Dal - it's dal-icious!

I love dal. In fact, I think I could live on that and little else. It is also an incredibly cheap form of protein. Gram, channa, moong, maske, masur... life is too short to try all the variations of different dals and spices combinations.
This recipe uses the last - known to most as red lentils. The advantage is they cook quickly and have little flavour of their own, so the seasoning can be changed to make a different dal.

What you need

• about 1 cup of red lentils
• 3-4 cups of water or vegetable broth
• Salt to taste
• 2 teaspoons turmeric
• 2 large onions, diced
• 1-2 green chillis, finely chopped
• 3 teaspoons fresh ginger, grated
• 2 cloves fresh garlic, finely chopped
• 4 tomatoes, diced
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh coriander leaf (save a bit for garnish)
• about ten fresh "curry" leaves
• 2 teaspoons whole mustard seed
• 1 teapoon whole cumin seed
• 2 teaspoons vegetable oil

Preparation

Heat the oil until it smokes. Plunge the mustard and cumin seeds and the curry leaves in and stir for a minute or so. The seeds will pop - don't worry, just try to keep them in the pan! Reduce the heat, then add the remaining spices. Let this cook for a further couple of minutes, then add everything else. Bring to the boil, then simmer in a covered pan for 15-20 minutes, until the lentils are mushy. Add a little more water if it gets too dry, A little extra finely chopped coriander leaf makes a nice garnish.

Added goodies if you have them: Coconut milk and flesh (grated, about 2 teaspoons), a fat knob of butter, tomato pureé. Experiment and try!

Excellent,
Tommorow is Dal day in this house.

Many thanks Midight Toker.

yep, a truly versatile dish. i like to boil the dhal until it does go abit dry, & then transfer it to a frying pan with about 4 tablespoons ov butter(it's good for you) on high heat. butter soaks into the dhal, fry for 5 mins or so, then serve w/slices ov fresh tomato

abraxus, mmmm fried dal is great, isn't it? No matter what little dhaba you arrive in on the all-day bus ride, you're sure to be able to get "dal fry."

Barry - forgot to add on the recipe: some people don't much care for the taste of fresh coriander leaf (they liken the smell to cat's urine, can't understand that myself as I love coriander), so if you are one of these, substitute about 2-3 teaspoons of ground coriander seed (called Dhania in Hindi) for the leaf and add after the seeds.

I have to ask, but what are "curry" leaves?

I looked all over the supermarket, and could only find curry powder.

The city I'm in has lots of Chinese but not many Indian shops.

"Curry" leaves will not be stocked in any Western supermarket that I can imagine.

The curry leaf plant is a tropical tree of the citrus family. The long slender leaflets are dark green on top and paler underneath. They have a strong, warm curry aroma when bruised or rubbed. They have absolutely nothing to do with curry powder, but add an authentic taste to any Indian dish.

I buy mine fresh from the Indian delicatessen and then freeze them (coz you get rather too many to use at once). I think dried ones will be available in any Indian food shop, but they're not so good. You can leave them out of the recipe if you can't find them, the effect is quite subtle, like using bay leaves in a sauce.

Many thanks for the recipe, the dal turned out great. The leftovers where fried up the following night. Using butter made it taste fantastic.

I am about to make some more and I woul like to know, what should I add more of to get it a bit spicier?

Many thanks again.

Barry, you spicy devil!

Glad the dal turned out well. Did you track down any curry leaves?

I have to confess that I never use measures when making dal these days - it's all guesstimation, and I erred on the safe side with the spices in this recipe, as many people like it mild. Just increase the amounts of turmeric, cumin, coriander, mustard and ginger in proportion to get it spicier, although you might find a little less turmeric better as too much of that has a strange effect on the overall balance. More chillies, too - but I recommend taking it in small increments here as you can make a curry uneatable with over-enthusiastic chilli-ing! When the spicing is quite strong, I like to add a little lemon/lime juice (say 1 teaspoon) to balance the effect of all the spices. You can add other spices as well (like fenugreek, cinnamon, clove, asofoetida...) but it's best to use tiny amounts first as the effects are more noticeable.

Happy cooking!

you will probably notice that any curry tastes better the next day, as the spices continue to develop. if you have the time, it's great to just let your cooked dhal sit for 24hrs before re-heating throughly & serving.
fried dhal, swimming in fragrant butter- dhal makahani? - is that right?
a real comfort food- i even like it a little crispy, yummm.

When I go to India I bring a plant back to the UK with me and it survives as long as I look after it - very much like bay leaves.
When I can't get fresh - dried are ok as they soften in the dhal.
Taste wonderful and can be eaten when re-hydrated

you can get curry leaves in thai supermarkets
here in my city i m lucky i can also get fresh paan leaves