1 ½cupchana dalsplit chickpea lentils, soaked for one hour
2sprigs cilantro leaveschopped
2sprigs mint leaveschopped
Instructions
Switch on your instant pot and press sauté. Add the cooking oil, fried onions, ginger-garlic paste, tomatoes, salt, chilli powder, turmeric, garam masala, and coriander powder. Add one cup water and cook this masala for 5 minutes or until the oil leaves the sides.
Add the meat, lentils, one cup water and stir to mix. Cover with a glass lid to prevent splashes. Let the contents simmer for 10 minutes, stirring in between as required.
Cancel sauté, add one more cup water, and secure the lid. Make sure the steam release vent is on 'sealing'. Press the pressure cooking button and set the timer to 20 minutes.
When the timer beeps, do a quick release and open the pot. Garnish with a few fried onions, and chopped cilantro and mint. Squeeze half a lemon if you want (optional). Serve hot with naan or steamed rice.
Notes
If you don't have pre-fried onions, finely slice 2 medium-sized red onions and fry in the hot oil until reddish-brown in step 1. Then add the rest of the ingredients mentioned in step 1.
You can use red lentils or yellow mung lentils in addition to the split chickpeas. Adjust the quantities like this: 1 cup split chickpeas, ¼ red lentils, and ¼ cup mung lentils. Soak all three for one hour before cooking.
Use the meat of your choice: mutton, lamb or beef.
The lentils and ginger and garlic pastes can be bought from any Indian or Pakistani store. They are also available in most supermarkets these days.
If you want to make fresh paste, add equal quantities of peeled ginger and garlic to a blender, pour a quarter cup water and blend to a puree.
The total time does not include the soaking time for the lentils.