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Camp stove

One-pot camp dahl

Cheap, forgiving, vegan by default, and it feeds a crowd from one pot. The workhorse of our winter camps.

VeganGluten freeNut free
Serves
Serves 8–10
Prep
10 min
Cook
35 min
Cooked on
Camp stove

Ingredients

  • 3 cups red lentils, rinsed
  • 2 onions, diced
  • 6 cloves garlic, crushed
  • 3 tbsp curry powder
  • 1 tbsp ground cumin
  • 2 tsp ground turmeric
  • 2 × 400 g tins chopped tomatoes
  • 2 × 400 ml tins coconut milk
  • 2 L water or vegetable stock
  • Oil for frying
  • Salt to taste
  • Coriander and lemon to serve (optional)

Method

  1. Heat a generous glug of oil in your largest pot. Fry the onions until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes.
  2. Add the garlic and all the dry spices. Stir for 1 minute until fragrant — do not let the spices catch.
  3. Add the lentils, tomatoes, coconut milk and water. Stir well.
  4. Bring to a boil, then drop to a low simmer. Cook for 25–30 minutes, stirring every few minutes so the bottom does not stick.
  5. The dahl is done when the lentils have collapsed and it coats the back of a spoon. Add water if it gets too thick.
  6. Season with salt. Serve with rice, flatbread, or straight from the bowl.

This is the recipe we come back to. It scales linearly, it does not care if you are twenty minutes late starting, and it reheats well for breakfast.

Prep at home to save time and washing up: dice the onions, crush the garlic and pre-mix the spices into a jar. Rinse and bag the lentils.

If you are cooking on a fire rather than a stove, use a cast-iron pot and keep it at the edge of the coals, not over the flame. Stir more often.

Allergen note: always ask the group before you cook. Dietary requirements collected at booking are on the trip sheet, and it is the cook’s job to read it.