Tag Archives: Dal

Recipes: Hyderabadi Khatti Dal

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Dal, in most Indian households is ubequetiois and gets prepared almost every day. For those who are vegetarian, this is the main source of protein in their diet. What this means is that there are probably as many variations of dals as there are households in the country!

I came across this recipe for Khatti Dal which literally means ‘Sour Dal’ in my Facebook feed. I really don’t know which website this was from, so I can’t credit them here. I also slightly changed the recipe because I only saw it once and it may not be the most authentic recipe around.

The recipe was this slightly garlicky dal with the children saying it reminded them of a garlic sambar or rasam. I thought though it reminded me of a puli kozhambu. Irrespective of what this dal reminded us of, it was delicious and is a definite keeper in our home.

Here’s the recipe I made so I can refer to it the next time I make it.

Hyderabadi Khatti Dal

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup toovar dal, washed and soaked for 15 mins in warm water
  • 1 small lime sized ball of tamarind (or 1-2 tbsp tamarind paste)
  • 1 medium sized tomato
  • 2 tbsp grated garlic
  • 1.5 tbsp grated ginger
  • 2 medium sized green chillies
  • 1/2 tsp asafoetida powder
  • 1/4 tsp turmeric powder
  • 1 tsp coriander powder
  • 1 tsp red chilli powder
  • 1 tbsp ghee or oil
  • 2-3 dried red chillies
  • 8-10 curry leaves
  • 1 tsp cumin seeds
  • Salt to taste
  • Coriander leaves to garnish

Method:

  • Soak the tamarind in warm water for 15 minutes, squeeze and mash it and strain the water. Keep aside
  • In a pressure cooker, add the toovar dal and 1.5 cups water with the turmeric powder, 1 tbsp each of grated ginger and garlic and half the asafoetida.
  • Make an x slit in the stem of the tomato and add it to the soaked dal and then pressure cook it for 3-4 whistles. Switch off the flame and let the pressure reduce.
  • When the pressure reduces, open the cooker and remove the tomato gently. Remove the skin which should have started peeling and put it back with the dal. Using a hand-held blender or whisk, whisk the dal till it becomes a smooth paste.
  • Switch on the gas again. Chop the green chilli into 2-3 pieces and add it to the dal along with the tamarind water. Add the tamarind water slowly till it reaches the sourness you like. When it comes to a boil, add the salt, red chilli powder and coriander powder and let it come to a nice rolling boil. Boil on a medium heat for around 10 minutes till the raw smell of the tamarind goes away. Check for seasoning and add what extra is needed. Keep aside.
  • In a smaller skillet, add the ghee or oil and when it warms up, add the cumin seeds and let the seeds crackle. Then add the curry leaves, the balance of garlic and ginger and the red chillies. Let the grated ginger, garlic and red chillies start to brown switch off the flame and pour this tempering directly into the dal.
  • Garnish with coiander leaves and cover for 10 minutes till the flavours blend well. Serve hot with plain rice.

Recipes: Tangy and Sweet Chana Dal

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Monday was Ganesh Chaturthi and as usual I made traditional modak or the sweet dumplings filled with coconut and jaggery as an offering or neividhyam to the Lord. I had about 2 tbsp of the filling left over and was wondering what I should do with it when I thought of incorporating it into a dal. I know Maharastrians do something similar with the filling of puran poli, so I took a leaf out of their book.

Fret not if you haven’t made modak the day you want to make this dal, all you need to do is just add coconut and jaggery to the dal and you get a lipsmacking tangy, yet sweet dal to eat with your rice and rotis.

