2 bunches spinach or Malabar spinach, tough stems trimmed out. Stack the leaves and tender stems and cut into thin ribbons.
1 cup pink lentils or masoor dal. You can also use split pigeon peas or tuvar dal in this recipe, but if you are cooking without a pressure cooker, the pink lentils will cook much faster
1 tbsp coconut oil
1 tsp mustard seeds
10 cloves of garlic, smashed but not chopped
1 tsp red pepper flakes or chili pepper powder like cayenne
3 medium tomatoes, chopped
½ cup peanuts (optional, but nice, and they add great texture)
½ tsp turmeric
Juice of 1 lemon
Salt to taste