Moong dal with steamed rice
The light dal: split yellow moong cooks soft without soaking and is tempered with ghee, jeera, hing, ginger and tomato. It is the dal given to children and to anyone unwell, eaten with rice or roti; many homes add garlic or onion to the tadka, and a Jain home leaves out the ginger.
- 30 minTime
- 20 minHands-on
- 4Portions
- 18 gprotein per portion
- 500kcal per portion
Ingredients for 4 portions
- 200 gMoong dal
- ≈ 750 mlWater, for the cooker
- 3 mlTurmeric
- to tasteSalt
- ≈ 200 mlWater, hot
- 2 tbspGhee
- 1 tspCumin, seeds
- 1 mlHing (asafoetida)
- 1 tspGinger, grated
- 2Green chillies, slit
- 1Tomato, finely chopped
- 2 tbspCoriander leaves, chopped
On the side
- 300 gRice, basmati or sona masoori
- ≈ 700 mlWater, for the rice
Method
- Wash the moong dal in two or three changes of water. Put it in the pressure cooker with the water, turmeric and a little salt.
- Pressure-cook on medium heat for 3 whistles, about 10 minutes, and let the pressure drop by itself.
- Meanwhile, wash the rice two or three times, put it in a pan with the water and bring to the boil.
- Cover, turn the heat to low and cook for 15 minutes, until the water is absorbed. Keep it covered until you serve.
- Chop the tomato, slit the green chillies and grate the ginger.
- Open the cooker and whisk the dal until smooth. Stir in the hot water and bring it to a simmer.
- For the tadka, heat the ghee in a small pan and add the cumin seeds. When they splutter, add the hing, ginger and green chillies, then the tomato, and fry until the tomato softens, about 3 minutes. Pour it into the dal.
- Simmer for 2 minutes, check the salt, scatter the coriander leaves over and serve with the rice.
