Dal Fry (II)

Ingredients -

1. Toor Dal/Pigeon Peas – 1 cup

2. Chana Dal/chick peas – 1/4^th cup

3. Urad Dal – 2 tb-spoons

4. Finely chopped ginger – 2 t-spoons

5. Green chilies – 2, with slit

6. Turmeric Powder – ½ t-spoon

7. Salt to taste

Tadka (seasoning) –

1. Butter/ghee – 2 t-spoons

2. Cumin Seeds – 1 –t-spoon

3. Onions – 2 medium, finely chopped

4. Tomatoes – 2 medium, finely chopped

5. Cloves -3

6. Cinnamon – 1 ½ “

Garnishing –

Chopped coriander

Garam Masala (optional)

Procedure –

1. Soak Chana Dal for 2-3 hours. Cook in a pressure cooker Toor Dal, soaked chana dal and urad dal, ginger, green chilies together along with turmeric powder and salt.

2. Heat butter/ghee in a kadhai. Add jeera and let them splutter. Add cloves and cinnamon. Add chopped onion and sauté till it becomes golden brown.

3. Then add tomatoes and sauté till they become mushy. Then add red chili powder and garam masala. Pour hot tadka on cooked dal and serve hot with rice.

Cauliflower Curry (Maharashtrian way) (फ्लॉवरचा रस्सा)

Ingredients -

Cauliflower – 1 medium

Green Peas – 1 bowl

Potatoes – 2 medium, cut into big chunks and fried

Tomato – 2 finely chopped

Jaggery – 1 tb-spoon

Red chili powder – 1 t-spoon or to taste

Salt to taste

Masala –

sesame seeds - 1 tb-spoon

Chana dal – 1 tb-spoon, roasted

Cinnamon – 2” piece

Cloves – 7-8

Onion – 2

Garlic pods – 7

Cumin seeds – 1 t-spoon

Dry grated coconut – ½ bowl

Freshly grated coconut -  1/4^th bowl

Chopped green coriander – 1/4^th bowl

Oil – 2 tb-spoons

Mustard seeds – ½ T-spoon

Asafetida – 1/4^th T- spoon

Turmeric Powder- ½ T-spoon

Procedure –

1. Grind roasted chana dal and sesame seeds in a mixer grinder and keep aside. Add tomatoes in mixer grinder and make a paste and keep aside.

2.  Add 1 tb-spoon oil in a pan and heat the oil. Add chopped onions and garlic and sauté for  5 minutes until onions turn golden brown.

3. Add freshly grated coconut, chopped coriander and sauté for 2-3 minutes more. Let it cool down completely. Add in a mixer grinder and grind into fine paste.

4. Heat 1 tb-spoon oil in a pan. Add mustard seeds and let them splutter. Add asafetida. Then add cauliflower, potatoes and green peas. Sauté for a while. Then add ground masala, sesame seeds and chana dal powder and tomato paste.  Add some water as per consistency you want and cook the curry for 10 minutes.

5. Add jaggery, salt, grated coconut and chopped coriander and turn of the heat.  If you like more sourly taste, you can add little tamarind pulp.

6. Serve it hot with roti or puri.

Rajma (kidney beans curry) -

Ingredients -

Rajma| kidney beans – 1 Cup, dry

Onions – 2 medium, roughly chopped

Tomatoes – 3 medium, chopped

Ginger - 1” chopped

Garlic cloves – 2-3, chopped

Green chilies – 2, chopped

Rajma masala - 3-4 Cloves, 2-3 Green Cardamom, 1” Cinnamon, 4-5 black pepper

 Bay leaves – 2

Cumin seeds – ½ t-spoon

Turmeric powder – ½ t-spoon

Red Chili powder – 1 tb-spoon OR to taste (use kashmiri red chili powder)

Coriander powder – 1 tb-spoon

Cumin seeds powder – ½ t-spoon

Amachoor powder – 1 t-spoon

Salt to taste

1 tbsp ghee + 1 tsp Oil

Chopped coriander leaves and 1 t-spoon butter for garnishing

Procedure -

1. Wash and soak Rajma overnight or 5-6 hours in hot water.

2. Drain and pressure cook with 2 cup fresh water until the Rajma is cooked soft yet hold it’s shape – for about 15 minutes. Keep it aside.

