Dal or lentil broth is perhaps a person’s best friend in summer. When the heat soars, we tend to feel lethargic and a loss of appetite ensues. Spicy food, though much-loved in winter, tends to take a step back. Our body yearns for something light on the stomach, something to cool the body from inside and thus keep us refreshed and healthy.
This is where the dal (lentils) steps in. From childhood, every lunch sees a bowl of the yellow liquid that is power-packed with protein on the table.
Bengal sports a number of dals that are cooked in different ways. They taste good, avoid too many spices and hence keep the stomach cool. It is alkaline in nature, hence helps to keep a check on acidity. It is filling as it is fibre-rich. So weight-conscious people can eat a bowlful and feel no remorse.
Furthermore, in some dals, vegetables are also added — seasonal ones — like gourd, ash gourd and radish that are coolers themselves, though radish is strictly speaking a winter vegetable. It pairs beautifully with matar or split pigeon lentils.
Also, bitter and sour-tasting vegetables help beat the heat too. Hence they are also added to the dals, to make them healthy to a greater extent.
Here are a few dal recipes to help tide the strong sunshine. Enjoy!
1. Toke Dal
Serves: 2
Ingredients:
- 80 gms moong dal (green gram)
- 1 raw mango (small or according to taste)
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 tsp ginger paste
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp black mustard seeds
- 2 sprigs coriander leaves (optional)
- 1 tsp panch phoron
- 1 tbsp mustard oil
- ½ turmeric powder
- 1 red chilli (whole)
- 1 green chilli
Method:
- Thinly slice the mango. Leave the skin on. Once done, rub some salt on the mango slices and keep it aside.
- Next, boil the dal with salt and turmeric powder and green chilli, till it becomes soft. Alternatively, one could also pressure cook it for two whistles on a medium flame.
- If you are boiling the dal in a pan/pot, add the mango slices after the dal boils. If you are using a pressure cooker, add the mango slices with the dal.
- Once boiled, add the ginger paste and sugar.
- Using a separate pan, add oil. Once it tempers, add the mustard seeds, red chilli and let it splutter. Then add this to the dal.
- Sprinkle panch phoron powder on top. Cover it, and let it cool down completely. Garnish with coriander leaves.
- Serve at room temperature.
2. Teto Dal
Serves: 2
Ingredients
- 1 tsp ginger paste (separate the juice from the fibre and keep them both)
- 1 medium-sized bitter gourd, sliced
- ½ tsp mustard seeds
- Salt to taste
- 3 tbsp oil
- ¼ turmeric powder
- ½ tsp sugar
- ½ ghee (clarified butter)
- A pinch of asafoetida (hing)
- 1 red chilli (whole)
- 1 bay leaf
- ¼ tsp cumin seeds
- 125 gms moong dal (green gram)
Method:
- Cut the bitter gourd into thin slices and remove the seeds.
- Fry the bitter gourd with two tablespoons of oil and keep it aside.
- To boil the dal, add salt. Once the dal comes to a boil, add the slices of bitter gourd.
- Next, add the ginger juice extract and turn the flame off.
- Using a separate pan, add the rest of the oil. Once heated, add asafoetida, mustard seeds, cumin seeds, red chilli powder, turmeric powder and the ginger paste fibre. Let it splutter.
- Add it over the dal, and then add sugar. Stir well.
- Lastly, top the dal off by adding ghee and cover it for five minutes to let all the flavours permeate.
- Serve hot with steamed rice.
3. Moong dal with gourd
Serves: 2
Ingredients
- 125 gms moong dal (green gram)
- 250 gms gourd (cubed or shredded)
- 1 tbsp oil
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 1 bay leaf
- Salt to taste
- 2 green chillies
- 1 red chilli
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 tsp ghee (clarified butter)
- ¼ cup coriander leaves
Method
- Dry roast the moong dal on low flame on a pan. Once the nutty aroma rises, transfer it to a separate plate or else the dal will burn.
- Using a pressure cooker, add the dal, gourd, salt and green chilli. Let it sit on a medium flame for three whistles.
- Once the mix becomes soft, remove it from flame.
- In a thick-bottomed pan, add oil, cumin seed, bay leaf and red chilli. Let it splutter.
- Next pour the dal and the gourd into the pan and bring it up to a boil. Sauté well.
- Now add the sugar and give it one last stir before switching off the flame.
- Switch off the flame and top the dish by adding ghee and coriander leaves. Cover and let it rest for five minutes before serving.
- Serve hot with steamed rice and potato sticks.
4. Moong dal with coconut
Serves: 2
Ingredients:
- 100 gms moong dal (green gram)
- 150 gms coconut (shredded or sliced. If you are using sliced coconut, fry it separately with 2 tbsp of oil)
- 1 tbsp oil
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 1 bay leaf
- Salt to taste
- 2 green chillis
- 1 red chilli
- 1½ tbsp sugar
- 1 tbsp ghee (clarified butter)
- 25 gms tomato (chopped)
Method:
- Dry roast the moong dal on low flame in a pan. Once a nutty aroma arises, move it to a cooler area or else the dal will burn.
- If you are adding sliced coconut, fry it and keep it aside.
- In a pressure cooker, add the dal, salt, tomato and green chilli. Let there be three whistles on a medium flame.
