A rich and creamy coconut dal that’ll have you loving lentils. We are cooking yellow lentils in flavorful, spiced coconut milk – and it only takes minutes to make! Top with a drizzle of ghee or butter for a decadent, comforting bowl of dal.
Coconut dal is rich, creamy, and takes minutes to make – it’s my go-to dal on days when I want something filling and comforting without the fuss.
It’s essentially a Pour-and-Cook Recipe that calls for a handful of ingredients. This is what I make when I don’t have time to prep ingredients or when I have nothing planned for dinner. It has saved us from ordering takeout on many occasions (to my fast-food lovin’ husband’s dismay).
What is Kerala Parippu Curry?
If you’ve never had Kerala dal before, you can expect a rich, creamy, coconutty dal made with lentils that melt right into the soup.
This rich and creamy Kerala-style parippu (another word for “dal”) is a must during special occasions or festivals. It is one of the main dishes served during Onam, a harvest festival celebrated by people of all religions in Kerala. This dal (along with Avial) is always prepared as part of the sadya, a vegetarian feast typically eaten on a banana leaf. No need to wait for a festival to make this – we eat it all the time!
“Ashley, I made this two days ago. I’ve been blown away by all your recipes but this one is now my favorite. It has that South Indian flavor and aroma that reminds me of my friends in Andhra Pradesh whom I haven’t been able to visit in forever. Thank you for sharing both north and south recipes of the finest cuisine in the world!”
Russ
“Beautiful recipe, Ashley! I have your cookbook and made this and paired it with the coconut rice recipe in the book as well. Deeeelish! I highly recommend your cookbook to everyone!”
Maneesha
Coconut Dal Ingredients
Traditionally, this dal is made with freshly ground coconut paste, but my version calls for full-fat canned coconut milk. Using coconut milk makes this dish even easier to make. I’ve tried the dal with the coconut paste, but I honestly prefer the ease and smoothness of rich, full-fat coconut milk. You can use either toor dal or yellow moong dal to make this recipe. Try both and tell me which you prefer!
- Toor Dal: also known as split pigeon peas. You can also use yellow moong dal if you prefer.
- Coconut Oil
- Black Mustard Seeds
- Curry Leaves
- Serrano Pepper: or another type of green chili
- 1 Can Coconut Milk: full-fat
- Spices: salt, ground cumin, turmeric
- Ghee: optional, nice touch when serving
How to Make Coconut Dal
Press the sauté button, and add the coconut oil to the pot. Once the coconut oil melts, add mustard seeds, curry leaves, and green chili. When the mustard seeds begin to pop, add the remaining ingredients and pressure cook.
Once it’s done, give it a bit of time to cool down – it’ll look thin at first, but after a few minutes it’ll thicken up quite a bit.
What to Serve with Coconut dal:
Make sure to top this dal with a spoonful of ghee! Eat it with:
Instant Pot Kerala Parippu Curry (Lentils in Coconut Curry)
Instant Pot Kerala Parippu Curry (Lentils in Coconut Curry)
Ingredients
- 1 cup split pigeon peas toor dal OR small yellow lentils (moong dal), rinsed
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- ½ teaspoon black mustard seeds
- 30 curry leaves
- ½ – 1 Serrano pepper or green chili minced, to taste
- 1 ½ cups water
- 1 13.5 ounce can of full-fat coconut milk
- 1 ½ teaspoons salt to taste
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric
- Ghee for serving
Instructions
- Press the sauté button, add the coconut oil to the pot. Once the coconut oil melts, add mustard seeds, curry leaves, and green chili to the pot. When the mustard seeds begin to pop, add the remaining ingredients to the pot.
- Secure the lid, close the pressure valve, and cook for 10 minutes at high pressure.
- Naturally release pressure (or wait 10 minutes then release pressure).
- Give this dal time to cool down; it will look thin upon opening the lid, however, after a few minutes it will thicken quite a bit. Drizzle ghee on top before serving (if desired).
Notes
- You can make this recipe with either toor dal or moong dal – they have slightly different flavors but are both delicious!
