A gallon-sized glass jar of red lentils sits in my cupboard. Their papery skins and slender shape mean they cook remarkably fast, dissolving into a silky, velvety puree. One of the dishes we return to most often is a classic masoor dal. It pairs beautifully with rice or warm flatbread, though some evenings I simply ladle it into a bowl and enjoy it on its own, finished with a spoonful of yogurt and a scatter of fresh cilantro.
The beauty of this red lentil dal lies in how quickly it comes together. On those evenings when you're running on empty after a long workday, or bouncing between a dozen errands, it's a relief to dump everything into the pressure cooker and walk away with a hearty, nourishing dinner on the table in mere minutes.
Making Red Lentil Dal in the Pressure Cooker
Traditionally, dal is built by toasting whole spices and gently simmering lentils for a long stretch until they soften and collapse. That unhurried cooking allows the legumes to soak up the deep, layered notes of coriander, cumin, ginger, fenugreek, fennel, chiles, and black pepper. A pressure cooker trims that timeline to just a few minutes, and a generous swirl of Madras curry sauce—grass-fed ghee blended with warming spices—delivers all the richness and complexity of a long-simmered pot.
| | | | | Instant Pot Red Lentil Dal | | |
Recipe type: soup
Cuisine: Indian
Author: Jenny McGruther
Prep time: 5 mins
Cook time: 6 mins
Total time: 11 mins
Serves: 8 servings
Spiced with Madras curry, this red lentil dal takes only six minutes in the Instant Pot.
Ingredients
Ingredients
- 1 yellow onion, finely chopped
- 2 cups red lentils
- 6 cups chicken bone broth or water
- 2 teaspoons sea salt
- 3 tablespoons Madras Curry Sauce, plus additional to serve
- Yogurt, to serve
- Cilantro, to serve
Instructions
- Place the onion, red lentils, chicken broth, salt and Madras curry into your pressure cooker. Pressure cook for six minutes, and then allow the pressure to release naturally. Puree with an immersion blender, and then serve warm with additional curry sauce,
Curry in a Hurry
Beyond the fact that this Red Lentil Dal comes together in just a few minutes in the pressure cooker, a premade Madras curry sauce streamlines the process even further. It's an exceptionally rich simmer sauce crafted from grass-fed ghee, olive oil, turmeric, ginger, and a blend of other warming spices. It's also a wonderful seasoning for chicken. Order it from Pure Indian Foods here.
Favorite Lentil Recipes
Lentils belong to the pulse family, and like all pulses, they're both budget-friendly and wonderfully satisfying. They're also quite nutrient-dense, offering a generous supply of micronutrients such as folate and thiamin, along with a range of minerals and dietary fiber.
Curried Lentil Soup with Coconut Milk blends lentils and yellow split peas with coriander, cumin and fenugreek as well as a spoonful of coconut milk.
Smoky Sprouted Lentil Soup with Andouille and Turkey is perfect for fall, both hearty and deeply satisfying with a delicate smoky flavor.
Lentil Stew with Winter Vegetables and Mustard Greens marries root vegetables like parsnips and carrots with French lentils, broth and mustard greens for a soothing, simple soup.
Red Lentil Masala with Spinach is an easy, vegetarian, soup that couples red lentils with cumin, ginger, garam masala, tomato and cilantro.
