Dal

How to serve dal by age

6 months+

Thick dal on a spoon

Make dal with red lentils or split peas cooked until they fall apart, with mild spices such as turmeric, garlic or ground cumin and no salt. Mash or blend it smooth with soft lumps, let it cool, and load a spoon your baby can hold. Spread it on toast strips only once wheat has been introduced on its own. Check the bread label for honey, which isn't safe before 12 months.

Size

A thick, mashed dal on a pre-loaded spoon, or spread on a soft toast strip about the size of an adult finger, roughly 6–8 cm long and 2 cm wide (2½–3 × ¾ in).

Check before serving

Squash a little between your thumb and finger. It should smear flat, with no firm lentils and no whole spices.

US and UK advice differ here. The AAP suggests mashed food or soft pieces no larger than ½ inch; the NHS suggests soft finger-sized pieces your baby can hold in their fist. Both agree the food must squash easily.

9 months+

Thicker dal with soft rice

Serve dal a little thicker and lumpier, stirred into soft rice or with small pieces of soft flatbread (once wheat has been introduced) for scooping. Let your baby practice with a spoon or their fingers.

Size

Soft, lumpy dal, with any other pieces no bigger than about 1 cm (just under ½ inch).

Check before serving

Each lentil should squash flat between your thumb and finger. Check for whole spices and take them out.

12 months+

Dal from the family pot

Take your child's portion out before you add salt, chili or a whole-spice tempering, then serve it with rice, chapati or soft vegetables. Lift out whole spices such as cardamom pods, cloves, cinnamon sticks and bay or curry leaves.

Size

Soft dal, with anything served alongside cut to about 1 cm (just under ½ inch).

Check before serving

Check the bowl for whole spices and firm lentils before serving.

18 months+

Family dal and rice

Offer dal the way your family eats it, with rice or flatbread, keeping your child's portion unsalted and mild. A spoon works well for practice. Keep rotating rice with other grains through the week.

Size

Soft dal, with sides in bite-sized pieces about 1 cm (just under ½ inch).

Check before serving

Lentils should be soft all the way through, with no whole spices in the bowl.

Always have your child sit upright in a high chair or at the table, and stay with them the whole time they eat. Keep to the size and texture for their stage. Every baby develops on their own timeline.

How to prepare dal

1. 1

   Tip red lentils, yellow split peas or split mung beans into a sieve, pick out any small stones, and rinse them under running water. If your dal uses red kidney beans, soak and boil them as our kidney beans page explains, or use canned.

2. 2

   Simmer them in fresh water, without salt or stock cubes, until very soft: about 15 to 20 minutes for red lentils and 20 to 30 minutes for yellow split peas.

3. 3

   Gently cook onion, garlic and mild ground spices such as turmeric or cumin in a little oil, stir in the lentils, and simmer a few minutes more. Take your baby's portion out before adding salt, chili or whole spices.

4. 4

   Mash or blend your baby's portion to the right texture, and let it cool before serving.

5. 5

   First time? Pick a day your baby is well, at home, when you can watch them for a couple of hours afterward.

How much to offer

Start with a teaspoon or two. Your baby decides how much to eat: stop when they turn away or close their mouth. Lots of smearing and spilling is normal at first.

Common mistakes

Questions parents ask

If your baby refuses dal

• Many babies need 10 or more tries before they accept a new food. Keep offering it alongside foods they already like.
• Try another form: smoother or lumpier, mixed into rice, or with a soft flatbread for scooping.
• Eat some yourself at the same meal. Babies copy what they see.
• Funny faces don't mean they dislike it. They're getting used to a new taste and texture.

Never force or pressure your baby to eat. Some days they'll eat more, some days less, and that's normal.

Buying and storing dal

• Keep dried lentils and split peas in a sealed container in a cool, dry cupboard.
• Cooked dal keeps for 3 to 4 days in a covered container in the fridge. Dal with rice is the exception: cool it within 1 hour, keep it in the fridge for no more than 1 day, and reheat it only once.
• Plain dal can be frozen for 2 to 3 months, like other stews. Freeze rice separately, within 1 hour of cooking. Thaw them in the fridge, use them within 24 hours of thawing, and reheat them only once, to a rolling boil or 165°F (74°C), until steaming hot, then let them cool before serving.
• Throw away any food left out at room temperature for more than 2 hours (1 hour if it's hotter than 90°F / 32°C).