Lightly spiced mung dal (Yellow) cooked with spinach
Serves 5 people
Ingredients
250g yellow lentils
150g onions (sliced)
110g tomatoes (chopped)
150g spinach (washed and chopped)
¼ tsp haldi powder (turmeric)
1 tsp red chilli powder
¼ tsp asafoetida
2 tsp whole zeera (cumin seeds)
Salt to taste
3 tbsp butter ghee (you can adjust the quantity according to your preference)
2-3 chopped green chillies (optional)
Pre-preparation
Wash and soak the dal for about half an hour at least.
Method
In a pot or a pressure cooker, heat 1 tbsp ghee and add 1tsp cumin seeds. Fry the sliced onions until light gold in this ghee. Now add tomatoes, chopped spinach, salt, chilli powder, haldi powder and asafoetida. Fry this masala for about five minutes. Add the soaked dal and 3 cups of water. Once it starts bubbling, cover and simmer cook on low medium flame until the dal softens. It should take about 25 minutes in this process.
If using a pressure cook, it will take about 10 minutes.
After the dal is cooked, use a hand-masher to mix the dal and adjust the consistency of the dal. If its too runny you can cook a little bit more to dry out some water or if its too thick add some boiling water to get the required consistency. Add green chillies ( if using). Taste the salt at this stage. Pour it in the serving dish.
Prepare the tempering by heating the remaining 2 tbsp butter ghee. Add the remaining cumin seeds and dried red chilli. Pour it over the hot dal in the dish.
Serve with roti or plain/zeera rice!
Comments