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    Home » Main Dishes

    Jan 10, 2022 by Farwin.

    Sri Lankan Red Lentil Dal

    A Sri Lankan dal (dhal) curry is easy and quick to make. This is a unique dal flavored with coconut milk, curry leaves and spices. It's vegan, gluten-free and high in protein.

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    Sri Lankan red lentil carry in a bowl

    Dal or parippu is a staple in Sri Lankan cuisine. It's such a simple dish but packed with flavour. It can be eaten with rice and curry, roti, naan or with toast; my husband's favorite. It pairs with any carb.

    If you are familiar with Indian dal, you'd be surprised to know that this dal is prepared the same way but with different flavors. We use coconut milk and temper with curry leaves.

    If you're looking to make Basmati rice to have with your red lentil dal, read my guide on How To Cook The Perfect Basmati Rice. It's so easy you'll be making it every day!

    What makes a red lentil dal a great meal

    • Red lentils are easy to cook with and they cook in no time. You can make this dal within 30 minutes.
    • They can be eaten with almost anything. Rice, roti, naan, toast and even with plain noodles. Dal is my husband's favorite so he'll eat it with anything. But seriously, they are delicious with everything or just plain. I've caught myself eating dal by the spoon while cooking.
    • Red lentils are high in protein and low in calories. This curry is vegan and gluten free.

    Ingredients

    • Red lentils - Masoor dal/daal/dhal
    • Onion
    • Tomato
    • Ginger, garlic
    • Curry leaves
    • Coconut Milk
    • Spice powders (turmeric, chili, cumin, coriander)
    • Mustard seeds, Cumin seeds
    red lentil dal in a bowl

    How to make

    Start by rinsing the lentils. Rinse until the water runs clear.

    In a pot combine the dal, water, onion,tomato, spice powders, garlic,salt and bring to boil. Cover and cook until all the water has evaporated and the dal is cooked.

    Add coconut milk, extra water and simmer.

    We add a tempering to the the dal to bring more flavor. Heat a small non-stick pan and add oil, mustard seeds, cumin seeds, curry leaves, dried chili pieces. Heat until the mustard start to splutter. Add this tempering to the dal.

    Tips for cooking dal

    • No need to soak the dal. I used to do it but not anymore. Red lentils cook very fast so no soaking needed.
    • Rinse the dal thoroughly until the water runs clear.
    • If you can't find curry leaves, cook without them. It will still be delicious.
    • Add chili flakes to the tempering for extra heat.
    • We use about ½ cup of canned full fat coconut milk. Please don't use the lite version.
    • If you have leftover coconut milk from the can which you are not using right away, freeze it. I pour them into an ice-cube tray. Or small freezer bags and use the frozen coconut milk cubes in curries.
    red lentil dal in a plate with rice

    More Sri Lankan recipes to try

    • Sri Lankan Pumpkin Curry
    • Sri Lankan Chicken Curry
    • How To Cook Basmati Rice

    Tag me on Instagram using @loveandotherspices and follow me on Pinterest to get more delicious healthy meal ideas.

    Recipe

    Sri Lankan Red lentil dal

    red lentil dal in a bowl
    Farwin
    Easy red lentil dal curry flavored with coconut milk, curry leaves and spices. A vegan, gluten free and high protein meal.
    4 from 57 votes
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 10 mins
    Cook Time 20 mins
    Total Time 30 mins
    Course Main Course
    Cuisine Sri Lankan
    Servings 4

    Ingredients
     

    Dal

    • 1 cup red lentils
    • 2.5 cups water divided
    • 1 small onion chopped
    • 1 small tomato chopped
    • 1 teaspoon ginger minced
    • 3 cloves garlic sliced
    • 1 green chili halved
    • 2 sprigs curry leaves
    • 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
    • 1 teaspoon red chili powder/cayenne pepper
    • 1 teaspoon cumin powder
    • ½ tsp coriander powder
    • 1 tsp salt
    • ½ cup full fat coconut milk

    Tempering

    • 1 tablespoon oil
    • 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
    • ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
    • 1 dried chili broken to pieces
    • 1 sprig curry leaves
    • ½ teaspoon red chili flakes (optional)

    Instructions
     

    For the dal

    • Rinse the red lentils until the water runs clear.
    • Into a pot add red lentils, 1.5 cups of water, chopped onion and tomatoes, green chili, curry leaves, minced ginger, sliced garlic, turmeric powder, red chili powder, cumin powder, coriander powder and salt. Bring to boil.
    • Turn the heat to medium, cover the pot and cook the lentils until all the water is absorbed and lentils are cooked through. This would take about 15 minutes.
    • Add the coconut milk and 1 cup of water, stir to combine. Cover and let it simmer for 5 minutes. Check seasoning and add more salt if needed.