- I updated this recipe (October 2020) so that it calls for rinsing the toor dal rather than soaking it first. My previous recipe called for soaking the dal for 2 hours, however, I no longer find this necessary for this type of dal. You can still soak the dal if you prefer to do so.
- This dal will thicken the longer it sits so feel free to stir in a bit more water when reheating if needed.
Flora says
Hi, How important are the curry leaves to the recipe, as I don’t have any. Is there anything that could be used as an alternative? Thanks.
Jennifer says
This is an absolute favorite! I make it once and sometimes twice a week. I add a couple of carrots sliced in discs. At the end of the cooking, I drop in a huge handful of power greens or spinach roughly cut up. Sometimes some green beans, snap peas, or asparagus. I put the instant pot lid back on and lock it, but I don’t turn it back on. I leave it like that for five minutes or so.
A squeeze of lime or lemon and some lightly toasted pumpkin or sesame seeds on top, along with the ghee, and I have a full meal.
BTW, I prefer golden lentils for this recipe but it’s also good with split mung dal.
Silly me, I’m so obsessed with this recipe that I see that I posted the same information in January. Oh well.
Lorraine McCall says
Hi, Ashley! Love this recipe. I’ve tried it with a few different kinds of dal – went a little nuts trying dal I hadn’t made before on my last trip to Sri Krisha Market in Springfield.
First I tried it with Whole Toor Dal. YUM! My new favorite. The consistency is a bit like black beans but smaller and tastier. Also, at the end of the 10-minute cooking time, the beans weren’t quite done so I popped the lid back on and added another 4 minutes and another 10-min natural release. PERFECT. One of my friends from Delhi was astounded at how good it was (American cook and all! HA!)
Today I made it with masoor dal. Following all the instructions above, it’s delish, but like lentil mush. If I used the masoor again with this recipe, I’d cut the cook time to 5 min. Any suggestions for this?
Anyway, LOVE your recipes and am grateful for all the time you’ve put into this great resource. I recently talked a friend into getting her own Instant Pot after she just became addicted to my dal. I took her to Sri Krishna (don’t know if it was here when you lived in the DC area), and bought her a number of different kinds of dal, and all the important spices. Also gave her my copy of your cookbook. She’s very happy cooking away. Thanks!
Lorraine
Jennifer says
This is an absolute favorite! I make it at least once a week.
I prefer golden lentils. I sauté one onion and some garlic after sautéing the mustard seeds, curry leaves, & pepper.
I also add a couple of big carrots cut into discs along with the rest of the ingredients before pressure cooking. I’m not vegetarian, so I like the rich taste of chicken broth in place of the water.
At the end, I dump in a big handful or two of spinach or other greens lightly cut up and let them wilt in the hot dal before serving.
KC says
Can you please put serving size? Is this for one person, 2 people? I’m making it now and I don’t see that anywhere
Christine Adams says
Hi, I am in Australia and we really do not use Instant Pots. Could your recipes be made on the stove or a slow cooker. If so what would the conversion be.?
Erika says
I don’t have an Instant-Pot so I just made this on the stove-top in a Dutch oven. It was SUPER-EASY and very good. It took about 40 minutes for the peas to get really soft. I do a lot of meal prepping on the weekends, so it is not a problem for me to have something cooking on the stove-top while I am working on other meals.
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Erika, I’m so glad you liked this! Thanks for letting me know how it turned out for you 🙂
Sandy says
Can I use red lentils with this?
Karen Williams says
I’ve just received an instant pot and don’t really know how to use it. When do you add the pigeon peas in?
Karen Williams says
Never mind – I’m just blind. 🙂
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
No worries! Hope you enjoy!
Chrissie Smith says
This recipe is amazing. I had something like this made by someone else and have been trying to replicate it ever since. Finally found it. Perfection!
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Chrissie, that’s so great to hear! Thanks for letting me know how much you like it 🙂
brian says
1 and a half cups water or 1 x 1/2 cup
salt same question 🙂
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
1.5 for both!
Dana Chandarana says
Omg! Omg! Omg! My Indian husband born and raised in India but having lived in the US for 40 years said he hadn’t tasted this in 4 decades. Loved it! So easy. So fast. So delicious!
