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Dal fry is one of the popular north Indian style dals and is quite commonly served in Indian restaurants and dhabas though the recipe of the latter versions vary. This simple yet delicious dal is usually made with pigeon peas aka toor dal / arhar dal though I made a mixed dal version, inspired by a TV show. Keep the dal to a medium to thick consistency. Replace the coriander and cumin powders in the recipe with garam masala, if you prefer it that way. The dal goes well with rotis / rice / jeera rice or mildly flavored pulao / biryanis. I had made a mixed dal version to serve with my Zafrani pulao, which made an awesome combo.
Ingredients:
1/4 cup pigeon peas / toor dal
1/4 cup split yellow peas / chana dal
1/4 cup moong dal
1 tbsp. oil / ghee
1 tsp. cumin seeds
1 tsp. mustard seeds
1 red chili
1 sprig of curry leaves
1 tsp. minced ginger
1 tsp. minced garlic
1 sliced green chili
A pinch of asafoetida
1 onion, finely minced
1 tomato, chopped
1/8 tsp. turmeric powder
1/2 tsp. chili powder
1/2 tsp. coriander powder
1/2 tsp. cumin powder
1 tsp. kasuri methi / dried fenugreek leaves
Salt to taste
Lemon juice (optional)
Minced cilantro to garnish
Directions:
* Soak toor and chana dals for an hour. Rinse all the dals and drain.
* Pressure cook them adding 1.5 cups of water for 3 whistles. Chana dal should still hold the shape after cooking.
* Heat ghee / oil in a pot / pan and add cumin seeds, mustard seeds and red chili. When mustard seeds start to splutter, add asafoetida, curry leaves and stir. Add green chili, ginger and garlic and saute until raw smell leaves.
* Next add onion and fry until translucent. Add tomato and fry until mushy.
* Add turmeric, chili powder, coriander powder, cumin powder and salt and saute for seconds.
* Next add the cooked dals and little water to adjust to desired consistency. Taste and adjust the seasonings if needed. Lightly crush the kasuri methi between palms and add it to the dal. Bring the mixture to a boil and turn off the stove. Add some lemon juice if desired.
* Garnish with minced cilantro before serving.
This post is an entry for Blogging Marathon #100 under 'Regional Side Dishes' theme.
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There are a plethora of pulao options available now for vegetarians, thanks to creative minds. However until a few decades ago, the most common and popular versions were vegetable pulao and peas pulao, at least down south. Here is a millet pulao, a tad bit healthier take over the traditional version of vegetable pulao. Millets have been grown and consumed in India for ages and these gluten free grains are a healthier option over rice and wheat, the two staple grains of the Indian sub continent. Millets can easily be substituted for rice in everyday cooking.
I had to think a bit for my 'O' recipe. Oralu chitranna and oliya were already done and to be honest, I could not think beyond onion, okra, oats and orzo when planning for 'O' recipes. Onion pulao would have been redundant after my ghee rice post yesterday and I like my okra to be crunchy and crispy. I am not a fan of 'oats replacing rice' kind of dishes and so all my options were out of the window. Then the thought of using barnyard millet which is called oodhalu both in Telugu and Kannada occurred and here is that oodhala pulao. I made a garlic free pulao but feel free to add 1/2 tsp. garlic paste along with ginger.
I have given the preparation of this pulao in both pressure cooker and pan. And also the method of cooking the vegetables and millets separately so that it comes handy when you have leftover cooked millet or you want your millet grains to stand apart.
Ingredients: (Yield 4 - 6 servings)
2 tbsp. ghee / oil
1 tsp. cumin seeds or caraway seeds (jeera or shahjeera)
3 cardamom pods
3 cloves
2 one inch cinnamon pieces
1 big bay leaf
1 onion, thinly sliced (about 1/2 cup)
1 inch piece ginger, finely grated or 1/2 tsp. ginger paste
1 tbsp. minced cilantro leaves
1tbsp. minced mint leaves
2 small carrots, peeled and diced
1 cup green beans (stringed and cut into 1 inch pieces)
1 cup peeled and cubed potato
1/4 cup fresh / frozen green peas
1 cup oodhalu / barnyard millet
1/8 tsp. ground turmeric
1 and 3/4 cup water
Salt as needed (I added about 2 and 1/4 tsp. salt)
Directions for method 1: (Cooking vegetables and millet together.)
1. Heat ghee / oil in a small sized pressure cook directly. Add cumin / caraway seeds, cardamom, cloves, cinnamon and bay leaf and saute for few seconds. Add sliced onions, cilantro, mint and keep cooking until the onions turn pink. Add ginger paste and garlic paste if using and saute for few seconds. Then add the vegetables and stir well.
2. Rinse the millet in two exchanges of water and drain. Add the millet, water, turmeric and salt. (If you don't prefer pulao to be a very dry version, add 1/4 cup more water.)
3. Pressure cook on medium flame for 3 whistles and turn off the stove. When the valve pressure is gone, fluff and serve the pulao with plain yogurt or a raita.
Notes:
1. If using a pan instead of a pressure cooker, add 2 cups of water to millet and vegetables. Cover a lid tightly over the pan and cook on low flame until all the water evaporates and the millet is cooked through. Taste and check if the millet is cooked. If not, add a little extra water and cook until done.
