This lentil soup uses ground turkey with vegetables and tempered spices. Make this turkey lentil soup for a flavorful, comforting meal!

I think Indian cuisine has some of the world’s most delicious curries. Many of them include lentils, known in India as dal (also spelled dahl). Red lentil curry is the most popular, but black dal is used for recipes like black dal makhani, and yellow lentil curry is another favorite.

Meat is often included as well,  but most often, an Indian dal curry includes lamb, beef, or chicken.

This recipe for turkey lentil soup uses lean ground turkey. This reduces the calories and fat in the dish, while still delivering flavor.

Dal tadka curry

Cuisine: Asian / Indian

One reason why the dal curries in Indian cuisine are so incredibly delicious is because of a cooking method and its resulting mixture, both known as Indian tadka. The preparation involves blooming spices (either whole or ground) in a pan of hot oil to release their essence.

With your first taste of tadka, you’ll likely be hooked. It’s possible that you’ll start frying spices to add flavor to nearly everything you eat. You’ve been warned. 😉

To learn more about the art of tempering spices and how they’re used, read my article on Indian tadka.

Alternate Names/Spellings: Red lentil curry, tadka dal curry, tadka dal

Preparation: Stovetop

Difficulty: Medium 🥄🥄

Description: Flavorful ground turkey curry with red lentils and vegetables, topped with a tadka of tempered spices.

Ingredient Notes and Substitutions

Note: This is only a partial list of ingredients; a full list and amounts needed are in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.

Dal curry ingredients:

• Ground/minced turkey– Ground turkey curry is delicious but if you prefer to use a different protein, any ground meat will work with this recipe. If you prefer a vegetarian curry, that’s fine too.
  
• Vegetables– I use a combination of diced carrot, celery, red onion, and fresh roma tomatoes. If you’d like to use canned diced tomatoes, be sure to drain them thoroughly first or they’ll water down the soup.
  
• Red lentils– Traditional Indian dal tadka is made with masoor dal, which are split red lentils. You could use whole red lentils if you prefer them, but they don’t blend into as creamy of a consistency.

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Tadka Ingredients:

• Ghee– This is similar to clarified butter, but despite what you may read elsewhere, they are not identical. You could also use a neutral flavored oil like vegetable or canola. You can make ghee at home or purchase it in jars. It’s usually kept near the bottled oils in most grocery store.
  
• Cumin seeds
  
• Black mustard seeds– As you might guess, these whole seeds are either black or brown in color. Black mustard has a pungent flavor.
  
• Yellow mustard seeds– This variety can be yellow or white in color. In comparison to black mustard seed, yellow mustard seeds are smaller, and they have a milder flavor.
  
• Turmeric powder– This spice is a powerful antioxidant and medical studies show that turmeric may help reduce inflammation, making it heart healthy and a pain reliever for conditions like arthritis.
  
• Paprika– either smoked or sweet (Hungarian) paprika can be used.

Notes for making dal tadka curry

1. Have all spices prepped and ready to use. Creating a tadka happens very quickly, and stopping to measure ingredients can cause the spices to burn.
   
2. Using a different protein?  If the meat you use has a lot of fat in it, you may need to drain the grease after cooking it. Otherwise, it could affect the flavor and texture of the curry.
   
3. Use ghee or clarified butter for the best flavor tadka.
   

Want a chunkier curry?

If you like curry with a ittle texture, reserve up to one cup of cooked lentils. Puree the remainder, then stir the reserved lentils back into the pot.

FAQ

Other Indian curry recipes to make

As the weather becomes cooler, make curries part of your weekly menu rotation. They’re comforting and will warm you up from the inside out!

Butter chicken is a family favorite, as is Instant Pot lamb stew.