    Tempering

    • In a non-stick pan, heat the oil and add mustard seeds, cumin seeds, curry leaves, broken dried red chili. Cook until the mustard seeds start to splutter. Add red chili flakes if using.
    • Pour the tempering to the cooked dal.
    • Serve dal with rice, roti or your preferred carb.

    Video

    Notes

    • Leftover dal can kept in the refrigerator in a covered container for up to 3 days.
     
    Keyword curry, easy, healthy, quick
    Tried this recipe?If you like this recipe, I’d love if you can give me a rating and comment! Share this with your family and friends!

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    Comments

    1. Reshmi Mahesh says

      December 10, 2012 at 9:25 pm

      Delicious looking dal with coconut milk...comfort food..

      Reply
      • Mel says

        August 07, 2022 at 8:38 am

        5 stars
        This was so delicious! I’ve tried 3-4 dahl recipes & this one’s been the best so far.. the method was simple to follow too.

        Reply
    2. Love and other Spices says

      December 11, 2012 at 6:31 am

      It is Reshmi. Thanks for the comment!

      Reply
    3. Raji says

      December 11, 2012 at 6:34 am

      Loved your version of the daal Farwin...would be soon making this your way. Gorgeous pictures as always.

      Reply
    4. Anonymous says

      December 11, 2012 at 6:47 am

      Love Parippu. I didn't realise that I wasn't subscribed to your posts... we are pretty much fans of Srilankan food - having lived in Colombo - way back in 1998. But my neighbour taught me this - it's slightly different. Photographs are amazing.

      Reply
    5. creating memories says

      December 11, 2012 at 9:45 am

      oh my! we call lentils parippu too!! in mal i mean 🙂 and the curry we make is almost the same! and such awesome photos Farwin!!

      xx

      Reply
    6. Anonymous says

      December 11, 2012 at 10:24 am

      Similarity not only in the dishes, but the ingredients' names too.. 🙂 It's parippu in malayalam !! I make this using ground coconut, must try your version soon .. 🙂

      Reply
    7. Love and other Spices says

      December 11, 2012 at 3:33 pm

      Thanks sweetie, let me know how it turns out..

      Reply
    8. Love and other Spices says

      December 11, 2012 at 3:35 pm

      Good to hear that Ishita. Would love to know your version of parippu..

      Reply
    9. Love and other Spices says

      December 11, 2012 at 3:36 pm

      Thanks Neelu. Our cuisines are very much similar 🙂

      Reply
    10. Love and other Spices says

      December 11, 2012 at 3:38 pm

      Would love to know how you do it using ground coconut,Najla .

      Reply
    11. Torviewtoronto says

      December 25, 2012 at 2:48 am

      delicious lentil curry looks wonderful

      Reply
    12. caffeine Addict says

      August 24, 2013 at 2:35 am

      I made parippu today using this recipe. I didn't have fenugreek at home. So, I cooked without it. I also increased chili powder to 1 tsp. It was so good! I love your blog. It's really well written and the photos are gorgeous!

      Reply
    13. රංග ප්‍රභාත් ජයසිංහ says

      September 21, 2013 at 10:46 pm

      HI,

      Dear Ms. Farwin,

      Good Evening!.

      Thank you very much for your fabulous cooking styles. Currently I am staying at Qatar with my wife.

      & I Am very much interested to cook your way. We prepared Milk Toffee on yesterday. Also followed your steps as you mentioned.

      I will prepare Parippu & let you know

      Good Bless You!.

      Reply
    14. Nusrath says

      June 27, 2014 at 9:03 pm

      salams sis! you havent posted anything for almost a year. 🙁

      being born and brought up in colombo, your blog brings me back the memories of childhood.

      pls post recipes soon!

      Reply
    15. Nadira says

      February 02, 2021 at 3:20 pm

      5 stars
      Thankyou for sucha delicious, flavorful and easy recipe!

      Reply
    16. Viv Thompson says

      March 12, 2021 at 5:11 am

      I love this dal recipe, definitely comfort food. Thank you for the recipe.

      Reply

    Trackbacks

    1. Parippu (Sri Lankan dhal) | Deliciously Kind Kitchen says:
      at

      […] curry, roti, naan or with toast; my husband’s favorite. It pairs with any carb.” – LoveAndOtherSpicesParippu is the ultimate comfort food. This recipe is from ‘Sri Lankan Red Lentil Curry’ […]

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