Anytime Dal recipe

Couldn’t think of a more innovative name.

Mom wanted me to make some quick dal yesterday, and I came up with a concoction that quite pleased here. It is simple fast, and goes pretty well with both rice and rotis. It is also ideal for the time when we have our vrat (don’t know how to define this) when we are off garlic and onions.

Ingredients:

Lentils
Tur dal – 1 cup (cooked and mashed well)

Veggies
Tomato – 2 to 3
Ginger: 1 inch approx
Coriander (Cilantro) – A few sprigs
Chillies (capsicum) – to taste
Shimla mirch/Bell pepper: 1-2 cut fine

Spices
Salt –to taste
Amchur powder (dry mango powder) – 1 tsp. You can add a dash of lemon juice in the end if you don’t have this. We need something for the sourness.
Turmeric powder – 1 tsp
Jeera (Cumin) powder – 1 tsp
Coriander powder – 1 tsp
Jeera seeds – 1 tsp
Mustard seeds (optional) – 1 tsp
Hing/Asafoetida (optional) – 1 pinch
Methi/Fenugreek seeds (optional) – 1 pinch

Vegetable oil – 1 – 2 tbsp

Procedure

Cut the bell pepper into fine pieces.
Grind tomatoes, coriander, ginger, and chillies in a blender to a fine paste.

Heat oil on a low to medium flame in a wok (kadai). Add the mustard and jeera seeds. After they stop spluttering, add the fenugreek seeds and asafetida. After ten seconds, add the capsicum and fry till they are done. Add a little salt to make the capsicum cook faster. Add the tomato paste and cook for around a minute. Add the dal, powders, and salt and cook for around three to five minutes stirring well. Add extra water if necessary. Top it off with a tablespoon of ghee (clarified butter) or just plain butter.

Methi Dal recipe

There are many variations for this recipe but I like this one the best because it brings out the methi flavor very well.

Ingredients:

Tur Dal: half cup
Methi (fenugreek) leaves: half bunch

Masala:
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp jeera
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp ajwain
1 tsp amchur powder
Red chilli powder to taste
Salt to taste
1/2 tsp sugar
A pinch of Asafoetida
3 tbsp oil

Dal: Soak the dal in water for half an hour. Cook in a pressure cooker till done and mash well.

Wash the methi leaves well and chop fine.

Heat the oil in a kadai and when hot, add the mustard seeds. After they stop spluttering, add the jeera, ajwain, and asafoetida. Stir for some time till you get the aroma. Add the methi leaves and stir fry for a couple of minutes taking care not to burn the leaves. Add the dal, mix well. If the consistency is too thick, add water to set it right. Add the salt, sugar, amchur powder, coriander powder, and red chilli powder. Cook for five minutes on low flame.

Optionally, add a tablespoon of ghee.

Serve hot with rotis or rice.

The ultimate Dal recipe

The ultimate dal recipe...well almost :)

1 Cup Tur Dal
2 big sized onions
1 small capsicum (bell pepper) finely chopped.
3 big tomatoes
1 green chilli (capsicum)
5 cloves garlic
1 inch ginger
A few stalks of coriander (cilantro,dhania)

Dry powders
Amchur (dry mango powder) - 1 tsp
Dhania (coriander) powder - 1 tsp
Jeera (cumin) powder - 1 tsp
Haldi (turmeric) - 1 tsp
Red Chilli powder - to taste
Salt - to taste
Sugar - 1 tsp

3 tbsp oil


Preparing the dal:
Soak the dal for an hour in water. Boil in a pressure cooker till soft. Mash it well.

Preparing the masala:

Puree the tomatoes: Boil the tomatoes till their skins come off. Grind the tomatoes with chopped garlic and ginger in a blender to a soup consistency.

Cut the onions into cubes. Add the green chilli and blend the onions and chilli in a blender to a coarse paste.

Add 3 tbsp of oil in a wok (kadai). Add jeera seeds to the hot oil. When they stop spluttering, add the onion-chilli paste. Heat till the paste turns brown in color. Add the finely chopped capsicum, a little salt and heat on high flame with continuous stirring for around 3 minutes. Add the tomato paste and cook for about five minutes. Add the dry powders (except for zeera), salt, and sugar.

Add the prepared masala to the mashed dal, add water to get the consistency you want. Heat the mixture on the stove. Add salt. Remove the container from the fire as soon as it starts boiling.

Roast the cumin (zeera) powder in a frying pan till it turns brown and add it to the dal.

Add a tablespoon of ghee or melted butter (optional)

Garnish with coriander leaves

Serve with rice or rotis.