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Dana, that’s amazing! I’m so happy to hear that!
Lin says
Do you think PIP rice would work here? Or is the cooking time too short?
Russ says
Ashley, I made this two days ago. I’ve been blown away by all your recipes but this one is now my favorite. It has that South Indian flavor and aroma that reminds me of my friends in Andhra Pradesh whom I haven’t been able to visit in forever. Thank you for sharing both north and south recipes of the finest cuisine in the world!
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Russ, that’s so nice to hear! I’m glad you liked this dal – thank you for letting me know how much you liked it 🙂
Colleen says
Hi Ashley,
I made this dish today and it was awesome!
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Colleen, so happy to hear that! Thanks for letting me know how it turned out 🙂
Ferzana says
Hi Ashley! I dont have an instant pot. How would I adjust the method then if I’m cooking in a normal pot over a stove?
I’m keen to try this tonight with some paratha
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Hi Ferzana, I haven’t tried this on the stovetop so I don’t know how long it would take – but I would think you’d simmer it until done and maybe add a bit more water.
RevW says
Many of us DO NOT HAVE Instant Pots. Please include directions for ordinary stove top preparation for all of the recipes. I like your recipes, but if I have to take the time to convert from Instant Pot directions I just look up the recipe name somewhere else.
HP says
Hi, Ashley. If I use dried curry leaves, would I make any changes or use them just like fresh? Thank you!
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Use them like fresh – but I will say the flavor and fragrance of fresh curry leaves is more robust. Hope you enjoy the dal!
Bindu says
Love this recipe. Follow it down to the T. Authentic and tasty.
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Bindu, that’s so great to hear! Thanks for letting me know how much you like this 🙂
Charissa says
Hello Ashley, this looks amazing. I have a question, could you make it on the stovetop instead? If so, would you modify it at all?
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Hi Charissa, I’m sure you can make this on the stovetop – I’d use a dutch oven. I’m not sure how long it’ll take to cook, but I’d probably check on it occasionally and add water as needed since the liquid will boil off on the stovetop.
Archana says
Hi – I love your recipes! When I follow them, I always double or triple your recipes so I have quantity for a few days for my family. But I haven’t cooked in a long time. If I want to triple the recipe, do I add triple the ingredients including the water or just all the ingredients besides the water. I’m hoping you are online, because I am about to start cooking. 🙂
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Hi Archana, sorry for the delay in getting back to you, did you end up tripling this recipe? I haven’t tried tripling this dal, but I would triple all ingredients and keep the cook time the same. If you feel the water is too much to start, you can always add less up front and then add more at the end to thin it out if needed.
Archana says
Hi Ashley – I actually chickened out and made 3 separate batches with exactly the recipe’s directions. I figured that was safest. And it came out beautifully!!! Really tasty. Next time though, I am going to double it and take your advice. Thank you again for making life so much easier for us folks who don’t have the golden touch when it comes to cooking. I feel so much less frazzled now having to cook because your recipes for the Instapot are a game changer!
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Archana, I’m glad it came out well! Thank you for the kind words 🙂 Please let me know what you think of any other recipes you try!
Maneesha says
Beautiful recipe, Ashley! I have your cookbook and made this and paired it with the coconut rice recipe in the book as well. Deeeelish! I highly recommend your cookbook to everyone!
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Thank you, Maneesha! Happy to hear that you like this recipe so much 🙂 Thank you for your support!
Marianne says
I love how this tasted but if using toor dal you DEFINITELY needed to soak it! Tasty but caused a lot of tootin’ in our household.
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Glad you liked it, Marianne!
Leora says
Amazing! My childhood friend was Malayali and her mom would always make this dal with double boiled rice, and I loved it but had no idea of what it was called. It was so different from the dal my Maharashtrian family would make, but so scrumptious. I made this with Matta rice (following your recipe in the instant pot) and it tastes exactly like I remember. Thank you!!!
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Hi Leora, that’s awesome! I’m so glad you made this dal and that it’s like what you remember – that’s great to hear 🙂
Lisa says
Hi💖 when do we add the coconut milk? Thanks!
