Healthy and delicious South Indian Moringa Dal with fresh drumstick leaves, nutty coconut, and warming spices! Check out this easy gluten-free recipe that can be easily made vegan by substituting ghee with any neutral oil.
During my recent trips to the Indian grocery store, I noticed some greens that I had never seen before. The label on them said ‘Drumstick leaves. Not knowing how to use them I did not buy them. I was curious what they were used for. After researching a little bit I found out that they were moringa leaves – nutritional powerhouse.
Here is the nutrition information from Wikipedia: The leaves are the most nutritious part of the plant, being a significant source of B vitamins, vitamin C, provitamin A as beta-carotene, vitamin K, manganese, and protein, among other essential nutrients
One day, during my evening, walks with my friend Indu, I asked her if she knows anything about Moringa leaves and how to use them. She told me that they use it a lot in South Indian cooking, especially in lentils. I had to get her recipe and try it.
The next time I was in Edison buying my Indian groceries, I picked up a pack of fresh drumstick leaves. I got Indu’s recipe and I was surprised how easy it was to cook with these leaves. They have a very mild flavor and really can be used in many recipes making them really versatile. So he is how to use fresh Moringa leaves!
This recipe requires few dried red chilies (I used the milder ones), fresh coconut, rice flour, cumin, and turmeric. Since I love garlic in my lentils, I add them to Indu’s original recipe. Also, I used masoor dal (red lentils) but you can also use Toor Dal.
Step by Step Recipe:
- Rinse the leaves, pat dry using paper towels, and then pull the leaves away from the steam using thumb and index fingers. Discard the stems.
- Wash and rinse the lentils, add 1 cup of water and pressure cook them for 10-15 mins until the lentils are soft and mushy. They can also be cooked in a slow cooker, crockpot, or stove-top.
- While the lentils are cooking, grind fresh coconut, garlic, red chilies cumin, and rice flour together to a fine paste using a tablespoon of water.
- Heat a heavy bottom pot on medium heat. Add ghee and the finely ground spice paste. Cook for 1-2 minutes stirring frequently.
- Add the Moringa leaves and cook them for 2 minutes.
- Whisk the cooked lentils, add turmeric to it and add it to the pot. Add salt and cook until the lentils come to a full boil.
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Lentils with Moringa Leaves
Ingredients
- 1 cup masoor dal red lentils
- 4 oz drumstick leaves 1 cup packed
- 1 tablespoon ghee
- 2 tablespoons grated coconut
- 1 tablespoon rice flour I like Bob’s red mill organic white rice flour
- ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
- 2 dried red chilis I used mild ones
- ⅙ teaspoon ground turmeric
- 4 garlic cloves
- 1½ teaspoons kosher salt
Instructions
- Rinse the leaves, pat dry using paper towels, and then pull the leaves away from the steam using thumb and index fingers. Discard the stems.
- Wash and rinse the lentils, add 1 cup of water and pressure cook them for 10-15 mins until the lentils are soft and mushy. They can also be cooked in a slow cooker, crockpot or stove-top.
- While the lentils are cooking, grind fresh coconut, garlic, red chilies cumin and rice flour together to a fine paste using a tablespoon of water.
- Heat a heavy bottom pot on medium heat. Add ghee and the finely ground spice paste. Cook for 1-2 minutes stirring frequently. Add drumstick leaves and cook them for another 2 minutes.
- Whisk the cooked lentils, add turmeric to it and add it to the pot. Add salt and cook until the lentils come to a full boil. Turn the heat off and the lentils are ready to be served with hot rice or parathas.
Nutrition
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Sheryl says
This sounds like a perfect recipe. It makes an attractive dish, is tasty, and is easy to make.
Archana says
Thank you Sheryl!
Sandhya says
Archana,
I love drumsticks but have never used the leaves either. Your recipe is inspiring me to go find them in the Indian store!
Archana says
Thank you Sandhya! I hope you find them, they are very versatile and healthy
chefceaser says
Reblogged this on Chef Ceaser.
Archana says
Thank you!
elliebleu says
I had no idea you could eat Moringa leaves. I’ll have to give them a try if I find them at the store. As always, your lentils turned out beautiful.
Archana says
Thank you Ellie! I hope you find Moringa leaves, if not try the recipe with spinach.
elliebleu says
Great suggestion. I’ll give it a try 🙂
Archana says
I would love to know how you like it.
ashu@ashstylegourmet says
Nice recipe share, Archana. Yeah the leaves are the most nutrient rich source.
I use Drumsticks but never tried or tasted any recipe using the leaves. I need to check them out in the Vegetable markets here in the UAE, I have not seen them in the supermarkets though.
Archana says
Thank you Ashu. I hope you find them in the Indian groceries. Only recently I started noticing them here in the US.
Starr @ The Misfit Baker says
This dish looks super tasty and easy to prepare! Thanks for sharing it!
Archana says
Thank you Starr! It is super healthy too!!
Medha Rajamanur says
One has to try this recipe to actually know what magic the ground paste does to a daal. Besides the pain of separating each leaf it is a very very easy and tastee recipe. Tried this it this week for dinner. Came out well but will notch up the spice level next time. Something I can now share with family and look good. Thanks to you Archana.
Archana says
Hi Medha! I am happy you enjoyed this healthy drumsticks leaves recipe. It is on a repeat in our family. And I wish there was an easy way to separate the leaves. Cleaning them ahead of time is the only thing I can think of! Thank you for trying these recipes and taking time to give your feedback. These comments truly make my day!