Daal

Vegan Dalcha – South Indian Lentil Meat stew

This vegan dalcha uses soy curls to transform a meat-heavy Indian dish into a vegan one. It’s still packed with flavor and has that toothsome texture but without any meat!

  • Ready 35 minutes
  • Serves 4
  • Prep 10 minutes
  • Cook 25 minutes
Jump to the recipe
Vegan Dalcha – South Indian Lentil Meat stew

This South Indian Lentil meat stew – Dalcha, has lentils or split peas cooked with spices, coconut cream and meat to make a hearty stew that is served with rice Biryani. We use soycurls to make a glorious vegan dalcha.

Continuing this year with regional Indian cuisine with this delicious stew! Dalcha is a meat and lentil stew from Southern Indian cuisine, and it’s incredibly delicious. Dalcha usually contains lamb, but I’m using soy curls as the meat substitute.

You can also use seitan or other vegan chicken substitutes instead, if you don’t want to use soy curls. Or just omit and make a lentil stew.

Dalcha most often has Chana dal or toor dal as the lentils of choice. I use red lentils to make it a quicker meal. Dalcha has a fabulous blend of spices that work to elevate the lentils as well as the meat.

This recipe is a one-pot dish that you can serve over rice or with flatbread. It is often served with rice or biryani.

bowl of vegan dalcha with rice and veggies

Why You’ll Love Vegan Dalcha

  • delicious, hearty, Southern Indian stew
  • one-pot, 35 minute meal
  • gluten-free and nut-free with a soy-free option
close-up of a bowl of vegan dalcha

More Vegan Dal Recipes

lentils, veggies, spices, and other dalcha ingredients in bowls on a kitchen counter

Ingredients and Substitutions

  • oil – To sauté.
  • whole spices – Cloves, peppercorns, bay leaves, and a cinnamon stick toasted in oil bring the first layer of flavor to this vegan dalcha.
  • aromatics – Onion, chili, ginger, and garlic are the next flavor layer. You can reserve some of the onion mixture to use as an additional topping, if you want.
  • soy curls – This is your meat substitute. You can use cooked, drained chickpeas or other vegan chicken substitutes instead of soy curls.
  • tomato paste – Brings so much great umami to the dish!
  • coconut cream – Adds creaminess and a mild coconut flavor.
  • ground spices – Kashmiri chili powder (or paprika), coriander, cumin, turmeric, and salt are the next layer of seasoning.
  • red lentils – You can use yellow lentils or split chickpeas, though this will impact your cooking time.
  • water – To cook the lentils.
  • green beans – To add a little green and to the dish. Or use other veggies of choice
  • tempering – Ginger, curry leaves, and cilantro toasted in a little bit of oil create the final layer of rich flavor for this vegan dalcha.

Tips

  • When toasting the whole spices and making the tempering, keep a close eye on the pan, so nothing burns.
  • For a creamier dal, replace 1 cup of water with coconut milk.

How to Make vegan dalcha

Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add the oil. Once the oil is hot, add the cloves, black peppercorns, bay leaves, and cinnamon stick and mix in. Cook for half a minute or until the spices are fragrant.

toasting the whole spices in the frying pan

Then, add the onion, green chili, and a good pinch of salt and mix well. Cook for seven to nine minutes, or until the onions start to turn golden.

adding aromatics to the pan
aromatics in the pan, after cooking

Add the ginger-garlic paste, ground spices, tomato paste, and soy curls and mix well for a minute to combine.

adding soaked and drained soy curls to the pan
adding dried spices to the soy curls
soy curls tossed with the spices in the pan, before cooking

Add the salt and coconut cream and mix well. Cook for a minute.

adding the wet ingredients to the pan with the soy curls
soy curls after cooking in the wet ingredients

Now, add in the lentils, green beans or veggies of choice and water and mix really well.

adding dry red lentils to the soy curl mixture
lentil-soy curl mixture after adding water
adding green beans to the lentil mixture

Partially cover and cook for 14 to 18 minutes, depending on the lentils you are using and the consistency you prefer.  You can use two cups of water with a cup of coconut milk here to make the lentils more creamy.

Once the lentils are cooked to your preference, taste and adjust the salt and flavor. If you like the dalcha more saucy and creamy, you can add in some more water or coconut milk at this point. Switch off the heat and set aside.

vegan dalcha in the pan after cooking

While that cooks, prepare the tempering.

Heat the oil in a small skillet, and once hot add the ginger, curry leaves, and cilantro and mix carefully for a few seconds. Switch off the heat.

making the tempering in a small pan

Drizzle the tempering all over the dalcha and serve over rice. You can also serve this stew as-is or with Naan, rice or garlic bread on the side.

vegan dalcha in the pan topped with the tempering

Frequently Asked Questions

Frequently asked questions

How is coconut cream different from coconut milk?

