Pumpkin Spinach Dal (Curried Lentil Soup)
Packed with Vitamins A&C, iron and a good source of protein, this soup is a must-have as temperatures dip this season. Easily adapted to nightshade-free and low-FODMAP diets.
Prep Time10 mins
Cook Time20 mins
Total Time30 mins
Servings: 4
Calories: 140kcal
Ingredients
- 3 cups water
- 3 cups chopped spinach (substitute ~2.5 cups frozen)
- 2 cups raw pumpkin*
- 1.5 cups cooked Toor dal, strained*
- 2 tsp cooking oil
- 0.5 tsp brown mustard seeds
- 0.25 tsp fenugreek seeds
- 1 dry red chili
- 1 tbsp fresh ginger
- 2 curry leaves
- spicy green chilis (optional)
- .5 tsp turmeric
- 0.5 tsp salt (more to taste)
- 1 tsp sugar* (optional)
- 1.5 to 2 tsp ground cumin-coriander powder
- 1-3 tbsp lemon juice (proportionate to the heat of the green chilis)
Instructions
- Saute mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds and the dry red chili in cooking oil until fragrant.
- Add ginger, green chilis, turmeric and curry leaves once the seeds begin to sizzle and pop. Cook for another minute until the ginger begins to brown and crisp at the edges.
- Add pumpkin, salt and 1/2 cup of the water. Cover the pot and bring to boil. Cook until the pumpkin has softened a bit. No more than 8 minutes.
- Once softened, add the cooked, strained lentils,* spinach, cumin-coriander powder, salt to taste and remaining water. Cover the pot and bring to a simmer. Cook for 5-8 minutes more for the flavors to come together.
- Add lemon juice, remove from heat and serve!
Notes
This recipe can easily be made in an Instant Pot. Complete the saute steps under the 'Saute' setting and then substitute 1 to 1.5 cups dry red lentils (split masoor) for cooked toor, and add 1 more cup of water to the recipe before putting it in the cooker. Pressure Cook on high for 8 minutes. Please note the Pressure Cook time and water quantity required will vary with different lentil types.
The salt and lemon juice quantity will vary based on the heat of the chili peppers used. For the nightshade free version, I typically use 1 tsp of salt (total) and 1 tbsp lemon juice.
Lentils are a high-FODMAP food. Cooking and straining the cooking liquid has been found by Monash University to reduce lentil/legume FODMAP content. Prepared this way, lentils/legumes are thought to be tolerated in limited quantities (1/2 cup serving of cooked, strained lentils/legumes in one sitting). This recipe falls under that limit.
Any orange-fleshed squash or vegetable can generally be substituted for the pumpkin. For those following a Low-FODMAP diet, sweet potato and Japanese pumpkin are considered to be well tolerated.
Sugar brings out additional depth of flavor in this recipe. It can easily be omitted for those on a low sugar or low-FODMAP diet.
Nutrition
Calories: 140kcal