Yellow Split Pea and Basmati Rice Dal with Spicy Onion Relish

I'm sort of new to Deborah Madison- I grew up on Moosewood, the Vegetarian Epicure, and my mom's amazing ability to make veggie versions of Bobby Flay recipes. But, I'm quickly becoming a fan. This book is so useful when I find myself confronted with vegetables I don't often or have never prepared myself and when my dwindling bank account pleads for simple trips to the store.

This recipe is a one pot meal that I am remarkably impressed with. Madison's original recipe needed a little punch...So, I've made some changes to the spices and added a dash of vinegar at the end to brighten the whole thing up. If I had kept any of my cookbooks from college, you would see that I consider myself a collaborator with the author, and make copious margin notes as I go. This is one of the first of Madison's recipes that I've tried since buying the book...And, I couldn't make it as is. Perhaps if I had time to make her "Stock for Curried Soups" I wouldn't have needed to augment, but as it is...I'm very happy I made the changes I did. I think this would also be really lovely with a handful of golden raisins or dried currants tossed in toward the end of cooking.




Yellow Split Pea and Basmati Rice Dal

Ingredients
2/3 cup yellow split peas
1 1/3 cups brown basmati rice
3 tablespoons of canola oil (The recipe calls for Ghee, but I didn't want to clarify butter)
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1 cardamom pod, gently crushed (optional)
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/2 tsp garam masala
1/2 tsp tumeric
1/2 tsp ground ginger
3- 4 cups water or vegetable stock (I used 2 cups of Imagine Organics No Chicken Broth and 1 cup water)
1-2 teaspoons unfiltered apple cider vinegar

Soak the peas in warm water for three hours and the rice in warm water for one hour. (This cuts way down on cook time and makes the peas and rice more receptive to the flavors of the spices.) Drain.

Heat the ghee or oil over medium heat in a heavy skillet or saucepan large enough to accommodate all the other ingredients.

Add the cumin seeds and cook until they become fragrant.

Add the peas and rice, stir to coat with the oil. Then add- cilantro, garam masala, tumeric, ginger, cardamom pod, 1 tsp of salt and 3 cups of liquid.

Bring to a bowl. Then cover most of the way and reduce heat to low.

Simmer until the peas are cooked and the rice is soft. You may need to add more water... Do so a little bit at a time. It will take 20 minutes or so to cook.

Remove from the heat and taste for salt, stir in 1-2 teaspoons of the unfiltered apple cider vinegar and serve with onion relish. I think that spicy pickled veggies would also make a great accompaniment.

Spicy Onion Relish

1 sweet onion sliced thin
1 jalapeno sliced into thin ribs (optional)
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground salt
Juice of 1 lemon
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp cayenne
handful of chopped cilantro
handful chopped fresh mango (optional)

*If you're going to go the mango route, dice the onion and jalapeno instead of slicing them thin.

Mix ingredients in a medium sized bowl and use at will.