Maash ki dal

Maash ki daal or white urad dal has a slightly thick texture unlike other lentils. It has a nutty, warm and savory taste that goes very well with Indian breads like naan or tandoori roti. A tempering of ginger, red or green chillies, and mint adds a kick to this vegan dal!

Course Side

Cuisine Indian

Keyword dal maash, urad dal, vegan Indian recipes

Cook Time 30

Total Time 30

Servings

Calories 157kcal

Author Saima Zaidi

Equipment

6-quart Instant Pot Duo
Small frypan

Ingredients

For cooking the daal

3 tablespoon cooking oil
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 whole black cardamom
2-3 dry red chillies
1 tablespoon ginger paste
1 teaspoon garlic paste
½ cup red onions fried/caramelized
1 teaspoon coriander powder
1 teaspoon red chilli powder
½ teaspoon turmeric powder
¼ teaspoon garam masala powder
salt to taste
2 tablespoon thick tomato paste
1.5 cups maash or urad dal split and husked black gram lentils
1 tablespoon lemon juice

For the tempering and garnishing

1 tablespoon cooking oil
½ " fresh ginger julienned
2-3 green chillies chopped
A few leaves fresh mint chopped, or ¼ teaspoon dried mint

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Instant Pot

Rinse the dal and soak it in 1.5 cups water for 30 minutes.
Switch on your instant pot to sauté, and add the cooking oil. When the oil becomes medium-hot add the cumin, black cardamom, and dry red chillies. Fry for a few seconds only.
Add the ginger and garlic pastes, fried onions, coriander, red chilli, turmeric and garam masala powders as well as salt. Fry this masala for two minutes, adding a quarter to half cups water as needed.
Add the tomato paste and more water if needed and cook for two minutes, stirring the masala to keep it from sticking to the pot.
Add the lentils along with the water they were soaked in. Stir again and deglaze the pot.
Close the lid, make sure the steam release vent is sealed, and press the pressure cooking button (high). Set the timer to 5 minutes. Once the timer beeps, wait for 10 minutes before releasing the steam and opening the pot.
Check the consistency of the dal. If it is too liquidy, dry the excess liquid on sauté. If it is too dry, add a quarter to half cup water and cook on sauté for two minutes. Add the lemon juice to the dal.
Heat the cooking oil in a small frypan and add the ginger and green chilli. Fry for a few seconds only, then pour the oil over the dal gently. Sprinkle the mint leaves on top.

Stovetop

Rinse and soak the dal in 1.5 cups water for 30 minutes.
Boil 5 to 6 cups of water in a saucepan, add the dal, and cook for 20-25 minutes. Take a few grains between your finger and press to check for doneness. The grains should still resist pressure and not be overly soft.
Drain the dal and set it aside.
Heat the cooking oil in a frypan or saucepan and add the cumin, black cardamom, and dry red chillies. Fry for a few seconds only.
Add the ginger and garlic pastes, fried onions, coriander, red chilli, turmeric and garam masala powders as well as salt. Fry this masala for two minutes, adding a quarter to half cups water as needed.
Add the tomato paste and more water if needed and cook for two minutes, stirring the masala to keep it from sticking to the pot.
Add the cooked dal to this masala and half to one cup water. Cook the dal on low to medium heat until most of the liquid dries up, the oil comes to the surface, and the dal is soft. Add the lemon juice and stir well.
Now temper the dal. Heat the oil in a small frypan and add the ginger and green chillies. Fry for a few seconds and pour over the dal carefully. Sprinkle the mint leaves on top.

Notes

This is a vegan dal, but if you don't care for a vegan diet, you can do the tempering with pure ghee instead of oil. It will impart a wonderful aroma to the dal.
If you do not have pre-fried onions, you can fry a finely sliced medium red onion in oil until it is reddish brown and add this to the recipe. Pre-fried onions are available in Indian or Pakistani groceries though.

Nutrition