We love the spices in Indian dishes, and dahl is pretty simple to make. However, it still takes about an hour to prep it and some accompanying rice - on many weeknights that kind of time simply isn't there. Lucky for us, dahl freezes and reheats very well. Here's what we do to keep from resorting to those prepackaged microwave Indian meals from the grocery shelf:
- Dahl is simple, but it has a lot of ingredients. On some weeknights, you just don't have the time to deal with lots of prep and measuring out a dozen different seasonings.
- On a day when you have some extra time, prepare your favorite dahl recipe. We use this one from Veg Web as a base but add fresh ginger and tomatoes. Make a double batch!
- Divide the finished product into freezer bags. We divide a double recipe into about three two-serving bags.
- On busy weeknights when you don't have time to make dinner from scratch, pull a bag out, reheat and serve. Make it even faster by thawing in the fridge while you're away at work.
We often reheat the dahl with a bag of cooked frozen rice, all in a pot together. Add a little moisture in the form of water (or coconut milk!). Toss-ins at the time of reheating can include a handful of fresh spinach. Cover and reheat. The spinach will cook down and be ready by the time the meal is thoroughly reheated. Our favorite part about serving this quick make-ahead meal on a busy weeknight? Cleanup = one pot!
Other serving ideas:
- After reheating and plating, top with a dallop of yogurt.
- Reheat with coconut milk.
- Reheat and serve with cooked frozen rice.
- ...OR bake up a batch of naan in advance and keep some in the freezer. Reheat a few in the toaster when you're heating up the dahl. Here are some recipes for making the Indian flatbread at home.
Related: Good Question: Make-Ahead Frozen Meals Sans Canned Soups
(Images: Regina Yunghans)
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Want to recommend Urad dal. The skinned, split, white variety.
oh... I just bought the store bought crap last night, now I feel bad...
is there a better alternative than freezing in zip lock bags? I want to avoid plastic...
I freeze mine in wide mouth mason jars. They're reusable, the food usually doesn't touch the lids (if BPA is your concern), and if you forget to thaw, you can microwave in the jar or if you run them under a little hot water, the whole block will slide out for stove-top cooking.
Masoor dal in a pressure cooker takes less than 15 minutes to cook from a cold start to finish. I am confused why you are saying dal is difficult and takes a lot of prep? Traditional dal does NOT have a lot of ingredients. Those are some strange looking pictures of dal. You can get away with basically nothing- pressure cook the dal with some turmeric for color, and then when it's finished toast some spices in butter (I use mustard seed, cumin seeds, ground coriander, mango powder). Stir that in, add lemon juice and salt to taste. Put in garam masala if you like (AFTER the dal is already cooked please!). And you're done. This is literally the easiest dinner I know how to make.
Dal. Not Dahl or Dhal, Dal.
my partner is indian and dal has become a quick weeknight staple for us too. Thanks for the idea of freezing it tho, we never thought of that for some reason. We usually make a batch and keep in in the fridge and eat it over the course of a few days.
But yes... like nxmenta said it can be very fast with a pressure cooker. But I still like the idea of making a big batch and freezing. Sometimes you just cant bother to make something, or dirty two pots for dal and rice.
just another serving suggestion, we like to have our dal with a simple salad of chopped tomato, cucumber, red onion, sometimes fresh corn and chopped cilantro/salt/lime juice. You can even add a pinch of chili powder if you want. Its good on the side or mixed with the dal for some crunch/texture! would be a great way to add a fresh aspect to a frozen meal, just chop up while it reheats.
thanks caitlin926 !
I made a big batch WITH lots of greens. Should it be a problem freezing?
And when you say "reheat", do you mean directly put in the microwave, or do you recommend we thaw in the microwave first?
Thanks!