Indian Cooking: Dal Recipe (with green chilies from the garden)

Dal is a very common dish in India that is often served with rice, Indian breads, and different curries. Dal are lentils, peas, or beans that have been split in half. There are many types of legumes used in dal curries, but this one is masoor dal, which is a type of red lentil. Dal can be compared to a thick pea or lentil soup, but with a spicier flavor.

I made a double recipe - the leftovers reheat really well.

Here's what you'll need:

Notice the green chilies from my garden!

(Substitutions: You can use yellow split peas from the grocery store, and you can also use butter instead of ghee.)

First, rinse the dal a little bit. Pick out any debris.

Add the dal, water, and turmeric to a pot. Bring to a boil, then turn down the heat, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes or until soft.

1 cup dal

2 1/2 cups water

1/4 teaspoon turmeric

Get together the next group of ingredients:

2 Tablespoons vegetable oil

1 teaspoon cumin seeds

1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds

1 cup chopped onion

1-2 cloves garlic

1-2 green chilies

1 inch piece ginger

Pour the vegetable oil in the pan and heat it pretty high. Then add the seeds. Once they start to pop (watch out!) add the rest of these ingredients.

Stir-fry until the onions are soft.

Now add the tomatoes and some salt and cook for a couple minutes.

1 cup tomato

1 teaspoon salt

Add a little ghee for flavor.

1-2 Tablespoons ghee

Now the lentils should be ready. Taste it to make sure it is soft and then mash it a little with a large spoon - add water if needed. Add the other ingredients to the pot and mix together.

You can serve the dal with some steamed basmati rice, vegetable korma, and naan. Mmmmm - healthy and delicious!