Green Lentil - Corn Dhal

Our refrigerator was needing replacement and today was the day that we took delivery of a new one. We tried to eat down some of the fresh produce as we were preparing to empty the old refrigerator, but I had salad ingredients, onion, and frozen peas readily available. I wanted to make another lentil dish with my Dad's needs (no leftovers, no garlic, soft food, ideally with Indian spices, and, of course, nutritious) in mind. This is what I came up with.


Ingredients

• 1/2 cup green lentils
• 2 cups water
• vegan bouillon cube
• 1/4 t salt
• 1/8 t turmeric
• 1/2 cup corn
• 2 T coarsely (3/8") chopped onion

Process

1. It takes 15-20 minutes for green lentils to cook in the Instant Pot, and I wanted to be sure that they were nice and soft. Vegetables like asparagus, peas, and corn take only 1-2 minutes. I wanted to have a nice and soft lentil stew for my Dad, so cooked the lentils in a 1:4 not 1:3 ratio. I put all of the ingredients except the onion in the Instant Pot and cooked on high pressure for 20m. I figured that way overcooking the corn would nicely soften it for my Dad, and wondered if the corn would perhaps liquify (it didn't).
2. When the pressure cooker was done, ideally I would have waited for the pressure to diminish to open the pot, but I didn't have much time. I put a damp towel on the top for a few minutes to hasten cooling, then slowly released the steam till the pot was unlocked.
3. I carefully opened the pot, keeping any steam to be released at the back. I had originally thought that I would now add peas, but loved the look of the dhal, so called it "done"!

I also made some Madagascar pink rice and served a salad including hearts of palm.

Results

The dhal was better than I expected! The corn wasn't overcooked (which I don't understand) and the soup was nicely seasoned, just with the turmeric and salt. I thought that the consistency was perfect, though I diluted it 1 : 1 with boiling water for my Dad. Corn and lentils - who would have guessed?! 

Ideas for the future

I need to explore more things to do with corn and lentils!