Gujarati Dal
Gujarati Dal is a regional adaptation of traditional Indian lentils and is influenced by an area whose trademark cuisine is vegetarian that combines the sweet and savory.
Ingredients
- ½ cup yellow split peas
- 1 TB dark brown sugar
- 1 jalapeno chopped and seeds removed
- 1" ginger root, minced
- 1 tsp chili powder
- ¼ tsp turmeric
- ¾ TB tamarind paste substitute lemon juice
- 1 TB coconut oil
- ½ tsp mustard seeds
- ½ tsp cumin seeds
- ¼ tsp fenugreek seeds
- ¼ tsp Asafoetida
- 1 dry red chile
- 1" cinnamon stick
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 curry leaf
- 2 cups rice, cooked, to serve
- 1 cup fresh cilantro, chopped, to serve optional
Instructions
- Wash the peas, add one cup water and let soak 30 minutes to one hour.
- To the peas, add 2 cups of water, turmeric powder, red chili powder, minced ginger, jalapeno, and sugar to taste and simmer for about 30-45 minutes on low medium flame. Keep stirring in between.
- In the meantime, heat oil in a small pan. Once the oil is hot, add mustard seeds and allow to splutter. Add cumin seeds, fenugreek seeds, red chilis, bay leaf, cinnamon stick, asafoetida and curry leaves and saute for a few seconds till the fenugreek seeds turns red and the cumin turns brown. Turn off flame.
- Pour the spices into the simmering dal and mix once the dal is about 75% cooked (so after about 30 minutes). Add lemon juice and salt and mix. Taste the dal. It should have spicy tangy and sweet flavors. Adjust red chili powder, lemon juice, sugar and salt accordingly.
- If you prefer a more homogenous dal, use an immersion blender to make it a bit more creamy. Garnish with coriander leaves. Serve with rice.