Masoor Dal
I haven’t made much dal at Kitchen 511, but when I have, I’ve typically followed one of Madhur Jaffrey’s simple and delicious recipes. But then a few weeks ago, my friend Sakina Jaffrey (daughter of Madhur) posted a link to this YouTube video where her nephew Robi (Madhur’s grandson) whips up a brilliant Masoor Dal. I can promise you this Indian comfort food will now be making a regular appearance on my table. I know I’m stating the obvious here, but this family knows how to cook. Trust me when I say you should make this incredible red-lentil dish, and you’ll want to make it over and over again. I served it alongside the Charred Egglplant with Za’atar & Yogurt from my new Cook Beautiful cookbook, plus a side of rice and naan, and it was seriously one of my most favorite quarantine meals. I’d suggest you start following Robi Jaffrey’s Food Ark project, as he cooks comfort food from every country around the world.
Notes: Some of my Kitchen Favorites shown above: Slate dinner plate by Mud Australia purchased at Nyack’s lovely Archive Home shop. Cutipol flatware. H&M linen napkin in Dark Gray.
Serves 4
Ingredients
1 cup Masoor (or Chana) Dal (picked over to remove any impurities)
4 cups water
2” piece of ginger, peeled and chopped
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon turmeric
½ large yellow onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 small tomatoes, finely chopped
4 tablespoons cilantro, finely chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil or ghee
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon garam masala
1 teaspoon Kashmiri chili powder or cayenne pepper
2 tablespoons lemon juice
Extra cilantro for garnish
Preparation
Soak the dal in water for 10 minutes, giving them a stir a couple of times.
Drain the dal and place in a medium pot, along with 4 cups of water.
Add ginger to the pot. Set the pot over high heat and bring to a rolling boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat to low so that the dal is simmering. Skim the foam off the surface of the liquid. Cover the pot, leaving it ajar, and simmer for 1 ½ hours.
Meanwhile, prepare the ingredients for the Chhonk (fragrant oil with spices): Place chopped onion and garlic in a bowl. Next, place chopped tomatoes and cilantro in another bowl. Set aside.
Once the dal has been simmering for 1 ½ hours, and after it had thickened up substantially, add 1 tsp. of turmeric and 1 tsp. of salt.
Now it’s time to begin cooking the Chhonk. Heat 2 tbsps. of olive oil (or ghee) over medium heat in a pan. Add the onion and garlic mixture and cook for 5 minutes until browned. Next add the spices (mustard seeds, cumin seeds, garam masala, chili powder). Cook the spices for 1 minute until fragrant and popping. Add the cilantro and tomato mixture and cook briefly for 30 seconds. Add more oil if it looks too dry. Quickly add the Chhonk to the pot of dal and fold it in until fully incorporated. Let cook for another 5 minutes.
Add 2 tbsps. of lemon juice and taste for salt and spice level. Garnish with cilantro.
For best result, serve with Basmati Rice or Naan.
