Delicious Dal

In your diet, it is important to get beans and legumes.  They are filling and really good for you.  We Indians have a great way of getting this type of food many times a week.  We make a dish called dal, which is usually eaten with rice, or just plain.  It is made out of a type of lentil.  After cooking it, it has a soupy consistency, and it is wonderful.  A great thing about it is that there are many, many different types of dals, so you could eat it almost every day of the week and not get bored of it.  So today, I will be sharing with you Masoor Dal, a wonderfully flavorful dish.

Delicious Masoor Dal

This is what your meal should look like...

Serves 4-6

 

Ingredients:

• 1 cup red split lentils (masoor dal)
• 4 1/3 cups water
• 2 thin slices of unpeeled ginger
• 1/2 tsp ground turmeric
• 3 tbs vegetable oil
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 tsp ground coriander seeds
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• 2 tbs finely chopped fresh coriander
• 1/2 onion
• salt to taste

Directions:

1. Wash lentils thoroughly.
2. Obtain a large pot.
3. Pour lentils and water into the pot.
4. Heat on stove.
5. When it comes to a boil, scoop off any weird material that emerges to the top.
6. Add the ginger and turmeric.
7. Stir the dal.
8. Cover the pot leaving it slightly open.
9. Cook on low heat for 1 1/2 hours or until the lentils aren’t hard anymore.
10. In the last 30 minutes, stir every few minutes so it doesn’t get burnt.
11. Add salt (about 1 tsp.)
12. Find the ginger with a spoon and take it out of the pot.
13. Obtain another frying pan.
14. Heat the vegetable oil on a medium flame.
15. When the oil is hot, add the cumin and onions.
16. Once they are fried, add the coriander and cayenne, and stir it up.
17. Pour the onion mixture into the dal. 
18. Stir the dal.
19. Right before serving the dal, add the fresh coriander.
20. Enjoy!

It might look like there are many steps, but this is an easy recipe.  However, it takes about 2 hours, so plan accordingly.  This dish is very healthy.  It has tons of protein and fiber, so it will fill you up quickly.  It also has less fat than other dals.  If you can’t find all these ingredients, you should look in a nearby Indian store.  You are sure to find them there.  Unlike the other recipes I have been sharing with you, this one wasn’t our own creation.  I should probably give credit to the recipe book I got it from: Madhur Jaffrey’s Indian Cooking.  If you want more dishes like this, you should look in this book.  But my mom did make some changes to the original recipe.  Anyway, I really hope that you’ll enjoy the delicious Masoor Dal!