3. Heat oil and ghee combination in a pan, add cumin seeds and bay leaves and sauté. Add onions and Sauté it for 3-4 mins until the onions become light brown. Add ginger-garlic and sauté for a minute. Add chopped tomatoes and cook for 2 -3 minutes, till they become little mushy.

4. Grind all the whole spices in a mixer grinder. Add all the spice powders to the onion-tomato mixture. To this, add cooked Rajma along with the stalk. Adjust the consistency to your choice and let it cook for 10-15 mins on low heat. Stir occasionally.

5. Finally add salt to taste. Cook for 2 mins more. Remove from the heat. Check for seasoning. Let it sit for 10-15 mins before serve. Let blend all the spices with Rajma.

6. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and serve hot with rice or paratha.

Note:

1. Rajma-chawal is a very popular Punjabi meal. Rajma is also regularly cooked in Kashmir. While making Rajma in Kashmiri style, use 1/8 t-spoon of funnel seeds powder and 1/8^th t-spoon of nutmeg powder and skip the cumin seeds powder.

2. Rajama should be mildly spiced and little sour in taste. If you don’t like sour taste, you can skip amchoor powder, but don’t add sugar.

3. Here I am using pressure cooker, but traditionally rajma is cooked on a low-medium flame for a longer duration. You can use slow cooker for this recipe.

4. You can use ghee as much as you want, here I tried reducing ghee/oil as much as I can.

Chana Dal Kofta Curry (गोळ्याचे सांबार/आमटी)

Gole (koftas) -

Chickpeas flour/besan – ½ bowl or as required

Onion – 1, finely chopped

Coriander seeds powder – 1 t-spoon

Cumin seeds powder – ½ t-spoon

Salt to taste

Red chili powder – 1 ½ t-spoon

Turmeric powder – 1/8^th t-spoon

Amati (curry) –

Oil – 1 tb-spoon

Mustard seeds – 1/4^th t-spoon

Asafetida – 1/8^th T-spoon

Turmeric Powder – 1/8^th T-spoon

Red chili powder – 1 t-spoon

Tamarind pulp – ½ T-spoon

Jaggery to taste

Besan/chickpea flour – 1 tb-spoon

Chopped coriander leaves – 1/4^th bowl for garnishing

Serving –

Oil – 2 tb-spoons

Mustard seeds – 1/4^th t-spoon

Asafetida – 1/4^th t-spoon

Procedure –

1. Mix chopped onion, coriander seeds powder, cumin seeds powder, salt, red chili powder and Turmeric powder in a mixing bowl. Wait for 2-3 minutes. Add chickpea flour as required for making hard balls.

2. Heat oil in a pan. Add mustard seeds, asafetida and let them splutter. Then add turmeric powder, red chili powder and besan. Roast besan for a minute and add 4 cups of water. Add jaggery and salt to taste.

3. Drop gole/koftas in the curry one by one. Boil the curry along with all the dumpings for 5 minutes. Add chopped coriander and turn off the heat.

4. Heat oil in a separate small pan. Add mustard seeds and asafetida, let them splutter and turn off the heat. While serving the amati/curry, serve this tadaka along with it. At the time of eating, take out one gola/kofta from your curry bowl into your plate, mash the gola, pour little tadaka on each gola and eat with plain rice or roti.

Note :

Amati or curry has to be watery. It will get thickened afterwards.

Dal Fry -

Dal Fry –

Pigeon peas/toor dal – 1 bowl

Chana dal – 1/4^th bowl

Onions – 2, sliced

Tomato – 1 large, finely chopped

Garlic paste – ½ t-spoon

Ginger paste – ½ t-spoon

Green chilies – 2, finely chopped

Garam masala powder – ½ t-spoon

Red chili powder – 1 t-spoon

Cumin seeds – ½ t-spoon for dal + ½ t-spoon for tadka

Oil – 1 and ½ tb-spoon

Handful of chopped coriander leaves

Ghee/clarified butter – 1 t-spoon

Red chilies – 2

Garlic cloves – 5-6, sliced

Procedure –

 1. Cook toor dal and chana dal in a pressure cooker.

2. Heat oil in a pan. Add cumin seeds and let them splutter. Add onions and sauté till brown. Add ginger-garlic paste, chopped green chilies and turmeric powder and sauté for 2-3 minutes. Then add chopped tomatoes and cook then for 5 minutes.

