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Dinner under $10

Lentil daal: a dinner for 4 for about $3.17

All 13 ingredients come to about $3.17. That’s $0.79 a serving.

$3.17
all in
$0.79
a serving
4
servings
13
ingredients

Ingredient cost for the amounts the recipe uses, estimated from average North American grocery prices — your store will vary.

Lentil daal

What you need

  • Red split lentil
  • Yellow split pea
  • Green split pea
  • Turmeric powder
  • Salt
  • Cooking oil
  • Cumin seed
  • Coriander seed
  • Fenugreek seed
  • Dried red chile
  • Onion
  • Garlic
  • Cilantro

How we work out the cost

The total is what the amounts in this recipe cost, not the price of full packages from the store. Each ingredient’s quantity is converted to a weight and multiplied by an average North American grocery price, and every ingredient in the recipe is priced — nothing is left out of the total.

We only call a dish “under $10” when it comes in at least 10% below that line, to leave room for price changes. Prices were last worked out on Oct 30, 2026; your store will vary.

Where the recipe comes from

Adapted from a recipe by M Khan on Foodista · CC BY 4.0. In Tamarin it comes with every step read aloud, so you can cook it hands-free.

Lentil daal: a dinner for 4 for about $3.17 — from the video
From Tamarin’s budget recipes video series.

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