Rainbow Chard Instant Pot Veggie Dal (Yellow Split Peas)

This colorful and nutritious stew with rainbow chard and yellow split peas makes use of an abundance of seasonal summer produce and is super easy to make in the instant pot.

It’s the season for Ontario summer veggies. I’ve been seeing a lot of fresh kale and chard, peppers, tomatoes, zucchini and corn at the grocery stores, all from Ontario. (Not to mention the peaches!) This is the season when Ontario produce is cheaper than imported items. They come featured on the weekly specials and sometimes you see them in bulk, multi-pound cardboard boxes.

Have you heard of the Foodland Ontario jingle, “good things grow in Ontario” 🎶? In my head it sounds like the Marineland jingle but apparently it is completely different!

This Rainbow Chard Instant Pot Dal is great to meal prep

Every week I prep a big pot of vegetarian stew or soup type dish featuring legume. The protein and carbs from the beans or lentils coupled with the variety of veggies makes a versatile vegetarian dish which features all the macros. This rainbow chard veggie dal fits into this family of vegetarian stews slash soup that are great for meal prep. These kinds of dishes are optimal if you are feeding both vegetarians and omnivores at the same time.

Other recipes in the vegetarian protein stew-slash-soup family:

• “So Much Dill” Lentil Lemon Soup – Super Easy and Fast!
• Vegan Sweet Potato Chili with Mulato Peppers

You can also add additional meat to the base vegetarian stew to up the protein content. I usually meal prep some broth and chicken separately and in addition to the vegetarian legume stew. When reheating a bowl, I like to add both broth and chicken to this vegetarian rainbow dal. This makes the consistency of the dal more soupy and also adds more protein.

Dals are great. They are super easy to make, especially if you have a pressure cooker or instant pot. Depending on what legume you’re using, it only takes 2-7 minutes of cooking, plus natural release and the time it takes for the instant pot to come to pressure. In any case, active cooking time is really minimal.

This recipe for rainbow veggie dal is a versatile base for substitutions

You can pretty much throw any kind of seasonal produce into this rainbow veggie dal. In my recipe, the peppers, tomato, carrots, and rainbow chard make a colorful dish with red, orange, yellow, green, and purple veggies. Feel free to use other kinds of veggies like zucchini and squash, root vegetables, or other leafy greens.

Here are some ideas:

• spinach instead of chard (throw in at end of cooking time)
• kale
• sweet potato or pumpkin
• rutabaga or turnip
• celery
• parsnip
• zucchini

For the legume in this dal, I am using yellow split peas. Yellow split peas, by the way, is not the same as chana dal. They look quite similar, but chana dal refers to split chickpeas. Yellow split peas give my rainbow dal a mushier texture, which I prefer in soups. Nonetheless, you can substitute the yellow split peas with chana dal but note that you may have to presoak and/or use a different cooking time if you do so.

Here’s what you need for the recipe

1 and ¼ (1.25) cups yellow split peas

¼ (0.25) cup rice

5 cups water or broth

2 carrots, chopped

3-4 bell peppers or shepherd peppers, diced

1 tomato, diced

1 bunch rainbow chard, chopped (discard the ends of the stalks if too tough)

2 jalapenos, chopped small (optional)

3 tablespoons ghee or coconut oil

1.5 tsp cumin seeds

3-4 green cardamom pods (grind open with a motor and pestle)

1 tsp turmeric

½ tsp chili powder (Kashmiri)

Pinch asafoetida/ hing (optional)

Salt, to taste

Here’s how to make it – it’s really easy!

Add yellow split peas/chana dal, rice, water/broth, carrots, peppers, tomato and half the chard into Instant Pot. Pressure cook low for 6-7 minutes (7 for mushier texture).  Natural release for 10 minutes. Open the lid, then stir in the remaining chopped rainbow chard.

Make the tadka/tempering by heating the ghee or oil in a small pot. Add the cumin seeds and open cardamon pods and roast until fragrant (around 30 seconds). Turn off heat, then add the turmeric, chili powder, and asafoetida, if using. Immediately transfer the oil and spices into the pot of dal, stirring to combine.

Add salt to taste and adjust consistency by adding water or broth.

When to add rainbow chard?

Rainbow chard can be added at the beginning or stirred in at the end (while the dal is hot and simmering but after the 10-minute natural release). Adding the rainbow chard at the beginning will ensure more consistent texture, while stirring in the chard at the end will lead to crunchier bits and more vibrancy. I like to add half the chard in with the dal to pressure cook, and stir in the remainder afterwards for diversity.

Print Recipe

Rainbow Chard Veggie Dal (Instant Pot)

This colorful and nutritious stew with rainbow chard and yellow split peas makes use of an abundance of seasonal summer produce and is super easy to make in the instant pot.

Prep Time10 minutes mins

Cook Time7 minutes mins

Course: Appetizer, Main Course, Side Dish, Soup

Cuisine: Canadian, Fusion, Indian

Diet: Hindu, Low Lactose, Vegan, Vegetarian

Keyword: Chard, Dal, Legumes, Peppers, Soups, Stews, Vegetarian

Servings: 8

Equipment

• 1 Pressure cooker/instant pot

Ingredients

• 1¼ cups yellow split peas
• ¼ cup rice white rice
• 5 cups water or broth
• 2 carrots chopped
• 3-4 bell peppers or shepherd peppers diced
• 1 tomato diced
• 1 bunch rainbow chard chopped (discard the ends of the stalks if too tough)
• 2 jalapenos chopped small (optional)
• 3 tablespoons ghee or coconut oil
• 1.5 tsp cumin seeds
• 3-4 green cardamom pods grind open with a motor and pestle
• 1 tsp turmeric
• ½ tsp chili powder kashmiri
• Pinch asafoetida/ hing optional
• Salt to taste

Instructions

• Add yellow split peas/chana dal, rice, water/broth, carrots, peppers, tomato and half the chard (see note 1) into Instant Pot. Pressure cook low for 6-7 minutes (7 for mushier texture). Natural release for 10 minutes. Open the lid, then stir in the remaining chopped rainbow chard.
• Make the tadka/tempering by heating the ghee or oil in a small pot. Add the cumin seeds and open cardamon pods and roast until fragrant (around 30 seconds). Turn off heat, then add the turmeric, chili powder, and asafoetida, if using. Immediately transfer the oil and spices into the pot of dal, stirring to combine.
• Add salt to taste and adjust consistency by adding water or broth.

Notes

Note 1: Rainbow chard can be added at the beginning or stirred in at the end (while the dal is hot and simmering but after the 10-minute natural release). Adding the rainbow chard at the beginning will ensure more consistent texture, while stirring in the chard at the end will lead to crunchier bits and more vibrancy. I like to add half the chard in with the dal to pressure cook, and stir in the remainder afterwards for diversity.

Did you make this recipe? I would love to hear your thoughts. Leave a rating and comment below. If you share on socials, tag me on Instagram @hellenshouseblog or Tiktok @hellenshouse, or hashtag #hellenshouse. Cheers!