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Hi Lisa, you can add it in step 1 where it says to add all remaining ingredients. It’s fine to pressure cook the coconut milk 🙂
kunjumary kolathu says
Ashley, this is an effortless tasty recipe without the hastle of grinding coconut. I will try this pumpkin too. I m sure this is going to our staple, family loved it.You have great library of instapot Kerala recipes which is a saving grace for me.
Keep doing what you are doing.
My Heart Beets says
I’m so glad your family liked it! Thank you for sharing how the dal turned out 🙂
Deepak Menon says
Thank you for a great recipe. Quick and delicious. I’ll be making this again.
Cheers
My Heart Beets says
Hi Deepak, I’m so glad you liked this dal 🙂 Thanks for letting me know how it turned out for you!
Tanuka says
I loved this recipe Ashley! Followed it to the T. Never had a dal like this before- it’s one of my favorites from you now. Am going to freeze curry leaves so I have some on stock always. Also, thank you SO MUCH for your onion masala series- such a game changer!
My Heart Beets says
Tanuka, really happy to hear that! Thanks for letting me know how much you like this dal 🙂 And glad you like the onion masala series too!
Sara J Bergen says
This is amazing. I followed the recipe exactly and I cannot believe how buttery it tastes with no butter–must be the moong dal. More Kerala recipes please!
My Heart Beets says
Sara, I’m so happy to hear that 🙂 And yes, will definitely be sharing more Keralite dishes on the blog 🙂
Alexsandra Felts says
This recipe is fantastic. The second time I’ve made it.
My Heart Beets says
Really happy to hear that 🙂
Jyoti says
I find Mung dal cooks faster than Toor dal – do you still recommend a 10 minute cook time for Mung dal? I have never liked a mushy dal…thank you!
Zhenya says
I made this dal last night using red hot chili because I didn’t have any green ones. I love any dal but this one is out of this world delicious, best I ever had and simplest to make! I woke up craving the leftovers. Thank you, Ashley! And red chili made it look kind of festive:)
P.S. When I first open the pot, I thought I messed up the ratio when I doubled the recipe because it appeared a lot thinner than I expected. But it thickened up within minutes , absolutely perfect!
My Heart Beets says
Zhenya, I’m so happy to hear that you liked this dal so much!! Thanks for letting me know how it turned out for you 🙂
Ginger Bingham says
Made this tonight. Sooo good! And quick and easy. This will definitely become a staple in our house.
My Heart Beets says
Ginger, that’s awesome! I’m so happy to hear that! Thanks for letting me know how it turned out for you 🙂
Hulya says
I tried this and love the taste. But it ended up being too thick in the end, i had to add more water and stir to bring it to reasonable consistency. Any advice on how to deal with this or what went wrong? But I love it, so easy to make and comforting taste.
Hulya says
never mind! i read the comments after writing this. You address this issue.
My Heart Beets says
Hi Hulya! What you did is perfect – dal thickens as it sits especially toor dal so just add water at the end to get it to the consistency you prefer! You’ll definitely need to do this if you eat it the next day as well.
Raghavi says
So easy and tastes fantastic. It’s pretty much a dump and go recipe. Love it!
My Heart Beets says
Raghavi, I’m so happy to hear that! Thanks for letting me know how it turned out for you 🙂
Sam says
Simple & delicious. Best daal I’ve had. A bit runny but I soaked Toor daal overnight so it may have absorbed more water?
My Heart Beets says
Sam, I’m so happy to hear that you liked it! Yes it likely absorbed water if you left it overnight – toor dal doesn’t need to be soaked for that long. But no worries – the leftovers will thicken up! I typically have to add more water the next day to thin it out – you may not need to 🙂
a says
The recipe says 30 (thirty) curry leaves. Is this correct?
My Heart Beets says
Yes but a few more/less won’t hurt – I just like a lot in this dal 🙂
chris says
Very quick and delicious! I made this with avial and both turned out wonderful! Thank you! On a side note— do you have an idili recipe? If it’s it one of your books which one?
My Heart Beets says
Chris, I’m so happy to hear that you liked this dal and the avial! I do have an idli recipe in my Indian Food Under Pressure cookbook 🙂