Dish having Asian lentils for starters? (4)
I believe the answer is:
dhal
'dish' is the definition.
(I have seen 'Indian dish ' mean 'dhal' so perhaps 'dish' could also mean 'dhal')
'having asian lentils for starters?' is the wordplay.
'having' becomes 'dh' (I am not sure about this - if you are sure you should believe this answer much more).
'for starters?' suggests taking the first letters (I've seen 'for starters' mean this).
The first letters of 'asian lentils' is 'al'.
'dh'+'al'='DHAL'
(Other definitions for dhal that I've seen before include "Indian lentil dish" , "Split pulses (in Indian cookery)" , "pulse" , "Pigeon pea" , "Indian dish of dried pulses" .)