Daal recipe?

2

Replies

  • laserturkey
    laserturkey Posts: 1,680 Member
    There's an excellent cookbook called "5 Spices 50 Dishes" that serves as a gentle introduction to Indian cooking. One of the recipes in the book is an everyday yellow dal, and it is delicious. A more advanced cookbook is "How To Cook Indian" by Sanjeev Kapoor. That one has several dal recipes, and I've loved every one I've tried.
  • Mumbles83
    Mumbles83 Posts: 626 Member
    This is the recipe i use for Daal

    Daal Base

    100g Masoor Daal ( Red Lentils )
    100g Moong Dal ( Split Yellow Mung Beans )
    1.2 Litres Water
    1/2 tsp Ground Turmeric
    2 tsp Salt

    Tadka

    2 tsp Ghee
    2 Dried Red Chilies
    Pinch Asafoetida
    4 cloves of garlic ( Finely Chopped )
    1 onion ( Finely Chopped )
    1 Tomato ( Finely Chopped )
    2.5cm Fresh Ginger ( Chopped )
    2 green Chilies ( Chopped )
    1 tbsp Fresh Coriander ( Chopped )


    Method

    For the Daal Base

    Wash the Red and Yellow Lentils and drain well, put in a pan with the water turmeric and salt, bring to the boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 30 to 40 minutes remove from heat and keep warm


    For the Tadka
    heat the ghee in a pan add the whole red chilies, asafoetida, and cumin seeds allow them to crackle.
    Add the garlic, onion and saute over a medium heat until golden.
    Add the chili powder and cook for a minute
    Add the tomato and cook for 5 minutes
    Add the ginger, green chilies and coriander, then pour the mixture over the lentils

    taste for seasoning !!
  • Omg! I have to try all of these! Bump
  • KauandMe
    KauandMe Posts: 45 Member
    Lentils are my new favorite food. Bump!
  • Mumbles83
    Mumbles83 Posts: 626 Member
    Black Daal

    250g Black Urid Lentils ( soaked over night, at least 8 hours )
    2.5 Litres Water
    4 Tbsp Oil
    2 Black Cardamon Pods
    1 Green Cardamon Pod
    1 Bay Leaf
    1 tbsp Chopped Garlic
    1 1/2 Garlic-Ginger Paste
    1 tbsp Chili Powder
    1 1/2 tsp salt
    6 Tomatoes ( peeled, deseeded and chopped )

    50g salted butter
    1 tsp dried fenugreek leaves
    1 tsp garam masala
    1 tsp sugar
    4 tbsp single cream


    Method

    Daal Base

    Bring Lentils and water to the boil and simmer for 45 mins to 1 hour ( until they are tender but not mushy )
    Heat the oil in a large pan and add the cardamons and bay leaf until the crackle add the garlic and stir until golden then add the ginger- garlic paste, saute for 3 - 4 minutes.
    Add chili powder, salt and tomato and cook for 5 minutes.
    Add the lentils and the cooking liquid to the pan and cook over a medium heat, stirring constantly until mashed and throughly incorporated into the mixture
    Add the buttera little at a time and keep stirring to prevent it separating.
    stir in the fenugreek leaves, garam masala, sugar and cream

    check for seasoning !!
  • radeema
    radeema Posts: 161 Member
    not really, there are different versions of ways to cook daal. a basic mung bean version was listed. There is also a black lentil daal called daal makhani which is popular at indian restaurants in the US, that tastes very different from basic yellow daal.

    There is also masala daal (spiced daal), etc.
  • mrshoneydew
    mrshoneydew Posts: 253
    Lentil Daal is my specialty. It's what I'm known for. It's delicious and easy as heck to make, I can cook it in my sleep by now. I don't have time to put together my recipe at the moment (it's in my head), but I will try to post it here later tonight. :)
    I live on curry. Yum yum!
  • JeneticTraining
    JeneticTraining Posts: 663 Member
    Buh-bump
  • kureiko
    kureiko Posts: 48 Member
    Bump
  • lilawolf
    lilawolf Posts: 1,690 Member
    Wow! So glad I checked back on this thread! Thank you all SO MUCH for the links and recipes! The one I had was a mixed Daal, but I'm pretty open.
  • pennydreadful270
    pennydreadful270 Posts: 266 Member
    I love a really spicy daal when I have a cold, but I'm afraid my recipe would be no use because it goes like this-

    Chop an onion really finely, fry in a bit of oil until soft. Add daal spice mix, fry for a minute. Add lentils, water, put on pan lid. Come back in 15-20 minutes. Eat daal.
  • mrshoneydew
    mrshoneydew Posts: 253
    All of the recipes here are so awesome sounding and are more authentic than mine. My version is very simple which works great for my busy lifestyle, and it's pretty low calorie (unsure of how many calories, but I estimate a cup of the lentil daal mixture to be under 300 cals).
    As far as a recipe for this goes, this is the best I can come up with because I don't measure things, I gauge everything by sight.

