Description
An everyday North Indian lentil dish.
Ingredients
Scale
For the Dal
- 1 tablespoon coriander seeds*
- 4 tablespoons butter**
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 2 dried chilis***
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 1 teaspoon garlic paste****
- 1 teaspoon ginger paste****
- 2 plum tomatoes, diced, grated, or pureed in the blender (your choice)
- 1/4 teaspoon turmeric
- 1/4 teaspoon red chili powder
- 1 cup red lentils/masoor dal
- 5 cups water
- 1/4 teaspoon garam masala
- 1/2 teaspoon salt or to taste
Toppings
- chopped cilantro
- sliced onion
- pickle
- yogurt
- lime wedges
Instructions
- Heat a heavy bottomed pot over medium heat. Add the coriander seeds and dry fry until their odor begins to smell roasted rather than lemony. Remove from heat and grind to a fine powder in a spice grinder.
- In the same pot, add the butter. When hot, add the cumin seeds and chili peppers. Fry until the cumin starts to smell toasted. Add the onions and cook until caramelized.
- Add the garlic and ginger pastes and cook for a minute, stirring well. Then, add the tomatoes, roasted coriander seed powder, turmeric, and chili powder and cook, stirring regularly, until the tomato no longer smells raw (or when the oil separates from the tomato).
- Add the lentils and water. When the water boils, turn the heat down to low and simmer for 40 minutes. 5 minutes before it finishes cooking, add the garam masala and the salt.
- Serve with rice or roti and any toppings you prefer.
Notes
If you don’t have coriander seeds or a spice grinder, then skip this step and add an additional 1/4 teaspoon of garam masala at the end. DO NOT add a tablespoon of ground coriander. The flavor will be overpoweringly lemon-y.
Would I use this much butter again? Yes. Could you use less, like 2 tablespoons? Definitely. Could you use oil? Absolutely.
I used Thai bird chilis but the chilis you buy at the Indian grocery store are best.
You can buy premed garlic and ginger paste, but I prefer to use a zesting grater, which gets them close enough to a paste.
Keywords: vegan, vegetarian, Indian food, dal, masoor dal, red lentils, pink lentils, dinner, rice dishes, healthy food