Soft-cooked yellow moong dal finished with a sizzling ghee tempering of cumin, red chili and hing; comfort in its plainest, most honest form.
Lunch · 5 min prep · 25 min cook · serves 3 Newly added
Ingredients
- ¾ cup moong dal (split yellow) , rinsed
- 3 cups water
- ¼ tsp turmeric powder
- 1 tbsp ghee
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 1 pinch asafoetida (hing)
- 1 red chili , whole dried
- ⅛ tsp red chili powder , optional
- to taste rock salt
- 1 tsp lemon , juice
- 2 tbsp coriander leaves , chopped
Preparation
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Pressure-cook the dal with the water and turmeric until very soft (3–4 whistles), or simmer covered 30 minutes.
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Whisk the dal smooth; it should be pourable, add hot water if it has thickened.
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For the tadka, heat the ghee until it shimmers, add cumin and let it darken a shade, then the dried chili and hing.
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Pour the sizzling tadka over the dal; add salt and simmer 2 minutes.
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Finish with lemon juice and coriander; serve with steamed rice or phulka.
In the tradition
Every Indian household keeps a version of this dal, the one you make when nothing else is planned. The notebook records it in one line: moong dal, tadka of hing, jeera, ghee, red chili. The tadka is added at the very end so its fragrance survives, and the whole pot is soft enough to eat with rice and nothing else.
Sources & further reading
- Family recipe notebook (recipe #11, "Dal: moong dal, tadka (hing, jeera, ghee, red chili)")
- Aṣṭāṅga Hṛdaya , Vāgbhaṭa (Sūtrasthāna 6, mung (mudga) named the foremost pulse)
Classical citations mark where a tradition is drawn on; modern books are shared as further reading, not as prescriptions.