    First, make the lentils then the curry so that you can add them as soon as the curry is done (add more oil if needed).
    I don't measure the lentils, but any bag you get should have instructions. I would say 2 cups worth is good for these measurements.

    Ingredients:
    2 TBS of Vegetable oil
    1 Cup of Chopped white onion
    1 TBSP of powdered ginger
    1 can of drained diced tomatoes (I like petite cut)
    1 bunch of chopped cilantro
    1/2 TSP of cayenne pepper
    1 1/2 TSP of curry powder
    salt to taste
    1 pinch of sugar to cut acidic taste
    Heat oil in skillet.
    Saute onions till golden.
    Add spices and canned tomatoes.
    Cover and cook over a low heat until tomatoes lose their raw taste.
    Stir in the lentils. If it's too thick, you can add a little water or coconut milk if you'd like.
    Serve with rice, cous cous, or potatoes.
  • UrbanLotus
    UrbanLotus Posts: 1,163 Member
    First, make the lentils then the curry so that you can add them as soon as the curry is done (add more oil if needed).
    I don't measure the lentils, but any bag you get should have instructions. I would say 2 cups worth is good for these measurements.

    Off topic but I always wonder what non-Indians mean by "curry" - what part of this is the "curry" you're referring to?
  • I've made this for my family a couple times. Even my 2 year old likes it.

    Saute the onion in olive oil, add everything else, simmer until the lentils and squash are done (20-30 minutes).

    Lentils - 1 cup (uncooked)
    Spices - Turmeric, ground, 0.5 tsp
    Oil - Olive, 1 tablespoon
    Onion - 1 med
    Spices - Cumin, 2 tsp
    Garlic - 1 clove
    Ortega - Mild Fire Roasted Diced Green Chiles, 4 tbsp
    Hunt's - Tomatoes, Petite, Diced, Canned - 1 container (1 4/5 cups ea.)
    Squash - Butternut, 2 cup, cubes
    Chickpeas (garbanzo beans, bengal gram) - Cooked, boiled, without salt, 2.5 cup


    Per Serving: 196 33 4 9 147 7
  • mockchoc
    mockchoc Posts: 6,573 Member
    Ok I found mine! The author says it's the tastiest dahl they ever had and I agree!

    1 cup red lentils
    2 1/2 cups water
    1 large onion chopped
    1 tsp each tumeric, ground coriander, ground cumin, grated fresh ginger
    1 or 2 small red chillies
    1 Tbsp oil
    1-2 tsp of the spice mix
    1 tsp each salt and sugar
    2 Tbsp lemon juice
    1 Tbsp butter (optional) but I prefer to have it in.

    *Spice mix: Mix equal volumes of black mustard seeds, cumin seeds, fennel seeds and fenugreek. Store i an airtight jar.

    Wash and drain the lentils, then simmer them in a covered pot with the next eight ingredients for 20-30 minutes until thick and mushy.

    While this cooks, in a small pan heat the oil, add the spice mix spices and cook until they brown lightly and smell aromatic. Remove from the heat and add the salt and sugar.

    When the lentils are almost cooked, stir in the spice mixutre. Adjust seasonings to taste, adding a tablespoon of butter if you like and the lemon juice. The dahl will thicken on cooling and standing. Serve it warm or cold. Refigerate for up to 4 days.

    Nice with poppadums or rolled up on naan or mountain bread. Add greated carrot, lettuce leaves, sliced celery and grated cheese if you like. Roll up tightly.
  • gmallan
    gmallan Posts: 2,099 Member
    BUMP for variations I LOVE dahl
  • togmo
    togmo Posts: 257
    Thankyou so much for all these recipes. I am very glad I have had some time this afternoon to discover the forums here.

    I have always loved Dahl but I never make it myself, time to change that...
  • taaaters
    taaaters Posts: 70
    I'm keen to try a couple of these, I made a recipe I found in a local paper last week and was really disappointed :(
  • taunto
    taunto Posts: 6,420 Member
    First, make the lentils then the curry so that you can add them as soon as the curry is done (add more oil if needed).
    I don't measure the lentils, but any bag you get should have instructions. I would say 2 cups worth is good for these measurements.

    Off topic but I always wonder what non-Indians mean by "curry" - what part of this is the "curry" you're referring to?

