TRADITIONAL, EVERY DAY DAAL
Description
Daal is cooked practically every day in Indian homes and eaten with rice or rotis, and a vegetable on the side. Here I have cooked one that is my favourite - a mix of yellow split mung dal with red lentils, on a ratio of 2:1. I always wanted this when I came home from boarding school as my first home cooked meal and this is how my mum made it.
There is so much flavour in the lentil mix, it needs only a simple garnish. I tend to use just a spoonful of rice in a bowlful of daal and enjoy it like a bowl of soup. It is comfort food for me!
Options:
This is a basic recipe for daal, so do experiment with other daals - split yellow peas (channa daal); whole mung lentils (green daal) or split black daal (urad) which is a cheats version of the black daal you get in restaurants. The cooking time in the pressure cooker will vary according to the daal, with the black daal taking the longest around 30 mins
In this daal, you can add a heap of chopped fresh spinach and a small additional bowl of chopped tomatoes into this before you put the pressure cooker lid on. It makes a wonderful variation.
A little temptation on my you tube video
Ingredients
For the Tempering (tadka)
Instructions
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Mix the two lentils and wash and rinse until the water isn't cloudy anymore.
Add the mix and 1/5 lites of water to a presure cooker.
Add the salt, tomato paste, chilli powder and lemon juice to the pot and close the lid.
For the variation, add 2 cups of freshly chopped spinach and 1 cup of chopped tomatoes before you close the lid.
Once the steam has sealed the lid, cook at medium heat for 20 minutes. Turn the heat off and let it cook further in the steam until the steam is released and you can open the lid.
Meanwhile make the temper separately to add to the daal.
Heat the oil and ghee in a small frying pan. Once it is hot, add the cumin and onion seeds so the crackle. (test with a few seeds)
Quickly add the onion and let it fry on medium heat until the onions are golden and slightly charred on the edges. This takes a little time so be patient.
Now add the tomatoes and garlic and let the mixture cook, stirring frequently, until the oil separates.
Finally add the turmeric and garam masala and mix well.
Open the cooker lid and give the daal a good stir. Stir in the mixture from the frying pan.
Add the butter and coriander before serving. Check for salt and lemon and add more according to taste.
This daal is perfect with basmati rice, a little of your favourite veg and some yoghurt. It is even better the next day!
From my kitchen to your table - Enjoy.
