Maybe I’m just noticing it more but the trend for
January asceticism seems to have increased. Be it Dryuary, detoxing, or a
hardcore diet, it feels like everyone wants balance the excesses of December
with an austere start to the year.
I did a crash diet last January and although it helped
get rid of a few pounds its main benefit was psychological. Having rampantly
consumed everything in sight during the holidays there was a loss of control
that sticking to a strict regime for short period recovered. Of course I
couldn’t possibly keep it up; come February, along with the majority of the
January dieters, I was back on the good stuff.
This year I took a less intense approach and decided
to go veggie for a month. Still drinking, still eating carbs and fat but
going without meat and fish. Given that the Flintstone-esque hunk of beef
eaten on New Year's Eve was just a drop in an ocean of consumed animal product I
wanted to redress the balance by laying off flesh. Aside from the health and environmental benefits
of cutting down I was becoming a bit of a lazy cook: sticking bacon in most
things or only adding veg and salad as an afterthought.
January is monetarily speaking always tight. After the initial excitement at being paid a
few days early before Christmas, it’s a long wait till the next paycheck and
most of us have spent too much in the name of hedonism. So, with frugality in mind this lentil dal
ticks all boxes for January. Its dirt
cheap, veggie, healthy, and most importantly for these cold, dark days:
comforting.
Dal won’t ever win a beauty contest but the bright
orange chunks of roasted carrots and butternut squash add a different texture,
a splash of colour and sweetness. Its
really easy to make and the leftovers make a brilliant packed lunch. Now that’s
thrifty.
Squash and Carrot Dal (sunshine dal) - Serves 4
·
200g dried red lentils
·
1 litre boiled water/stock
·
1 large onion finely diced
·
4 cloves crushed garlic
·
3 tablespoons your favourite curry
paste (I used Patak's tikka masala)
·
1 small butternut squash, de-seeded and
diced into 2cm cubes with skin on
·
3 large carrots peeled and diced
into 2cm cubes.
·
Vegetable oil
·
Salt and pepper
·
Few sprigs of herbs or chili powder
(I had some limp rosemary).
1)
Pre-heat oven to 200 degrees Celcius
(I have a fan oven so make it 220 if you don’t)
2)
Add the diced squash and carrot to a
baking tray in a single layer, lightly coat in oil and season will with salt
and pepper and herbs or chili powder if you fancy. You may
need two baking trays. The veg takes
about 35-45 minutes to soften and develop a light char on the edges so get on
with the dal while it’s in the oven.
3)
Add a good glug of oil to a large
saucepan or wok over a medium heat and soften the onion and garlic till clear
for about 8 minutes then add the curry paste. Stir well and fry lightly for about
3 minutes.
4)
Add the dried lentils and stir to
coat evenly. Add the boiled water and
stir. It will look a bit crap and watery but be patient.
5)
Bring to boil then turn to a light
simmer and stir occasionally for 30-40 minutes till the lentils suck up the
liquid (you might need to add a splash more) and get beautifully soft and
mushy.
6)
Season well to taste and add the
roasted veg to your bowl.
7)
If you want, add hot sauce.
