This Coconut Chickpea Dahl is such a lovely, nourishing dish. It’s perfect for autumn and winter and is a nice low-cost meal to make for the family.
It’s also very simple to make. The base is sautéed onion, garlic and fresh ginger cooked with warming spices like cumin, coriander and turmeric.
Red lentils and chickpeas provide plant-based protein and fibre, making this dahl both filling and nourishing. Finished with extra crunchy turmeric chickpeas, it’s full of flavour, texture and nutrition and ideal for easy midweek dinners.
Nutrition Highlights
✅Good source of plant-based protein – thanks to a combination of chickpeas and red lentils.
✅High in fibre – from lentils, chickpeas, onion and garlic.
✅Rich in anti-inflammatory compounds – with turmeric, ginger and garlic all known for their anti-inflammatory properties.
✅High in iron – from the red lentils
✅Balanced and nourishing fats – coconut milk adds richness and fats that help keep it more filling and satisfying.
Storage and Shelf Life
This Coconut Chickpea Dahl keeps very well and is ideal for batch cooking.
- Store in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.
- Allow to cool fully before refrigerating.
- Can be frozen for up to 3 months.
Recipe Tips:
Make it spicier – add extra chilli flakes or a fresh chopped chilli.
Change the texture – add extra stock for a looser dahl. It will also thicken once cool.
Boost the veg – stir through spinach, kale or peas at the end for extra greens.
Prep ahead – this dahl tastes even better the next day as the flavours deepen.
Make it a soup – add more stock to turn leftovers into a lovely lentil soup.
Coconut Chickpea Dahl
Ingredients
- 400 g dried red lentils (2 cups)
- 1 large onion
- 3 cloves garlic
- Thumb-sized piece of fresh ginger
- 1 tbsp coconut oil
- 1½ tsp sea salt
- ½ tsp black pepper
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- 2 tsp ground turmeric
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp paprika
- Pinch chilli flakes
- 400 ml coconut milk (14oz)
- 750 ml of veg stock (3 cups)
- 2 x 400g tins chickpeas (2x 14oz)
- Small bunch of fresh coriander cilantro
Crunchy turmeric chickpeas
- 400 g tin of chickpeas (14oz)
- 2 tsp olive or coconut oil
- 1 tsp turmeric
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- Salt and pepper
Instructions
- Add the lentils to a large bowl and cover with cold water.
- Finely chop the onion, garlic and ginger. Heat up the coconut oil in a large pan. Add the chopped onion and sauté for 7-8 mins, adding the ginger and garlic for the last couple of minutes.
- Add all the spices and salt and stir through for a minute. Drain the lentils, add to the pan and stir through to cover in all the spices. Add the stock and coconut milk. Stir well and bring to the boil.
- Turn down the heat and let it simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Drain the chickpeas and add them to the pan. Cook for another 10 minutes, stirring occasionally until the lentils are cooked.
- Optional topping: whilst the dahl is cooking, preheat the oven to 180C/350F. Add all the crispy chickpea ingredients to a bowl and mix well. Bake for about 15 mins.
- Serve with the crispy chickpeas, some fresh coriander and some natural or plant-based yoghurt.
Notes
- This can be stored in the fridge for 3-4 days and freezes well too.
- This will serve 4-6 depending on appetites. The nutritional value is based on 5 portions,
- Leftovers can have extra stock added and served as soup, if preferred.
- The crispy chickpeas are an optional (but highly recommended!) topping.
- If you want to reduce the fat content, you can use half-fat coconut milk.
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