Ingredients
- 250 gram yellow split peas *
- 1 onion
- 5 garlic cloves
- 1 tablespoon turmeric
- 1/2 tablespoon cumin seeds
- 2 tablespoons mustard seeds
- 3 tablespoons vegetable or sunflower oil
- 750 ml water
- 200 ml coconut milk
- 1 medium-sized carrot
- 2 large tomatoes
- pepper and salt to taste
- optional: ginger syrup
*Note: Soak the split peas overnight.

Kitchen equipment needed
- large bowl
- large skillet
Preparation — 5 minutes + waiting time
It’s recommended to soak the yellow split peas in cold water overnight. You’ll notice the split peas will become a bit more tender the next morning. DRAIN the split peas.
PEEL and finely chop the onion and garlic cloves. Peel and GRATE the carrot and chop the tomatoes in very small pieces.

Cooking the Indian dhal — 50 minutes
HEAT sunflower or vegetable oil in the large skillet and add the cumin and mustard seeds. Wait until they start to pop and then add the finely chopped garlic and onion. SAUTE for a few minutes, then add the yellow split peas, turmeric and water. Bring to a boil and turn down the heat. Let it simmer for half an hour, add in the grated carrot, tomato pieces and coconut milk and let it simmer about 15 minutes more.
Check if the grated carrot and split peas are fully cooked. Season with pepper, salt and maybe you like a bit of ginger syrup too. Serve with plain rice and/or naan bread or any other flatbread. You can check our naan bread recipe here.






This does read like it’s a lovely dish, though I do hope I can make it without tomatoes. Just got home from shopping, and simply cannot go out again. I love pretty much all yellow split pea dishes, so am going to give this a try.
Thank you for posting it!
Hi Joyce, thanks and I think it will work without tomatoes. Will you let us know if it actually did work? :)