    I think anything thats like a "gravy" or "salan" or "shorba" is "curry" to them. As long as its spicy
  • mrshoneydew
    mrshoneydew Posts: 253
    Sorry, that's the only way I know to describe it where it makes sense. I call the sauce mixture that has all the spices (including curry spice) and oil mixed in the "curry". I love Indian cooking, I got really into it about 7 years ago but I admit that I still don't know all the correct terms and names.
    I don't think I'm the only one though, because I've only known the sauce (base) made with curry before putting in the vegetables and other things as curry sauce.
  • hookilau
    hookilau Posts: 3,134 Member
    Thought I'd throw my hat in the ring with my mom's go-to dhal recipe, however, I'm not one for re-inventing the wheel :laugh:

    To this end, this link not only has the basic Trini recipe but pics as well. It's very much the same way we make ours, I use a crock pot though. For whatever reason, I can't convince my mom that the crock pot is just as easy as cooking on the stove. But then again, she still refers to newspaper as 'gazette' :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

    http://caribbeanpot.com/tag/trinidad-dhal-recipe/
  • JMCW2004
    JMCW2004 Posts: 3 Member
    Sorry, new here...what is bump???
  • UrbanLotus
    UrbanLotus Posts: 1,163 Member
    Sorry, that's the only way I know to describe it where it makes sense. I call the sauce mixture that has all the spices (including curry spice) and oil mixed in the "curry". I love Indian cooking, I got really into it about 7 years ago but I admit that I still don't know all the correct terms and names.
    I don't think I'm the only one though, because I've only known the sauce (base) made with curry before putting in the vegetables and other things as curry sauce.

    No problem, I always wondered because it seems like people just refer to all Indian food as "curry", which it is not! We don't even use curry powder (Brit invention) and when we say "curry" it just means a dish is a main ingredient with a sauce/gravy - so it doesn't really tell you anything about the dish except that it isn't dry, it has nothing to do with what it tastes like. Daal isn't a curry because it is just a dish itself.

    Nope you definitely aren't the only one, it just sounds strange to Indians lol. The mixture/"sauce" you're talking about is masala - that refers to a mixture of onions, spices etc that make up the base of most North Indian food (we don't make it with curry powder, so curry is a total misnomer lol).
  • zahid222
    zahid222 Posts: 233 Member
    bump
  • Mumbles83
    Mumbles83 Posts: 626 Member
    Sorry, that's the only way I know to describe it where it makes sense. I call the sauce mixture that has all the spices (including curry spice) and oil mixed in the "curry". I love Indian cooking, I got really into it about 7 years ago but I admit that I still don't know all the correct terms and names.
    I don't think I'm the only one though, because I've only known the sauce (base) made with curry before putting in the vegetables and other things as curry sauce.

    No problem, I always wondered because it seems like people just refer to all Indian food as "curry", which it is not! We don't even use curry powder (Brit invention) and when we say "curry" it just means a dish is a main ingredient with a sauce/gravy - so it doesn't really tell you anything about the dish except that it isn't dry, it has nothing to do with what it tastes like. Daal isn't a curry because it is just a dish itself.

    Nope you definitely aren't the only one, it just sounds strange to Indians lol. The mixture/"sauce" you're talking about is masala - that refers to a mixture of onions, spices etc that make up the base of most North Indian food (we don't make it with curry powder, so curry is a total misnomer lol).

    isnt it Tadka ?
  • UrbanLotus
    UrbanLotus Posts: 1,163 Member
    Nope tadka isn't a base - it's spices tempered in oil & added to a dish (like daal) at the very end.
  • Mumbles83
    Mumbles83 Posts: 626 Member
    Nope tadka isn't a base - it's spices tempered in oil & added to a dish (like daal) at the very end.

    i thought we were on the subject of Daal though ! hmmmm


    Edit ... Now i re read your post haha i notice the word base !! oops
  • Natihilator
    Natihilator Posts: 1,778 Member
    bumping this because I could eat Daal every day, mm mm good!
  • mrshoneydew
    mrshoneydew Posts: 253
    Sorry, that's the only way I know to describe it where it makes sense. I call the sauce mixture that has all the spices (including curry spice) and oil mixed in the "curry". I love Indian cooking, I got really into it about 7 years ago but I admit that I still don't know all the correct terms and names.
    I don't think I'm the only one though, because I've only known the sauce (base) made with curry before putting in the vegetables and other things as curry sauce.

    No problem, I always wondered because it seems like people just refer to all Indian food as "curry", which it is not! We don't even use curry powder (Brit invention) and when we say "curry" it just means a dish is a main ingredient with a sauce/gravy - so it doesn't really tell you anything about the dish except that it isn't dry, it has nothing to do with what it tastes like. Daal isn't a curry because it is just a dish itself.

    Nope you definitely aren't the only one, it just sounds strange to Indians lol. The mixture/"sauce" you're talking about is masala - that refers to a mixture of onions, spices etc that make up the base of most North Indian food (we don't make it with curry powder, so curry is a total misnomer lol).
    Good to know, thanks!
  • UrbanLotus
    UrbanLotus Posts: 1,163 Member
    Nope tadka isn't a base - it's spices tempered in oil & added to a dish (like daal) at the very end.

    i thought we were on the subject of Daal though ! hmmmm

    We are, not sure what the confusion is? Daal doesn't use masala/a base, instead it has tadka which is different and added in the end.