Potato & Cauliflower Dal With Spicy Shallots (Crockpot recipe)

1 cup yellow split peas
2 Tbs clarified butter or vegetable oil
4 Tbs dried minced onion
4 stalks celery, peeled and thinly sliced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbs minced gingerroot
1 tsp curry powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
3 cups vegetable stock or water
3 potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
4 cups frozen cauliflower florets

SPICY SHALLOTS
2 Tbs clarified butter or vegetable oil
2 long French shallots, thinly sliced, or 8 scallions, white part only, thinly sliced
1/4 to 1/2 tsp finely chopped chili pepper
1 Tbs finely chopped cilantro
2 Tbs balsamic vinegar or lemon juice

1) Soak peas in 6 cups water overnight or for 4 hours at room temperature. Drain and rinse and set aside.
2) In a skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add onions and celery and cook, stirring, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add garlic, curry powder, salt and pepper, and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add vegetable stock and bring to a boil. Place potatoes, cauliflower and soaked peas in slow cooker stoneware. Pour onion mixture over and stir well.
3) Cover and cook on LOW for 10 to 12 hours or on HIGH for 5 to 6 hours, until vegetables are tender.
4) Spicy Shallots: In a skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add shallots and cook, stirring, until crisp. Remove pan from heat. Stir in chiles, cilantro and balsamic vinegar. Transfer to a small bowl. Ladle dal into individual bowls, top with Spicy Shallots and stir well.

Review: Well, our local grocery store doesn't carry yellow split peas or long French shallots, so I used regular split peas and regular shallots. We weren't wowed by this. I think mostly because we cooked it on LOW for 8 hours and it still ended up really mushy.