dal recipes

A creamy, decadent green lentil dal makhani style curry that is simple to make at home in one pot! Serve this vegetarian delight with naan bread or rice.

Green Lentil Dal Makhani

onion

garlic,

Tbsp ginger

tomatoes

tsp cumin seeds

tsp fenugreek seeds (or you can substitute mustard seeds)

tsp chili powder (see notes)

Tbsp garam masala

turmeric

(1 cup) dried green lentils

kidney beans, drained and rinsed

milliliters (1/4 cup) double cream / heavy cream

(2 Tbsp) salted butter

Salt & pepper

coriander (cilantro) leaves to garnish.

In a medium-large saucepan, heat a glug of...

In a medium-large saucepan, heat a glug of olive oil and sautee onion until soft.

Add the garlic, ginger, cumin seeds and fenugreek...

Add the garlic, ginger, cumin seeds and fenugreek seeds. Mix for another minute or so until the fragrances start to release.

Add the tomatoes a small pat of the...

Add the tomatoes a small pat of the butter (holding the rest back to mix in at the end) and simmer for around 5 minutes, stirring frequently, until they break down and start to reduce.

Add the chili powder, turmeric and garam masala...

Add the chili powder, turmeric and garam masala and stir through. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Add the kidney beans, green lentils and 2.5...

Add the kidney beans, green lentils and 2.5 cups of boiling water.

Simmer for 30 minutes until the lentils are...

Simmer for 30 minutes until the lentils are soft. (That's just a minimum - you can leave it simmering longer if you like.)

Remove from the heat. Stir in the cream...

Remove from the heat. Stir in the cream and butter until melted in.

Let set for about 5 minutes before serving.

Scatter with coriander (cilantro) leaves after dishing it...

Scatter with coriander (cilantro) leaves after dishing it up.

Chataka Dal is a spicy flavorful Dal from the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is made from yellow split pigeon peas simmered along with tomatoes, then seasoned with a spicy chili tempering. Gluten-free, soy free and nut free.

Chataka Dal Spicy Maharashtrian Toor Dal

tomato (chopped small)

cilantro

salt

water

mustard seeds

cumin seeds

asafoetida ((hing))

curry leaves (fresh or frozen or dried)

garlic (finely chopped)

Kashmiri chili powder (or use paprika)

cayenne

Lemon juice and cilantro

Cook the split peas or lentils: wash the lentils/dal and soak in hot water for 10 minutes then drain and add to a sauce pan. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix. Cook over medium heat, partially covered. Depending on the dal it will take anywhere between 35 to 55 minutes.

If using chana dal, use a pressure cooker and pressure cook 18-20 minutes. It might take up to 2 hours in a saucepan if the dal is too old.

To pressure cook the dal, use only 2 cups of water and add the rest of the ingredients with the washed and drained dal to an instant pot or pressure cooker and pressure cook for 10 minutes for the split pigeon pea / toor dar, 6 minutes for moong dal and 18 minutes for chana dal. Let the pressure release naturally for 10 mins then quick release, then open the lid.

Make the tempering. Add oil to a skillet over medium high heat. Once the oil is hot, you can check the oil by putting 1 or 2 mustard seeds and see if they start to change colour immediately. If they don’t then let the oil get hot for another minute or 2. If they pop out immediately, the oil is a bit too hot, reduce heat a bit and continue.

Add the mustard seeds to the hot oil and cook until either the mustard seeds pop or change color and lighten significantly. Then add the cumin seeds and mix well for a few seconds. Then reduce the heat to medium and add the curry leaves, asafoetida and mix in for another few seconds. Then add garlic carefully and mix in really well.

If you’re using an electric stove, take pan off the stove because the electric stove takes longer to reduce the heat. Also add in 1 more teaspoon of oil if pan is overheated.

As soon as  the garlic is starting to turn golden, mix really well then add in the Kashmiri chili powder, cayenne and mix in. Take the pan off heat.

Drop this tadka/tempering into the dal. I usually put the dal into a serving container before adding the tadka so that tempering can be swirled in and not mixed in completely.

If your tempering doesn’t have enough oil then you can add in a few splashes of water to get all of the tempering and pour this hot tempering all over the cooked dal. Swirl it in.

Garnish with lemon juice and cilantro and serve immediately, with flatbread, bhakri or rice. This Chataka dal goes incredibly well with rice.

How to cook dal in instant pot using step by Step pictures.Instant pot - how to cook toor dalMode : Bean / ChilliPressure level : LowTimer : 20 minsRelease : NPR(Natural pressure release)

How to Cook Dal in Instant Pot

toor dal

Take toor dal in a bowl.

Add water to it, rinse it well at least 2-3 times.

Drain water.

Now add water to it. I transferred to my cooker stacking bowl.

Add turmeric powder and a few drops of oil.

Keep covered.

Place the trivet inside the inner pot.Pour 1 cup water to it.

Place the bowl inside on the trivet.

Now close with lid.

Inititally the steel button is down.

Press the bean / chilli mode.

Keep pressure level low.

Now the instant pot has started.It takes few mins to change from ON to timer(in bean mode its 20 mins) and only when then the timer is shown the actual cooking time starts.

Inititally the steel knob is down and when it starts to cook it automatically goes up. When the knob is up it means cooking is in process/started and when its down pressure is released and you are ready to open the lid. Do not open the lid when the knob is up.

Bean / chilli mode automatically sets temperature to 20 mins. The timer is shown so the actual cooking time starts only. You can either change this 20 mins or leave it as such. Make it 25 mins if its for sambar / rasam and you need nicely mushy dal. Incase if you want to use dal for kootu, dal tadka etc 20 mins will be enough.

20 mins done and it gives a beep sound to indicate that its done.

After the time is over, it automatically goes to keep warm mode but still the steel know will be up only. Now you can either manually pressure release or naturally let it release. I usually let it release naturally, it takes from 10 mins to 30 mins depending on the water content inside. But incase if you are in a hurry, release it after 10 mins. Only when the steel button goes down(indicates that pressure is released) its ready to open so keep an eye.

Incase you want to manually pressure release push 'press' button.

Open the lid.

Dal is cooked.

Mash it well and use it for your recipes.

Top 3 dal recipes recipes from across the web

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Top Tags

Green Lentil Dal Makhani

Chataka Dal Spicy Maharashtrian Too...

How to Cook Dal in Instant Pot

Top 3 dal recipes recipes from across the web

The most viewed dal recipes recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 6,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engineic_arrow_forward_48px

Top Tags

Green Lentil Dal Makhani

Chataka Dal Spicy Maharashtrian Too...

How to Cook Dal in Instant Pot

The most viewed dal recipes recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 6,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engine