Coconut cream is the solids that separate out when you chill a can of coconut milk. It is thicker and gives dishes more creaminess and coconut flavor with less added liquid.

Is this recipe allergy friendly?

Vegan dalcha is naturally gluten-free and nut-free.

To make this recipe without soy, you can use seitan or other soy-free vegan chicken substitutes. You can also use drained, canned chickpeas instead.

Can you freeze this dish?

Yes freeze in an air tight container for upto 2 months

Can I make this with toor dal or Chana dal?

Yes just add a cup more water and cook longer (25-30 mins for toor dal and 55 mins for Chana dal.

Recipe

Vegan Dalcha

This South Indian Lentil meat stew – Dalcha, has lentils or split peas cooked with spices, coconut milk and meat to make a hearty stew that is served with rice Biryani. We use soycurls to make a glorious vegan dalcha. Glutenfree Nutfree recipe. Soyfree option

  • Serves 4
  • Prep 10 minutes
  • Cook 25 minutes
  • Total 35 minutes

Ingredients

  • 2 teaspoons oil
  • 2 whole cloves
  • 6 black peppercorns
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • 1 cup chopped red onion
  • 1 hot green chili like serrano or Indian (chopped)
  • 1 tablespoon ginger-garlic paste (or minced ginger and garlic (1 1/2 teaspoons each))
  • 2 ounces dried soy curls (soaked in broth for 10 minutes)
  • 1 tablespoon tomato paste
  • 1/4 cup coconut cream ((thick part from a can of full fat coconut milk))
  • 1 teaspoon Kashmiri chili powder (or use paprika)
  • 1 tablespoon ground coriander
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup red lentils (or other lentils or split peas of choice(such as toor dal or Chana dal))
  • 1/2 cup green beans (or other veggies of choice)
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 3 cups water

For the tempering(seasoned oil)

  • 1 teaspoon oil
  • 1 teaspoon julienne ginger
  • 10 curry leaves (fresh or frozen)
  • 1 tablespoon chopped cilantro leaves

Instructions

Make the dalcha.

  1. 1

    Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add the oil. Once the oil is hot, add the cloves, black peppercorns, bay leaves, and cinnamon stick and mix in. Cook for half a minute or until the spices are fragrant. Then add the onion, green chili, and a good pinch of salt and mix well. Cook for 7 to 9 minutes, or until the onions start to turn golden. Add the ginger-garlic paste, ground spices, tomato paste, and soy curls and mix well for a minute to combine.

  2. 2

    Add the salt and coconut cream and mix well. Cook for a minute. Then add in the lentils, green beans or veggies of choice, and water and mix really well. Partially cover and cook for 14 to 18 minutes, depending on the lentils you are using and the consistency you prefer. (You can use 2 cups of water with 1 cup of coconut milk here to make the lentils more creamy)

  3. 3

    Once the lentils are cooked to your preference, taste and adjust the salt and flavor. If you like the dalcha more saucy, you can add in some more water or coconut milk at this point and bring to a boil. Switch off the heat and set aside.

Prepare the tempering.

  1. 4

    Heat the oil in a small skillet, and once hot add the ginger, curry leaves, and cilantro and mix carefully for a few seconds. Switch off the heat.

  2. 5

    Drizzle the tempering including the leaves all over the dalcha and serve over rice, Biryani or naan. You can also serve this stew as-is or with a little bit of garlic bread on the side.

  3. 6

    Storage: Store refrigerated for upto 3 days. Soycurls absorb more as they sit so you can add some non dairy milk during heating. Or freeze for upto 2 months.

Notes

Variations: Once the onion is golden,reserve some of it to use as garnish later on. You can use red lentils (masoor dal), yellow lentils (moong dal), or chana dal (split chickpeas). Chana dal needs about 50 minutes to cook so you might want to pre-cook it in a pressure cooker and add them to the dish with less liquid. Vegan dalcha is naturally gluten-free and nut-free. Soyfree: you can use seitan or other soy-free vegan chicken substitutes. You can also use drained, canned chickpeas instead.

Nutrition

  • Calories344 kcal
  • Carbohydrates51 g
  • Protein19 g
  • Fat7 g
  • Saturated Fat3 g
  • Sodium540 mg
  • Potassium581 mg
  • Fiber19 g
  • Sugar18 g
  • Vitamin A368 IU
  • Vitamin C60 mg
  • Calcium117 mg
  • Iron6 mg