Costco Samples have a magical way of influencing our eating habits. On a routine shopping trip my daughter tried a sample cup of Tasty Bites Madras Lentils—and proceeded to talk about them the entire trip. I reluctantly conceded and went back to purchase the package of pouches—thinking I’d be lucky to use just half of them. Within a week my kids had devoured these super nutritious and tasty lentil packages. If you’ve never tried this before, it’s based on a famous Indian dish called dal makhani, but the Tasty Bites version has been simplified for the western palate – it’s very much like your standard bean chili with a slight kick from the kashmiri chilli powder and added richness from the butter and cream.
As a diehard do-it-yourselfer , I began playing with ways of replicating this delicious dish to much success. In fact—most of the ingredients are quite basic and are probably in your pantry right now! The only two items I had to order was Whole Black Gram Lentils (purchase here) and Kashmiri Chilli Powder (purchase here). The black gram lentils are quite different from green, red or beluga lentils, they hold their shape well and stand up to the same cooking time as the red kidney beans, so these can’t be substituted. Kashmiri Chilli Powder is a bright red mild chilli powder, adds great flavor and color to this dish. My kids love having it with Trader Joe’s Garlic Naan or you can also serve it over basmati rice for a delicious high protein vegetarian meal.
Be sure to click on the accessories list below to get the most out of your Instant Pot.
21 Comments
Lindsey
September 16, 2018 at 2:52 pm
Do you soak the beans and lentils?
Van
September 16, 2018 at 3:25 pm
Hi Lindsey, no you don’t have to soak the beans and lentils – that’s why I love making any beans in the IP, you don’t have to soak them ahead of time.
Eman
July 7, 2019 at 9:00 am
Thank you. This tastes exactly like the Tasty Bite you buy in stores. I let mine boil down a little to thicken it up. At first, I only did 1/2 teaspoon of the Kashmir pepper, but then added the other half. It is perrfect as you have it.
Thanks again.
Van
July 7, 2019 at 10:30 am
Hi Eman, I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe! 😀
LeeAnn
October 30, 2019 at 11:52 am
Hi: The redbeans are dry when you are them? Or already cooked?
Van
October 30, 2019 at 1:26 pm
Hi LeeAnn, the red beans are dry and unsoaked / uncooked.
Tracie
February 22, 2020 at 2:09 pm
Hi!
This recipe sounds delicious! Could you tell me how you would make this without an instapot, as I don’t have one! Thanks so much!
Rebecca
January 17, 2020 at 5:39 pm
Why did you change the recipe???? Real tomatoes was the best version! Even canned tomatoes was a better option.
Van
January 21, 2020 at 9:50 pm
Hi Rebecca, I’ll add it back as an option. I switched to tomato sauce because it was closer to the bagged version.
Rebecca
April 8, 2020 at 2:03 pm
Thank You so much! I now see that you updated the recipe! I love using the fresh tomatoes and quick soaking the kidney beans since using the fresh tomatoes don’t give you that “extra” liquid to fully cook the kidney beans vs if you use the tomato sauce or canned diced tomatoes! Thank You again for adding that back in as a option!
Tracie
February 22, 2020 at 10:30 am
Hi there! This sounds delicious! However I don’t have an instapot. Could you do this recipe without one?
Van
February 23, 2020 at 10:12 pm
Hi Tracie! Soak the beans overnight, then follow the same instructions using a large pot on the stovetop. Simmer for 45 minutes or until the beans are cooked through. Hope you enjoy!
Tracie
February 24, 2020 at 8:18 am
Hi Van!
Thank you! I’m so excited to try this
Christina
May 7, 2020 at 8:48 am
What can I use to substitute the heavy cream, so not using dairy? Thank you in advance for your time. I am excited to make homemade madras lentils
Van
June 1, 2020 at 11:48 am
You can try using coconut cream.
kathy
October 23, 2021 at 12:12 am
wanting to make these- but the link where to purchase the Whole Black Gram Lentils doesnt work. Can you help with this and let me know what the brand is?
Thanks
Van
October 23, 2021 at 7:28 pm
Hello, you can purchase this one:
Marie
November 14, 2021 at 4:01 am
Hi, I want to make double this recipe. How many minutes should I cook for? Also, if the beans have been soaked how many minutes would you suggest cooking either this recipe for and/or a doubled recipe for? Thank you. My kids love tasty bite madras lentils!
Van
November 14, 2021 at 7:17 am
Hello, if you double the recipe you’d still keep the same cooking time. Sorry I don’t know what the cooking time would be for soaked beans since I never soak beens when I cook them with the Instant Pot – since that’s an advantage of pressure cooking beans, there’s no need to soak them.
CD
October 11, 2022 at 7:34 pm
Thank you!! I love these too, and am doing a plant-based eating (no oil, either). I can’t wait to try this with vegetable stock and using full fat coconut cream in place of the dairy cream. Hubby loves Indian and this is one of our go-to easy meals. ❤️
C
October 26, 2022 at 10:12 pm
YUM!! I made a vegan version, sautéed with “Better Than Bouillon” instead of oil; put in 1 cup of my homemade bean soup (multi bean soup with onions & herbs) instead of 2/3 cup of red kidneys, didn’t have tomato sauce but dissolved appx 4 oz tomato paste into hot water.
The difference in taste by adding vegan butter (I used Earth Balance spread) & instead of heavy cream used full-fat coconut cream… what an improvement in flavor!
Thank you, Van for sharing! 5 Stars!!