutes, or until the lentils are soft. Add a dash of water if the dhal becomes too thick. Season generously with salt and pepper.

4. Just before the dhal finishes cooking, heat the remaining olive oil in a small frying pan and add the cumin seeds and curry leaves (if using). Fry over a low–medium heat for about 1 minute, or until the seeds start to pop. Pour over the dhal, stir to combine and serve.

Extracted from The Food for Life Cookbook by Tim Spector (Vintage, £28). All photography by Issy Croker.

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