Surati Dal

Today's recipe comes from the state of Gujarat. I had prepared this  flavorful dal as part of a simple Gujarati lunch which also included rice, roti, ringan methi nu shaak and shrikhand. The dal is a quick and easy preparation though it appears to be a tedious one going by the long list of ingredients.

Ingredients:
3/4 cup toor dal / lentils
1/8 tsp. turmeric powder
2 tbsp. peanuts
2 small tomatoes, finely chopped
1 green chille, chopped
1/2 tsp. red chili powder or adjust
Salt to taste
1 tbsp. lemon juice
1 tbsp. jaggery powder or adjust as needed
Cilantro to garnish
Ingredients for tadka:
1 inch piece ginger, chopped
1 tsp. mustard seeds
Few curry leaves
2 - 3 red chilles. broken into bits
2 pinches of asafoetida powder

Method:
* Rinse and pressure cook the lentils along with peanuts, turmeric, tomatoes, green chillie adding 1.5 cups of water. (Sometimes the sourness of tomatoes may interfere with the cooking of lentils and in that case cook tomatoes separately.)
* Mash the cooked lentils well with the back of a ladle. Add ginger, salt, chili powder and jaggery to the cooked dal. (I added ginger to the tadka, instead.) Add about 3/4 cup to 1 cup water to the dal since it should be slightly thinner consistency.
* Cook it on medium flame for about 5 minutes. Taste the dal and adjust the seasoning if needed.
* Heat oil in a pan and add ginger. When it starts to turn golden brown, add mustard seeds, curry leaves, and chillies. When mustard seeds start to pop, add asafoetida and turn off the stove. Add this tadka to the dal. Turn off the stove and add lemon juice. Mix well and serve warm with rotis / rice.


This goes to Blogging marathon #73, under the theme 'Flavors of India'. Check here to find out what the other marathoners are cooking as part of the BM.

Comments