Cooking With Fox: Temple dahl + Courgette & bay curry

11 Aug, 2025

Inspired by the virtual potluck that Skep is putting together for September, I figured it'd be a good time to resurrect the somewhat dormant "sometimes Flint likes to cook things that actually turn out to be good" segment of this blog, and share a regular fox & dog household favourite recipe. The source of this is the cookbook for the British Indian restaurant chain Mowgli's so this isn't any kind of a traditional or authentic family recipe, but we've adapted a few things along the way and presumably not many people even have access to Mowgli's (and one of these recipes hasn't been in their menu for quite some time), so I figure we are all good here.

This is actually two entirely separate, unrelated recipes: one for an intentionally ascetic but shockingly flavoursome dahl, and another for a more curry-like dish of potato and courgette in a spiced tomato sauce (both 100% vegan). As such, there's no obligation to pair these per se. They do, however, synchronise with each other brilliantly. They use many of the same spices and ingredients so preparing them pairs up brilliantly without any excess ingredients that you'd have to find a use for another time: for example, both of the individual dishes use one half of a lemon as well as 200g of tinned chopped tomatoes (the standard UK can size is 400g). The reason we ever thought to pair these two in the first place was because we realised while browsing how well the ingredients paired up. Because of the shared flavour schemes they also pair up really well on the plate. Finally, if you're doing these solo, the more "passive" prep of the dahl complements the more active cooking the courgette and bay requires, so you don't typically need to hectically run around the kitchen with multiple things on fire.

We typically make these both together at the same time and then serve them with rice or curry bread (naan, paratha, peshwari naan, etc).

The separate recipes and steps are below. They each make about four portions so there's plenty of leftovers for the next day.

Temple dahl

Ingredients:

• 250g red lentils
• Approx. 1l water
• 200g tinned chopped tomatoes
• ½ tsp ground turmeric
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 small chili, chopped
• 1 tsp caster/granulated sugar
• 1½ tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp chili powder
• Juice of 1/2 lemon
• Oil for frying

Method:

1. Add the lentils, tomatoes and turmeric into a sauce pot, together with the water - I would start with ca. 750-800ml water and just add more later down the line if you think it needs more liquid (depends on the size of your lentils etc). Stir together, bring to a boil and then lower the heat down to low and let it simmer for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Keep the lid on for about the first 10-15 minutes and then take it off for the remainder of the time just to monitor the liquid levels. Once the time's up, remove from heat and set aside.
2. When you're ready to start the next phase (e.g. if you are synchronising with the timings for the other dish), take a non-stick frying pan and fry the cumin seeds and the chopped chili in a bit of oil for about 30-40 seconds until fragrant.
3. Turn the heat down to medium-low and carefully start ladling the lentil mix bit by bit into the frying pan (it can spit a lot if you just throw it in so patience and small portions at first is key!). Once all of the lentils are in the frying pan and stirred, add the sugar, salt, chili powder and lemon juice and stir them in.
4. Let cook for a couple of minutes to thicken the dahl a tad further (it should still be relatively loose, kind of like a loose porridge), and taste for seasoning.

Notes:

• The amount of turmeric and cumin seeds can be varied to taste, we're a bit more heavy handed with both as we love the flavours but adjust as needed! Similarly the amount of chili powder you use depends on how feisty your preferred brand is, so again account for your taste. This should be a mild and smooth dish, the chili powder is there for just a tad of extra depth.
• You can also add some fresh chopped coriander right at the very end.

Courgette & bay

Ingredients:

• 2½ tsp panch pharon (see notes)
• 1 small chili, chopped
• 1 large white onion, cut in half and thinly sliced into thin crescent shapes
• 1-2 medium potatoes, peeled and chopped into small cubes
• 2 courgettes, chopped into small cubes (about the size of the potatoes)
• 1/4 tsp ground turmeric
• 1/4 tsp chili powder
• 200g canned chopped tomatoes
• 4 bay leaves
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp caster/granulated sugar
• Juice of 1/2 lemon
• Oil for frying

Method:

1. In a sauce pot or a large frying pan, fry the panch phoron in the oil on medium-high heat, until the seeds begin to crackle and pop.
2. Turn the heat down to low and add the onion and chili, and fry for 6-8 minutes or until the onion starts turning a little golden.
3. Add the potato, turmeric and chili powder and fry gently, partially covered, for about 20-25 minutes or until the potatoes are cooked through. If your chosen pot/pan isn't fully non-stick, keep a bit of water handy and add a little bit now and then just to scrape out any bits that get stuck in the bottom.
4. Add the tomatoes and fry for a moment, then add the bay leaves and courgette. Stir everything well and cook for 10 more minutes/until courgette is tender.
5. Add the salt, sugar and lemon juice, cook for a moment and check for seasoning before final serving.

Notes:

• Panch pharon might raise some questioning eyebrows: it's another Indian spice blend (mostly made out of various seeds like mustard, nigella, cumin, etc), but a lot less omnipresent than e.g. garam masala and we have to order ours online (you might be able to find it in some specialist Asian cuisine shops). It's not essential, the dish will still taste great even without it, but I would massively recommend it: it makes the dish smell like something you'd be served in an Indian restaurant, and we've since started using in other curries as well and it's unlocked another new layer of flavour in our everyday home cooking.
• Same caveat as with dahl on the spicing, i.e. adjust to taste and to the strength of the chili powder you use. Again, this isn't meant to be a spicy dish, the chili is there just to add its own depth.

If this sounds good, I hope you give this a try! Makes for a great mid-week dinner as the prep is relatively minimal and the cooking is quite straightforward, and the next day you can simply reheat the extra portions for a lazy evening's meal.

#cooking