After a short hiatus, I want to start off with my first super cheap, super easy recipe in a good while. Why, you ask? Because I am a student once more and oh, god, everything is so expensive.

Having moved to London, I am constantly being exposed to interesting new places to eat and new foods to try. However, funding a Masters degree means that I am largely having to avoid these experiences- so I’ve taken it upon myself to give it a go replicating anything I see that I would love to try. First on that list has been a good old Lentil Dal.

This one is damn cheap- two cans, half an onion, and a bunch of spices (which, of course, you will use long after you’ve acquired them for this recipe.) It is a massive portion, by most standards, and the spices complement one another pretty nicely. I refuse to go mad with boredom by spending 3 semesters eating tinned soup and sobbing into dry toast. I will go down with this dal.

Ingredients

1 can (235g) Green Lentils

1 can (400g) Chopped Tomatoes (let’s be real, this shit is a cupboard staple, and cheap as chips. What’s not to love.)

1/2 medium White Onion

1/2tsp Ground Cinnamon

1/2tsp Ground Cardamom

1/2tsp Ground Ginger

1tsp Turmeric

1/2tsp Garlic Powder

2tsp Hot Chilli Powder (adjust this to your own tastes by all means; this was pretty face-melting for me at times but I am very, very white so don’t take that as a sign of it being genuinely spicy.)

1tsp Dried Coriander

Pinch salt

Method

1. Dice onion and add to a large pot over the stove, along with your chopped tomatoes and spices. Drain your green lentils, and add those too. Add 50ml of water, stir, put it on a high heat.

2. Allow to reduce to your desired thickness, I personally let it reduce for about 35 minutes, stirring occasionally to keep it off the bottom of the pot.

3. You’re done. Serve that up with whatever you fancy on the side- I had some rice and plain yoghurt to balance the heat nicely. Serves 1, but by all means cook this in bulk and stick the rest in the freezer for some super easy dinners later in the week.

Per Serving:

364 Calories

20.6g Protein

3.2g Fat

54.7g Carbs