Dhal (plain)

Dhal and steamed rice (dhal bhat) is a staple food in many Indian homes. Serve with a side dish of vegetables and you have a well balanced vegetarian meal.

Try this: Put some steamed rice on a plate, dot the rice with about 1/2 tsp of ghee, ladle the dhal over the rice, and add a dollop of plain yoghurt. Serve with some chutney or pickle and one or more of the following side dishes: bean curry, sauteed spinach, sauteed bok choy, fried fish.

The consistency of dhal varies from runny, soup-like to a quiet thick. The recipe here is for a more soupy dhal that goes well with rice, although you can make it thicker if you prefer. If you leave the dhal to sit for a while, a clear liquid will rice to the top and the thicker dhal will settle at the bottom. Dhal thicken as it cools and you can always add more water to leftover dhal and reheat it. It you leave the dhal to stand for a while,

This recipe is for a basic dhal using toor, but you can use yellow split peas, channa dhal, red lentils or a combination of lentils. It is also quite common to add vegetables to the dhal. Traditional vegetables include eggplant, choko, raddish, gourd and drumstick. Variations to this recipe are given below. I usually use a pressure cooker as this cuts down on the cooking time. Soaking the lentils for several hours also reduces the cooking time.

Ingredients

• • 1 cup toor dhal

  • 1/2 tsp turmeric powder

  • 2 sprigs curry leaves

  • 1 tomato, chopped (optional)

  • 1/2 small onion

  • 2-3 cloves garlic

  • Salt to taste

  • 1 tbsp ghee or oil

  • 1/4 tsp mustard seeds

  • 1/4 tsp fenugreek seeds

  • 1/4 tsp cumin seeds

  • Pinch of asafoetida

  • Whole fresh or dried chilli or dried chilli flakes to taste (optional)

  • Squeeze of lemon or lime juice, or about a tbsp of tamarind paste

  • 2 tbsp chopped fresh coriander (optional)

Method

• 1. Wash the toor dhal in plenty of water, rinsing it three or four times until the water runs clear.

  2. Put the dhal in a large pot with about 5-6 cups of water together with the tomato, whole chilli (if using fresh chilli), 1/4 sliced onion, 1 sprig curry leaf, 1/2 tsp turmeric and salt and bring to boil. Simmer until the lentils are soft, stirring occasionally and skimming off any scum that rises to the surface. This takes about 30-40 minutes. Add more water if the dhal thickens too much before it is cooked. If using a pressure cooker, pressure cook for 5 minutes or follow instructions provided for your cooker.

  3. Crush the garlic, pick the leaves from the remaining sprig of curry leaf ad chop the remaining onion. In a small pan, heat the oil or ghee and add the seeds. When they pop, add the onion, curry leaves, garlic, chilli (if using dried) and a good pinch of asafoetida. Fry over moderate heat until the onions and garlic until golden brown. Pour this tempered mixture into the dhal. Stir well and add a squeeze of lemon or lime juice. Taste and adjust seasoning. Add the fresh and coriander and remove from heat.

Variations

• 1. Grind 2 cloves of garlic and about a half inch piece of ginger and add to the dhal in step 2.

  2. Add one of these vegetables to the lentils towards the end of step 2 and cook until both the lentils and vegetables are cooked before proceeding to step 3: 1 white raddish. peeled and sliced thickly; 1 medium eggplant, cut in wedges; 1 choko, peeled, and cut into wedges; 1 cup of chopped gourd; 2-3 drumsticks, lightly peeled and cut into -4 inch pieces; 1 carrot, diced

  3. Wash and soak about 1/2 cup 0f dried green mangoes (khattai) in some water until the pieces are re-hydrated. Add to the dhal at the end of step 2. As this add acidity to the dhal, make sure the lentils are cooked before adding the green mangoes. Leave out the lemon/line/tamarind.

  4. Add a teaspoon of sugar or some jaggery.

See also: Elcheri, Koottu and Sambhar for other kinds of dhal.