Ingredients
- 1 stalk lemongrass, finely sliced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 6cm piece ginger, cut into fine batons
- 4 Kaffir lime leaves, finely sliced
- seeds of 6 cardamom pods
- ½ brown onion, finely diced
- 2 tsp vegetable oil
- 500g yellow split peas
- 1 chicken stock cube
- 1 cup coconut milk
- 3 tsp curry powder
- 12 fresh curry leaves
- sea salt flakes and freshly-milled black pepper
Instructions
1 Combine the lemongrass, garlic, ginger, lime leaves and cardamom pods in a mortar and pound until smooth. Sauté with the onion and vegetable oil in a saucepan over a moderate heat for 5 minutes, until very aromatic.
2 Meanwhile, wash the split peas thoroughly, then add to the saucepan with the chicken stock cube, coconut milk, curry powder, curry leaves and 1L water. Set over a moderate heat and cook gently for 30 minutes, until the lentils are just tender. Season with salt and pepper.