Sad, but the only available dal here is split channa, even the masoor dal I had to pay big $$$ at an international supermarket. Even curry leaves are nearly impossible to find, along with tons of other ingredients. Suriname is a difficult country to cook food that's not local. We once without tamarind for 5 months here, so needless to say we have to make lots of substitutions when cooking here.

Chia seeds worked well, although I think it wouldn't be smart to include a large amount or things could end up getting sticky.