Tangy and Sweet Chana Dal

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup chana dal
  • 1 small piece of tamarind, soaked in hot water for 20-30 minutes
  • 1 tbsp oil
  • 1 tsp mustard seeds
  • 1 tsp cumin seeds
  • 1/8 tsp asafoetida
  • 4-5 curry leaves
  • 1 tsp crushed green chillies or geeen chilli paste
  • 1-2 tbsp modak filling
  • I tbsp grated coconut, roasted (if not using the stuffing)
  • 1 tbsp grated jaggery (if not using the stuffing)
  • Salt to taste
  • Coriander leaves to garnish

Method:

  • Wash the chana dal and cook it either in the pressure cooker or on the stovetop till it is completely cooked and starts to lose its shape. Remove when cool and whisk it to a fine paste. Keep aside.
  • Mix and strain the tamarind pulp and get the juice. Keep aside.
  • Heat oil in a largish pan and when it starts to warm up, add the mustard seeds and let them pop. Then add the cumin seeds, curry leaves and asafoetida and stir for a couple of seconds.
  • Then add the green chilli paste and stir for a few seconds. Now add the whisked chana dal and stir well. Add the tamarind juice slowly and taste test for the level of sourness you want. Season with salt.
  • Thin the dal with water to your preference and let it come to a boil. When the dal comes to a rolling boil, add the modak filling and stir well.
  • If you don’t have the modak filling, just add 2 tbsp roasted coconut plus the jaggery and continue boiling the dal.
  • Finely chop the coriander leaves and garnish the dal. Serve hot with any Indian bread or rice.

Recipes: Dal Akbari

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I first heard of this dish in a television drama where one character cooks a feast and one of the dishes was Dal Akbari. The name really intrigued me and I went online searching for the recipe. I found a recipe, which I bookmarked to make one day. This dish is most likely from the Mughal courts.

That one day came last week when I tried this dish. The dish didn’t look very appealing, but was very tasty. It didn’t take very long to cook, just the soaking time for the dal is quite long.

Dal Akbari

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup whole black urad dal (black lentils), soaked in water for 8 hours or overnight
  • 1/2 cup yoghurt, well beaten
  • 1 tsp cumin seeds
  • 1 tsp grated ginger
  • 1 tbsp dry mango powder (amchur powder)
  • 1 -2 tsp garam masala powder
  • 2 dashes nutmeg powder
  • 2 tbsp ghee or oil
  • Salt to taste
  • 2 tbsp finely chopped Coriander leaves to garnish

Method:

  • Wash the soaked urad dal and cook it in a pressure cooker till it is soft and mushy. Beat well and keep aside.
  • If using the stove to cook it, then cook it, stirring occasionally till it is soft and mushy. Keep aside.
  • Heat the ghee or oil in a pan and when the fat warms, add the cumin seeds and let them splutter.
  • Next, add the grated ginger and stir for a few seconds.
  • Then quickly add the well beaten yoghurt and some salt to stabilse the yoghurt and on a medium low flame, let the yoghurt come to a nice rolling boil. Keep stirring constantly to ensure that the yoghurt does not curdle.
  • When the yoghurt starts to leave the sides of the pan, add the dry spices – dry mango powder, nutmeg powder, salt and garam masala powder. You can also add red chilli powder if you like your dal spicy.
  • Pour the cooked dal over this and stir well to mix. Check for seasoning and add what is missing.
  • Garmish with coriander leaves and serve hot with rice or Indian flatbread.

Note: This recipe will also work well with the addition of fresh cooking cream. If you plan to add it, add it just before you add the yoghurt.

Recipes: Chana Dal

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Chana Dal or Split Chickpeas is a dried legume or pulse which is widely used in the Indian subcontinent. A typical dal will be cooked until mushy (usually in a pressure cooker, but also sometimes on the stovetop) and then tempered according to taste. This is a staple in most meals as legumes are said to be full of protein.

In a 100-gram amount, boiled and cooked dal contains 9% protein, 70% water, 20% carbohydrates (which includes 8% fibre), and 1% fat. Cooked dal (per 100 g) also supplies a rich content (20% or more of the Daily Value, DV) of the B vitamin, folate (45% DV) and manganese (25% DV), with moderate amounts of thiamine (11% DV) and several dietary minerals, such as iron (19% DV) and phosphorus (18% DV).

