Everyday Dal

Everyday Dal

The warming, soothing and downright healing effects of dal are well known throughout South Asia and its diaspora. This is an everyday dish for a good reason: It’s simple to make but tastes complex, and the flavor only deepens over time. There are countless ways to make dal; this version requires just 10 minutes and five ingredients (not including salt), all serving important purposes: The lentils cook quickly, the turmeric lends an earthy wholesomeness and the rich chhonk, or tempering, made by sizzling spices with ghee, brings instant depth. To gussy it up, try adding a packet of frozen spinach, or stirring minced garlic into the chhonk. If you’re tempted to use ground cumin instead of cumin seeds, resist! The seeds have a distinctly smokier flavor and add a pleasant texture to the dal.

Yield: 4 servings

1 cup red lentils (also known as red split lentils or masoor dal)

1 teaspoon ground turmeric

Salt

3 tablespoons ghee

2 teaspoons cumin seeds

⅛ to ¼ teaspoon ground red chile

⅛ teaspoon asafetida (optional but extremely good, see Tip)

Rice or roti, for serving

Combine the lentils (no need to rinse them) with the turmeric, 1 teaspoon salt and 3 cups of water in a medium saucepan. If you like your dal a little soupier, add an extra cup of water here. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to a simmer, cover and cook for 5 to 8 minutes, until the lentils resemble a loose porridge. If the lentils are too thick, add a little hot water.

In a small pan or pot, melt the ghee over medium heat and add the cumin seeds. Let them cook until they are aromatic and a darker shade of brown, about 1 minute. Stir in the red chile powder and asafetida, let them toast for a few seconds until fragrant (the asafetida will give off a garlic-esque scent), then remove from the heat.

Taste the lentils and add more salt if desired. Pour the hot ghee over the lentils — you can either stir to combine or leave it be, for a dramatic presentation — and serve with rice or roti.

Tip: Asafetida is a tree resin used commonly as a seasoning in South Asian cuisines. It has a wonderfully potent, sort of allium-esque flavor that adds depth to many dishes. It can be ordered online or found in South Asian grocery stores, and it is worth going out of your way to purchase — it really makes this dish sing. An imperfect but somewhat suitable substitute is garlic powder.

Much as I love Priya Krishna, it is impossible to cook Dal of any type so quickly. One the source of heat, is it electric, gas, induction etc? Two the size & type of pot. Three the dal to water ratio. Four with or without a lid. Seriously it is no joke. And it is vital to add salt AFTER cooking as it will affect the texture. Ginger & Garlic are essential ingredients. Washing the dal ten times is a must. With an Instant Pot I make it in 17 minutes flat. Pure joy with the Instant Pot.Enjoy.

Always rinse red lentils. Many many times. One comment here suggests ten times. That sounds fine to me. Same with any dry beans, chick peas, green or brown lentils and rice. Especially rice. You can either take it from me and start doing that today or go to the trouble of visiting a rice factory in Thailand, India or Pakistan and start rinsing rice and pulses after getting home from that trip.

Dal Tadka

Dal Tadka

Rich and poor, festival fare or frugal meal, dal is the great leveler of Indian food and is a dish that's common across the extreme diversity of the country.

Ingredients

For the Daal:

1 cup tuvar daal (yellow lentils/pigeon peas)

1 1/2 teaspoons ghee (clarified butter)

Pinch asafoetida

1 teaspoon turmeric powder

2 1/2 cups water

Salt

For the Tadka:

1 1/2 tablespoons ghee

3 Mundu chiles (these are small, round chiles from South India, alternatively any dry red chile will do)

1 teaspoon whole black mustard seeds

1 teaspoon whole cumin seed, plus 1 1/2 teaspoons toasted and ground cumin seed

6 curry leaves

1/2 teaspoon asafoetida

1/4 teaspoon red chile powder

Directions

For the Daal: Wash and drain tuvar daal in a large fine mesh strainer. Heat ghee in pressure cooker over high heat until shimmering. Add asafoetida, turmeric, and washed daal. Cook, stirring frequently till the ghee coats the daal, about 20 seconds.

Add water and salt to taste. Close pressure cooker, increase heat to high, and heat until pressure cooker is pressurized to high pressure. Reduce heat to low and cook ten minutes. Remove from heat and allow pressure to dissipate.

Open pressure cooker and break up daal with a whisk. Set aside while you make the tadka.

For the Tadka: Heat ghee in a skillet over high heat until lightly smoking. Reduce heat to medium.

Add mundu chiles, mustard seeds, and whole cumin seed (stand away from skillet as the seeds pop). Wait until seeds sizzle, about 10 seconds, then add curry leaves and stir. Cook until the curry leaves sizzle, about 10 seconds longer, then add asafoetida, red chile and roasted cumin powder. Stir vigorously and immediately transfer all contents to the daal and lightly stir. Do not mix thoroughly. Some of the ghee should float on top. Serve immediately with white rice, Indian bread (roti), or as an accompaniment to any Indian meal.

*Well, nothing quite compares to the taste of asafoetida. But you can omit it and use a teaspoon of ginger-garlic paste.