Pressure-Cooker Dhal

I know, I know… We’re way behind on posting photos or even real honest-to-goodness updates or, well, anything really. So, here’s some food to show we still love you. Or to at least tide you over until we get the photo factory rolling along again.

Evan’s Pressure-Cooker Dhal (Indian Lentil Curry Soup)

Ingredients:

• 1 TBSP extra-virgin olive oil [edit: I've started using 1 TBSP extra-virgin coconut oil instead, if for no other reason than the amazing smell it wafts through the kitchen]
• 1 yellow onion, diced
• 3-5 cloves of garlic, smashed & finely diced
• 2 stalks celery, diced
• 3 carrots, diced
• 1 or 3 tsp Patak’s Mild Curry Paste (or go spicier, or use whatever kind you can find or make your own)
• 1 can (14-15 oz.) Thai light coconut milk
• 1 can (15 oz.) diced tomatoes, drained
• 32 oz. vegetable or chicken stock (buy a box at the store, or, make your own—it’s easy!)
• 1 1/3 cups red lentils, rinsed & picked over
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 6 cardamom pods
• Kosher salt
• Freshly ground pepper
• 1 lime, cut in half

Equipment:

• Pressure cooker (ours is 6 quarts—if yours isn’t or you don’t have one, just use a regular old large pot and it’ll just take a little longer)
• Food processor or blender
• Large mixing bowl or other large container that can take the heat

Start Cookin’:

1. Heat the olive oil over medium heat, until it can run around the bottom of the pot like water.
2. Add the diced veggies and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is translucent, about 2-3 minutes
3. Add the curry paste and stir around until the veggies are coated
4. Pour in the coconut milk and veggie stock
5. Add the diced tomatoes
6. Stir in the lentils
7. Add in the cinnamon stick & cardamom pods (just leave ‘em floating on top)
8. Close lid on pressure cooker, bring up to pressure, reduce heat, cook for 8 minutes while regulator doohickey gently rocks.
9. Carefully transfer pressure cooker to sink (look out for escaping steam when you set it down) and run cold water over the top to force the pressure down and unlock the lid.
10. Fish out the cardamom pods (these can be hard to find) and the cinnamon stick.
11. Puree most of the soup mixture in your food processor or blender, only filling vessel up 1/2 way or less at a time to avoid steam causing a soup geyser.
12. Transfer blended soup to bowl, mix in the bit you left out of the blender.
13. Add salt and pepper to taste, and squeeze in fresh lime juice.
14. Eat up!

If you don’t have a pressure cooker, just cook uncovered in a large stock pot for about 20 minutes. Recipe inspired by “Garlicky Lentil Soup” and “Spiced Lentil Soup” in The Cook’s Encyclopedia of Soup, Barnes & Noble Books, 2002 (ISBN: 0-7607-3096-2).