I have earlier posted a recipe for a simple chana dal, so here’s another version of this dal which I made over the weekend for a simple lunch. This is a bit more work than the previous recipe, but is super worth it!

Chana Dal

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup chana dal or split chickpeas, soaked in warm water for 30 minutes
  • 1 large (or 2 medium-sized) onions, finely chopped
  • 2 medium-sized tomatoes
  • 6-8 pods of garlic
  • 1-inch piece of ginger
  • 2-3 fresh red or green chillies
  • 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
  • 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
  • 3-4 curry leaves
  • 1 tsp turmeric powder
  • 1 tsp red chilli powder
  • 1 tsp coriander powder
  • 1 tsp cumin powder
  • 1/4 tsp asafoetida powder
  • 1/2 tsp garam masala powder
  • 1 tbsp ghee or oil
  • 1 tsp lemon juice
  • 1 tsp Kasuri methi
  • Salt to taste
  • Coriander leaves to garnish

Method:

  • Pressure cook the chana dal with 1/2 tsp turmeric powder till it is mushy and keep aside. If using a stovetop to cook the dal, stir till the dal is mushy and keep adding water as required. Keep aside.
  • In a blender, blend together the tomatoes, garlic, ginger and chillies to a fine paste and keep aside.
  • Heat the oil or ghee in a pan and when warm, add in the mustard seeds. When they pop, add the cumin seeds and stir for a couple of seconds. Then add the curry leaves and stir well.
  • Add the onions and cook until the onions become translucent.
  • Then add the blended tomato paste and stir well. To this mixture add the balance spices – turmeric powder, red chilli powder, cumin powder, coriander powder, asafoetida powder, garam masala powder and salt and stir well till the oil starts leaving the sides of the pan.
  • At this point, pour in the cooked chana dal and adjust your seasoning if needed. Let the dal come to a rolling boil and just before you switch off the gas, crush the Kasuri methi leaves in the palms of your hands and stir.
  • Before serving, drizzle the lemon juice and serve garnished with coriander leaves.
  • Serve hot with rice or any Indian flatbread.

Recipes: Simple Chana Dal

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Today was one of those days when I didn’t really feel like cooking anything! But I had to make something for S and the children, so thought of making a very simple dal to go with a vegetable stir fry. Here’s a very simple dal which you can make in minutes, but which is so hearty and tasty.

Simple Chana Dal

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup chana dal (Split chickpeas), soaked in water for 10 minutes
  • 2 medium sized onions, finely chopped
  • 1 large tomato, finely chopped
  • 1 tbsp grated or finely chopped ginger
  • 1 tbsp grated or finely chopped garlic
  • 1 tsp cumin seeds
  • 3-4 dried red chillies
  • 1/4 tsp turmeric powder
  • 1/8 tsp asafoetida
  • 1 tbsp Kasuri Methi (dried fenugreek leaves)
  • 2 tbsp ghee
  • 1 tbsp lemon juice

Method:

  • Boil the soaked chana dal in a pan or the pressure cooker with the turmeric powder and asafoetida until it is cooked and slightly mushy. At this point, beat it well till it becomes a homogenous mass. Keep aside.
  • In a separate pan, heat the ghee and when it becomes warm, add the cumin seeds and let them pop. Break the chillies into smaller pieces and add it to the oil. Then add the ginger and garlic and stir for a few minutes till the aroma is released.
  • Next, add the onions and saute till the onions become translucent.
  • At this point, add the tomatoes and a bit of salt to cook the tomatoes. Let the tomatoes become mushy and completely cooked.
  • Then pour cooked dal into the tomato-onion mixture and bring it to a rolling boil. Check for seasoning and add more salt if needed.
  • Crush the kasuri methi between the palms of your hands and sprinkle this over the dal. Boil for another 5 minutes and switch off the flame.
  • Drizzle the lemon juice over the dal and serve hot with rice and a dry vegetable or even with Indian flatbreads.