A healthy, hearty moong dal preparation that goes great with rice, roti or paratha. In this recipe chilke wali moong dal is cooked with onions, tomatoes and simple spices to make a delicious and comforting lentil curry.
Prep Time10 minutesmins
Cook Time20 minutesmins
Total Time30 minutesmins
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Indian, Vegetarian
Keyword: Lentil curry
Servings: 4
Calories: 109kcal
Ingredients
1cupchilka moong dal(split green moong)
2clovesgarlic, chopped
½inchginger, chopped
1green chili, chopped
1onion, chopped
1 tomato, chopped
1pinch ofasafoetida(hing)
1tspcumin seeds
1tspcoriander powder
½tspturmeric powder
Salt to taste
2tbspghee, clarified butter/use oil for vegan preparation
Juice of 1 lime
Fresh coriander leaves for garnish
Instructions
Wash the moong dal under running water in a fine sieve. Soak for about 30 mins to an hour in warm water.
Heat 2 tbsp ghee (use oil for vegan dal recipe) in a pressure cooker. When the ghee is hot, add asafoetida and cumin seeds. When the seeds begin to crackle, add the chopped garlic, ginger and green chillies. Sauté for about a minute to flavour the ghee/oil with garlic.
Add onions, salt and turmeric. Cook for another 3-4 minutes, till the onions start to soften. Stir often so that the onions don’t stick to the pot.
Drain the dal and add the tomatoes, coriander powder and the drained dal to the pressure cooker. Mix well. Top with 3 cups of water. Close and pressure cook the dal for 3-4 whistles on medium heat (about 15 minutes).
Remove from heat and open the pressure cooker only after all the steam has escaped on its own.
Remove into a serving bowl, add lime juice and garnish with fresh coriander leaves. Serve hot with plain rice, pulao, roti, paratha or any other flat bread.
Notes
In India we cook most of our dals in a pressure cooker. It is more energy and time efficient. But moong dal chilka can easily be cooked in a regular stock pot. It will just take a little longer to soften.