The international travel guide – Taste Atlas released a list of ‘Best Rated Stews With Vegetables and Lentils,’ among which two Indian staple dishes – palak dal and sambar, made it to the prestigious rankings. Featuring high in the top 6 list, sambar received a rating of 4.1 out of 5, ranking it in second position as well as palak dal with 3.2 stars at the sixth position. Among the other dishes which featured the lenticchie in umido from Italy, főzelék from Hungary, wat from Ethiopia as well as plain dal from India leading in the first position – making India the only country with three staple lentil stews featuring on the prestigious list.
These vegetarian dishes – that are typically paired with rice, roti, idli or dosas, are some of the most widely consumed and recognised dishes around the country – with each region priding itself on its own variation, giving it a change in flavour and composition. In the official release by the travel guide, dal was described to be the ‘national dish of India’, while also highlighting the plant-based protein value derived from each one of these dishes. In what seems to be yet another milestone in terms of global recognition for Indian food, the essential components have been a feather on the diverse cap donned by India.
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Commonly eaten as breakfast or lunch recipes, both – sambar and dal have been known to be associated with wholesome, comforting meals that are simple and nourishing. These vegetable ‘stews’ are made in different ways, using a variety of vegetables, spices and seasonings. From temple-style sambar to dhabe waali dal, the sheer variety of lentil-based dishes seem to have expanded into creations that merge interesting, robust flavours with plain dal – thus elevating the plant protein to its highest potential.