Organic Panchmel Dal

INGREDIENTS

required for the panchmel dal recipe

• 270 gm (1 ¼ cup) mixed dal (toor dal, urad dal with skin, green gram dal with skin, channa dal, moth dal)
• 5 cups water
• ½ tsp turmeric powder
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 3 to 4 cloves
• 1” piece cassia (dalchini)
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• ¾ tsp yellow asafetida powder
• 4 tsp grated fresh ginger
• 1 or 2 slit green chilies
• 3 large or 4 small tomatoes, pureed
• 2 tbsp coriander powder
• ½ to ¾ tsp red chili powder
• 1 tsp garam masala powder (optional)
• 2 ½ to 3 tsp salt or to taste
• extra water, if required
• fresh coriander
• cherry tomatoes (optional)

PROCEDURE

to the panchmel dal recipe

• The first step to the panchmel dal recipe  is to wash all the dals in a large colander and place them in a bowl or any utensil with a lid. Pour enough water to cover the dals nicely and allow the dals to soak in all the water overnight or for 7 to 8 hours.
• Drain the excess water off the dals and place the dals in a pressure cooker. For this particular
  

  panchmel dal recipe, add 5 cups of water and a pinch of turmeric, and pressure cook until the first whistle. After the first whistle, turn down the heat and cook for 15 to 20 minutes. After the dals are cooked, turn off the heat and allow the pressure to come down.

• In a large wok or pan, heat the oil. Once the oil is hot, put in thw whole spices, cloves, cassia and cumin seeds and stir until the cloves puff up and the cumin seeds are golden. Make sure that the cumin seeds don’t turn black.
• Into the sizzling spices, add the tomato puree and turn down the heat. Put in the coriander powder, red chili powder and cook until the tomato puree absorbs all the flavours from the spices, about 7 to 8 minutes.
• Stir in the cooked dal, add the salt and extra water if required and mix well.
• The garam masala is optional for this panchmel dal recipe and finish with fresh coriander. You can also sauté some cherry tomatoes and place them over the dal for extra flavor and colour.

NOTES

for the panchmel dal recipe

• You can use a mixture of different kinds of dals you have on hand.
• If you have not soaked the dal overnight, you can use split dal and/or other quick cooking dals
• Use a variety of different kinds of dals to see what you or your family like the most.
• I do not use garam masala powder for my regular cooking and reserve it for use occasionally.
• Use fresh spices for more flavor.