- Once soft, remove it from the flame.
- Using a thick-bottomed pan, add oil, cumin seeds, bay leaf and red chilli. Let it splutter.
- Next pour the dal into the pan and reduce the flame.
- If you are using shredded coconut, add it to the mix and then turn on the heat and let the dal come to a boil. Sauté well.
- Next, add the sugar and if you are using sliced-then-fried coconut. Sauté again.
- Turn the flame off and drizzle a teaspoon of ghee on top of the dal.
- Cover and let it rest for five minutes before serving hot with steamed rice and begun bhaja (fried eggplant fitters)).
Note: To make this dal extra rich when guests are invited, an addition of 100 ml of coconut milk would take it to a different level. Add the coconut milk while the dal is boiling in the pot, before adding the coconut.
5. Mushur (Masoor) dal with onions
Serves: 2
Ingredients:
- 100 gms masoor dal
- 1 onion (large, thinly sliced)
- ½ tsp kalonji (nigella seeds)
- 1 red chilli
- 1 green chilli
- Salt to taste
- ¼ tsp turmeric powder (optional)
- 30 gms tomato
Method:
- Wash the dal thoroughly.
- In a pressure cooker, add dal, water, salt, tomato, green chilli and turmeric powder (optional). Let it cook on a medium flame for two whistles.
- In a thick-bottomed pan, add oil, kalonji and red chilli. Once it splutters, add the sliced onions and fry until it turns light brown in colour.
- Once the onions are done, bring the heat to a low flame and add the dal.
- Bring it to a rolling boil. Then, mix the dal and onion.
- The amount of water used will depend upon how thin or thick one wants the dal to be. To have a medium consistency, 250 ml of water is ideally recommended.
6. Masoor dal with radhuni (wild celery seeds)
Serves: 2
Ingredients:
- 100 gms masoor dal
- 2 green chilli
- Salt to taste
- ¼ tsp turmeric powder
- 2 tsp ghee (clarified butter)
- ½ tsp radhuni (wild celery seeds)
- 1 red chilli
Method:
- Wash the dal thoroughly.
- In a pressure cooker add the dal, water, salt, turmeric powder and green chilli. Let it cook on a medium flame for two whistles.
- Using a thick-bottomed pan, add ghee (or oil), red chilli and radhuni (wild celery seeds). Once it splutters, add the dal in to the pan and bring it to a boil.
- Add water, depending on the consistency you prefer.
- Serve hot with steamed white rice.
7. Matar dal with radish
Serves: 2
Ingredients:
- 100 gms matar dal
- 100 gms radish
- ½ tsp kalonji (nigella seeds)
- Salt to taste
- 1 tsp sugar
- ¼ cup coriander leaves
- 1 tbsp oil
- 1 red chilli
- 1 to 2 tsp ghee (clarified butter)
- 25 gms tomato
Method:
- Wash the dal thoroughly.
- Thinly slice the radish.
- In a pressure cooker, add dal, radish, tomato and salt. Let it cook on a medium flame for three whistles.
- Using a separate thick-bottomed pan, add oil, red chilli and kalonji. Let it splutter.
- Lower the heat and add the dal to the pan.
- Let it come to a boil. Then, add the coriander leaves and sugar. Give it a nice stir and switch off the flame.
- Drizzle a little bit of ghee and let it rest for 10 minutes before serving it with hot, steamed rice and kooler achar (sweet plum pickle).
8. Urad Dal
Serves: 2
Ingredients:
- 100 gms urad dal
- A pinch of asafoetida (hing)
- Salt to taste
- 400 gms water
- 1 tbsp oil
- 2 red chillis
- 2 green chillis
- 1 bay leaf
- ½ tsp fennel seeds
- 20 gms ginger paste
- 1½ tsp sugar
- 1 tbsp ghee (clarified butter)
Method:
- Wash the dal thoroughly.
- In a pressure cooker add the dal, green chilli, water and salt. This dal takes a bit more time to soften than other dals, so cook it on a low flame for 10 minutes and two whistles.
- Using a thick-bottomed pan,add oil. Once the oil is hot, add asafoetida (hing), red chilli and bay leaf. Sauté well.
- Next, lower the heat and add fennel seeds and ginger paste. Sauté once again.
- Add the dal and mix well by increasing the flame.
- Once the dal comes to a boil, add the sugar and mix well.
- Switch off the flame and add ghee.
- Cover and rest for at least five minutes before serving with steamed rice.
9. Arhar (toor) dal
Serves: 2
Ingredients:
- 100 gms arhar dal
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- A pinch of asafoetida
- 1 bay leaf
- 30 gms tomato
- Salt to taste
- ½ tsp sugar
- ½ tsp turmeric powder
- 1 red chilli (whole)
Method:
- Wash the dal thoroughly.
- In a pressure cooker boil the dal along with salt, turmeric and tomato. Let it cook on a medium flame for two whistles.
- In a thick-bottomed pan, add oil, bay leaf, asafoetida (hing), cumin seeds and red chilli. Let it splutter.
- Next, pour the boiled dal over this.
- When the dal comes to a boil, add sugar and stir well before switching off the flame.
- Enjoy this with hot, steamed rice and spicy mango pickle.
- The writer specialises in Bengali cuisine and is an avid foodie
