Easy Vegetarian Recipes — The Dal That Held Me Together When Nothing Else Could

May. The light is longer. The trees are green. The virus doesn't care about seasons. I've gained fifteen pounds since March. The number is specific because I weigh myself every Monday now, not out of vanity but out of clinical concern. Fifteen pounds in two months. The cortisol, the carbs, the midnight eating, the complete collapse of exercise (I used to walk — now I pace the kitchen, which is not the same thing). I don't recognize my body. The woman in the mirror is soft where she used to be defined, swollen where she used to be angular. The pregnancy weight I lost came back and brought friends. Raj noticed. Finally. Not the weight — the behavior. "You're eating standing up," he said on Tuesday, watching me spoon rice from the pot directly into my mouth at 11 PM. "I'm hungry." "You ate dinner three hours ago." "I'm still hungry." "Priya." "Don't. Please don't." He didn't. He went to bed. We didn't talk about it. We don't talk about anything anymore that isn't logistics. The marriage is running on fumes and schedules and the shared project of keeping Anaya alive. I FaceTimed Amma. She looked at me through the screen and said, immediately: "You've gained weight." "Amma." "I can see it in your face." "It's the pandemic." "The pandemic doesn't make you eat, Priya. Stress makes you eat. What is stressing you?" Everything. Everything is stressing me. The virus. Raj's hours. Anaya's tantrums. The isolation. The book I can't write. The mother I can't visit. The cognitive score that was 23 and might be lower. Everything. I said: "I'm fine, Amma." She said: "You are not fine. You sound like me when I say I'm fine." The accuracy of this observation was devastating. I made her dal tonight. Simple toor dal. The most basic thing. Not because I'm hungry — because I need to cook something intentionally, to remind my hands what they're for. The dal was okay. I am not okay. But the dal was okay.

I’ve been eating standing over the stove, spoon in hand, not tasting anything — but the night I made Amma’s dal, I actually sat down. I didn’t mean to. I just needed my hands to do something deliberate, something with a beginning and an end, something that couldn’t disappoint me the way everything else has. This is the recipe I made: the simplest version, the one she taught me before I left for university, the one that requires almost nothing and somehow gives back more than you put in.

Easy Vegetarian Recipes: Simple Toor Dal

Prep Time: 10 minutes | Cook Time: 35 minutes | Total Time: 45 minutes | Servings: 4

Ingredients

• 1 cup toor dal (split pigeon peas), rinsed and drained
• 3 cups water
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
• 1 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
• 2 tablespoons ghee or neutral oil
• 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
• 2 dried red chiles
• 1 small onion, finely diced
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
• 2 medium tomatoes, chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
• Juice of 1/2 lemon
• Fresh cilantro, for serving
• Cooked rice or flatbread, for serving

Instructions

1. Cook the dal. Combine rinsed toor dal, water, and turmeric in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, skimming any foam that rises. Reduce heat, partially cover, and simmer 25–30 minutes until lentils are completely soft and beginning to break down. Stir in salt. If the dal is very thick, add 1/2 cup water and stir to loosen.
2. Make the tadka. In a small skillet, heat ghee over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add mustard seeds and cumin seeds; cook 30 seconds until mustard seeds begin to pop. Add dried red chiles and cook 15 seconds. Add onion and cook, stirring, 5–6 minutes until softened and lightly golden.
3. Build the base. Add garlic and ginger to the skillet; cook 1 minute until fragrant. Add chopped tomatoes and ground coriander; cook 4–5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until tomatoes have broken down into a thick paste.
4. Combine. Pour the tomato-onion tadka into the cooked dal. Stir well to incorporate. Simmer together over low heat for 5 minutes so the flavors can meld. Taste and adjust salt.
5. Finish and serve. Stir in lemon juice. Ladle into bowls over rice or alongside warm flatbread. Top with fresh cilantro. Eat sitting down, if you can manage it.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 245 | Protein: 12g | Fat: 8g | Carbs: 33g | Fiber: 9g | Sodium: 410mg