Ben’s Home Cooking - Indian Menu

Indian Menu

Dal

Dal is Hindi for dried split legumes. If you go to an Indian grocery store you will find dozens of varieties of dal. My favorite variety of dal for this dish is toor dal, also known as toovar dal or pigeon pea. If you have problems with your blood sugar levels, I recommend channa dal, because it has an exceedingly low glycemic index.

1 cup Toor Dal or Channa Dal or Yellow Split Peas
2 Roma Tomatoes
2 teaspoons Coriander seeds
1 teaspoon Cumin seeds
½ teaspoon ground Degi Mirch (Indian Red Pepper)
½ teaspoon ground Turmeric
3 Tablespoons cooking fat
1 teaspoon Brown Mustard seeds
1 medium Onion, chopped
1 Tablespoon chopped Garlic
1 Tablespoon minced Ginger
1 teaspoon Salt
Tamarind to taste

The dal has to be rinsed and drained before cooking. If you presoak it, the cooking time will be cut in half. Add enough water to dal to make up 4 cups (1 liter). Simmer until almost all the water is gone, then remove from heat. Don’t add salt to dried legumes until after they’re finished cooking, or they won’t get soft.

The tomatoes should be peeled and this is actually quite easy. Boil enough water to cover the tomatoes and remove from heat. Add the tomatoes to the freshly boiled water and leave to sit for 1 minute. Remove the tomatoes from the hot water and plunge into cold water. Let tomatoes sit in the cold water for 1 minute. If the tomatoes have not been gentically modified, they will now be easy to peel with your fingers. After the tomatoes are peeled, chop them up.

The coriander seeds and cumin seeds have to be dry roasted, one type of seed at a time, before they are ground. To roast the spices, put each one in a small pan—don’t use a non-stick pan for this—and gently shake from side to side over medium-low heat. After a while the seeds will start to crackle, and shortly after that you should see a few wisps of smoke. When you see smoke, stop roasting the seeds and grind them in an electric coffee grinder while still warm. Mix degi mirch and turmeric into the roasted ground spices.

Soak a few Tablespoons of dried tamarind or 1 teaspoon tamarind concentrate in a few Tablespoons of water. When the tamarind is rehydrated, remove the seeds.

Heat cooking fat and add brown mustard seeds. Fry the seeds until they begin to pop, then add garlic and ginger and sauté without browning until their aromas are released. Now add the chopped onion and sauté without browning until the onion is soft and translucent. Then add the ground spices and sauté until their aromas are released.

Mix the cooked dal into the onion and spice mixture and add tomatoes and salt. Add tamarind to taste. Add enough water to make up 4 cups (1 liter) and simmer for 10 more minutes. The Dal is now ready to serve.