Orange Beef “Fried Rice” Casserole
Three-Lentil Dal Makhani
By :Bruce Weinstein and Mark Scarbrough |

This one’s a creamy lentil curry, often made with black lentils and kidney beans. Unfortunately, black lentils are tough to track down outside of specialty markets. Easier to find, red kidney beans do indeed break down and thicken the curry, giving it a characteristic texture. But dried kidney beans make the recipe overly complicated (soaking, pre-cooking separately, etc.). And canned kidney beans end up too squishy under pressure for this long. To solve all those problems, we use a mix of lentils to revamp this dish—even red lentils (sometimes called “pink lentils”), which dissolve under pressure and thicken the dish while giving it an earthy flavor. Although this is a vegetarian main course, feel free to serve it alongside almost anything from the grill. Pork loin would be welcome. Beef ribs, too.
Course | Main Course |
Cuisine | Modern |
Difficulty | Easy |
Browse Category | Rice & Pastas |
Duration | 30-60 min |
Diet | Low Carb, Low Sodium |
Cooking Technique | Max Pressure Cook, Pressure Cook, Sauté |
Prep Time | 10 minutes |
Cook Time | 25 minutes |
Servings |
6 servings
|
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp butter or ghee
- 6 medium garlic cloves peeled and minced (
2 tablespoons ) - 2 tbsp peeled fresh ginger minced
- 1 tbsp garam masala
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp ground dried turmeric
- 1/2 tsp table salt
- 1/2 tsp ground dried cayenne up to
- 1 cinnamon stick
4-inch stick - 4 green or white cardamom pods
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 large round red tomato chopped (
1 cup ) - 1/2 cup red lentils
- 1/2 cup brown lentils
- 4 cups Water
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
Ingredients
|
Instructions
- Press Saute, set time for 5 minutes.
- Melt the butter in the cooker. Add the garlic, ginger, garam masala, cumin, turmeric, salt, cayenne, cinnamon stick, cardamom pods, and bay leaves. Stir until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the tomato and cook, stirring often, until it just begins to break down, 1 to 2 minutes.
- Turn off the SAUTE function. Stir in the red lentils, brown lentils, and chana dal until coated in the spices. Stir in the water and lock the lid onto the pot.
- Optional 1 Max Pressure Cooker
Press Pressure cook on Max pressure for 16 minutes with the Keep Warm setting off. - Optional 2 All Pressure Cookers
Press Meat/Stew or Pressure cook (Manual) on High pressure for 20 minutes with the Keep Warm setting off. - Use the quick-release method to bring the pot’s pressure back to normal. Unlatch the lid and open the cooker. Remove and discard the cinnamon stick, cardamom pods, and bay leaves. Stir in the cream until uniform, then set the lid askew over the pot for 5 minutes to blend the flavors. Stir again before serving.
Recipe Notes
Beyond
• If you want to have the “full bean” experience (and a less thick curry), substitute dried black-eyed peas for the red lentils.
• Serve the curry with packaged na’an or other flatbreads.

Bruce Weinstein and Mark Scarbrough
All recipes by : Bruce Weinstein and Mark Scarbrough
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