2. If one doesn't prefer cooking directly in a pressure cooker, then cooking until step 2 can be done in a pan. Then transfer the contents of the pan to a container that fits into a pressure cooker, place it in a pressure cooker with water at the bottom and pressure cook as usual for 3 whistles.
Directions for method 2: (Cooking vegetables and millet separately.)
1. Rinse the millet in two exchanges of water and drain. Pressure cook millet on low flame for 3 whistles adding 1 and 3/4 cups water, salt, and turmeric. (I add only about 3/4 cup water for 1/2 cup millet.)
2. Heat ghee / oil in a pan and add cumin / caraway seeds, cardamom, cloves, cinnamon and bay leaf and saute for few seconds. Add sliced onions and keep cooking until onions turn pink. Add ginger paste and garlic paste if using and saute for few seconds. Then add mint, cilantro, vegetables and stir well. Turn down the heat to the lowest setting, cover and cook until the vegetables are cooked (but not mushy), stirring intermittently.
3. Add the cooked millet to the pan and stir gently to mix. Let it sit for a few minutes before serving so that the flavors can mingle.
So far in my Biryani / Pulao / Khichdi series,
A for Ambur Biryani
B for Basanti Pulao / Misthi Pulao
C for Corn - Fenugreek Greens Pulao
D for Donne Biryani
E for Ek Toap na Dal Bhaat
F for Fada ni Khichdi
G for Gutti Vankaya Biryani
H for Hyderabadi Vegetable Dum Biryani
I for Iyengar Puliyogare
J for Jaipuri Mewa Pulao
K for Kashmiri Pulao
L for Lucknowi Biryani
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Chaaru / Rasam / Saaru whatever the regional name maybe, happens to be a staple dish in south Indian cooking and is a thin, spicy lentil broth served with rice. It is served in many homes for every lunch / dinner and considered a comfort dish by many. It aids in digestion and is light enough to serve even to the sick. The classic and the most common rasam uses the pigeon peas - tomato combo. Or lemon juice in lieu of tomato. There are different variations nowadays in the rasam preparations and I happened to see this one on a television cooking program. Rasam powder aka the spice powder used to prepare rasam is a pantry staple in south Indian homes and if you have rasam powder (either homemade or store bought - I would recommend MTR brand) handy, the preparation becomes a simple and easy one.
I prepare rasam / chaaru on a regular basis in my home though I don't have the basic rasam recipe posted here on my blog so far. I am quite good at rasam preparation while not being so in photographing it. I admit it without any embarrassment that my 'rasam' photographs usually don't do justice to the dish itself. I see many bloggers beautifully capturing rasam in their images. In my case, all the good stuff sinks to the bottom including the tempering and clear liquid topped with drops of grease remains to be captured and I usually give up. I wasn't happy with today's image too but the green mango rasam is so flavorful that I could not let go without posting it.
Ingredients:
1/4 cup moong dal / skinned, split green gram
1/8 tsp. ground turmeric
3/4 tsp. salt or as needed
1 and 1/2 cups water
1 tbsp. finely minced cilantro
Ingredients to toast and grind:
1/4 tsp. pepper corns
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1.5 tsp. coriander seeds
or
1 tsp. homemade or store bought rasam powder
Ingredients for tempering:
1 tsp. ghee / oil
1/2 tsp. mustard seeds
1/2 tsp. cumin seeds
2 dried red chillies, broken into bits
2 green chillies, sliced lengthwise
6 - 8 curry leaves
A pinch of asafoetida powder
1/4 cup grated green mango
Directions:
* Wash and rinse the moong dal in two exchanges of water and drain. Pressure cook moong dal adding 1/2 cup of water and ground turmeric for 3 whistles. (At this stage, one can also add mango pieces along with dal and cook instead of grating and frying later). When the valve pressure is gone, finely mash the dal and mangoes (if used) with the back of a ladle and keep aside.
* Meanwhile, toast pepper corns, cumin and coriander seeds without burning them. Let cool and grind fine. (Skip the step if you have rasam powder.)
* Heat oil / ghee in a pan / pot and add mustard seeds and cumin seeds. When mustard seeds starts to splutter add red chillies, green chillies and curry leaves and saute for a few seconds. Next add asafoetida powder and grated mango (in case if you haven't pressure cooked green mango in the first step.). Fry for few minutes on low flame until the mango appears cooked. Then add pureed moong dal, salt, ground spices (or rasam powder), minced cilantro and about 1.5 cups of water (or as needed to get the desired consistency.) Taste and adjust the seasonings if needed. Bring the mixture to a boil and turn off the stove.
* Serve piping hot rasam with rice and dollop of ghee or as a part of a south Indian meal.
Notes:
* I usually don't use green or red chillies in a rasam recipe since the red chillies and black pepper used in my rasam powder lend enough spicy kick. However I used MTR rasam powder while preparing this rasam and recommend the usage of red chillies and mildly spiced green chillies unless if the rasam powder being used is very spicy by itself. The sourness from the green mango cuts down the spicy level.
* The mango can be cut into pieces and cooked (and then mashed) along with moong dal if desired instead of grating and frying later.
* Basically I use the same ingredients to prepare my own rasam powder but not in the same ratio. The recipe link to my rasam powder is given below.
Other Rasam recipes posted here.
Carrot Rasam
Drumstick Rasam
Pineapple Rasam
Rasam Powder / Charu podi
This goes to Blogging Marathon under 'Bookmarked Recipes' Theme.
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