4. Add cooked dals and water and mix well. Boil dal for 5 minutes on medium flame. Meanwhile keep adding remaining ingredients red chili powder and garam masala powder. Turn off the heat and add chopped coriander leaves. Keep dal aside.

5. Heat ghee in a small pan. Add cumin seeds and let them splutter.

6. Add red chilies and garlic and roast them for 2 minutes and turn off the heat.

7. Pour the tadka on cooked dal at the time of serving. Serve dal hot with jeera rice or roti.

Amati (Maharastrian dal)

Ingredients -

Toor Dal – 1 ½ cup

Water – 4 ½ cup

Tumeric Powder – 1/4^th tsp

Asafetida – ½ tsp

Water – for thinning dal to the desired consistency

Jaggery – 2 Tbsps or to taste

tamarind extract – 1 Tbsp or Kokum – 2-3

Goda masala – 1 Tbsp (the recipe for goda masala is given in masala section)

Salt to taste

Coriander(cilantro) – finely chopped for garnishing

For seasoning –

Oil – 2 tsp

Mustard seeds – ½ tsp

Fenugreek seeds – 1/8^th tsp

Red chili powder – 1 tbsp

Curry leaves -3-4

Procedure –

1. Wash Toor Dal and add to the pressure cooker with water, asafetida and turmeric powder.

2. Pressure cook for 15 minutes, switch off the stove and allow pressure to go down.

3. Heat oil in a pan and add fenugreek seeds and let them splutter.

4. Add mustard seeds and let them crackle.

5. Then add Asafetida and red chili powder and roast for a minute.

6. Add curry leaves and then add dal.

7. Add water for thinning the dal and let the dal boil for 5 minutes.

8. Start adding other ingredients one by one. Add salt, goda masala, jaggery and tamarind.

9. Turn of the heat and add chopped cilantro (coriander).

Note :

This is the basic Amati usually cooked in Maharashrian houses. You can add chopped onions to this recipe. If you want to add, add them just after the seasoning. Sauté the onions till they become light brown in color. This amti is called as ‘Kandyachi Amati’.

Gujrati Dal

Ingredients –

Toor Dal – 1 ½ cup

Water – 4 ½ cup

Salt to taste

Tumeric Powder – 1/4^th tsp

Water – for thinning dal to the desired consistency

Green Chilies – 2 or to taste, finely chopped

Ginger paste – 1 tsp

Tomato – 1, finely chopped

Jaggery – 3 Tbsp or to taste

Kokum – 2-3

Red chili powder – 1 tsp

Coriander powder – 2 tsp

Cumin powder – 1 tsp

Garam masala – 1 tsp

Lemon juice – 1 Tbsp or to taste

Coriander(cilantro) – finely chopped for garnishing

For seasoning –

Ghee – 3 tsp

Mustard seeds – ½ tsp

Cumin seeds – ½ tsp

Fenugreek seeds – 1/8^th tsp

Asafetida – 1/4^th tsp

Dried red chili – 1, cut into 2-3 pieces

Curry leaves

Procedure –

1. Wash Toor Dal and add to the pressure cooker with water, salt and turmeric powder.

2. Pressure cook for 15 minutes, switch off the stove and allow pressure to go down.

3. Open pressure cooker and transfer the dal into another pan.

4. Turn on the gas and start boiling dal on medium heat.

5. Add red chili powder, cumin powder, coriander powder, garam masala, kokum, green chilies, tomato, ginger, jaggery and salt.

6. Mix well and add water to the dal upto the desired consistency.

7. Allow dal to boil for 10 minutes.

8. Meanwhile heat ghee in a small pan.

9. Add fenugreek seeds and allow them to crackle.

10. Add mustard seeds and let them splutter.

11. Add cumin seeds and asafetida and roast for a minute.

12. Add whole dried chili and curry leaves and turn of the stove.

13. Add seasoning to the boiling dal.

14. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and serve hot.

Note :

Even if this dal is a combination of sweet and sour taste, Gujrati food is little on a sweeter side. Adjust sweetness as per your taste.

You can replace the ghee with oil if you want.

Make sure that kokam is not too dry. Otherwise you need to add more lemon/lime juice.