Recipe for a simple pot of daal; this recipe is four meals worth or so:
Ingedients
Garlic. minced
Half an onion. chopped
a handful of other aromatics, carrots are nice, celery. chopped
A protein of some kind, paneer, tofu, a meat. cubed
1 cup of lentils
1 cup of rice
5 cups water
Seasoning: Salt, Pepper, Curry, Sumac, whatever you want. Mushroom powder is nice.
Recipe
garlic, aromatics, and onions cook on medium high until the onions start to get soft, season; keep seed/powder seasonings light since they'll burn or turn gritty.
wash lentils and rice
if meat needs to be cooked, it can be added when the onions are starting to sizzle, meat loves aromatics just cook it til it's cooked, i guess. i usually use tofu or paneer and toss it in right before the water:
water, lentils, rice
bring to a boil and then reduce heat to 3-4
let the water down, stirring often.
if you cook it slowly enough the rice and lentils will be soft.
I could alternately try making this like a risotto, putting in just enough water to spur pectin breakdown and make a thicker sauce. maybe a bit of corn starch too...