Buttery Moong Dal With Garlic and Cumin

By David Tanis

Buttery Moong Dal With Garlic and Cumin
Karsten Moran for The New York Times
Total Time
1 hour, plus 2 hours’ soaking
Rating
4(353)
Comments
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This a basic mung bean dal, meant to be a simple everyday Indian meal with rice and chapati, or a side dish as part of a larger meal. The wonderful buttery flavor is obtained from the technique called tarka, which means spices sizzled in ghee, added to the pot at the end of the cooking process. Whirl the dal in a blender for a velvet-smooth texture. You could serve it as is, with the texture of a thick vegetable purée, or thin it with a little water and serve it as a soup. Other legumes such as red lentils or yellow split peas may be used instead.

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Ingredients

Yield:6 to 8 servings
  • 1cup moong dal (split mung beans), soaked 2 hours in cold water, drained and rinsed
  • ½teaspoon turmeric
  • 1teaspoon salt
  • 3tablespoons ghee, clarified butter or vegetable oil
  • ½teaspoon cumin
  • 1green chile, slit lengthwise
  • 4garlic cloves, minced
  • 1large shallot, diced
  • Garam masala or red chile powder (optional)
  • Plain basmati rice, freshly cooked, for serving (optional)
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (8 servings)

55 calories; 5 grams fat; 3 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 1 gram monounsaturated fat; 0 grams polyunsaturated fat; 3 grams carbohydrates; 0 grams dietary fiber; 1 gram sugars; 1 gram protein; 121 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Put dal, turmeric and salt in a large soup pot, add 7 cups water and bring to a gentle boil, stirring.

  2. Step 2

    Turn heat very low and cover pot with lid slightly ajar. Check pot and stir frequently, as the dal has a tendency to boil over in the beginning. Skim off and discard any foam that rises. Cook for about 45 minutes, until quite soft. Taste and adjust salt. For a smooth, velvety consistency, purée dal in a blender, then return to pot. If you prefer some texture, just beat with a whisk for a minute or two. (If dal is very thick, thin with a little water.)

  3. Step 3

    Make the tarka: Heat ghee in a small skillet over medium-high heat. Add cumin, chile and garlic and cook until cumin is fragrant and garlic is lightly colored, about 1 minute. Add shallot and continue cooking until shallot is softened, about 1 minute more. Pour contents of skillet into pot and stir into the dal.

  4. Step 4

    Transfer to a serving bowl or individual soup bowls. Sprinkle with a pinch of garam masala or red chile powder and/or serve with basmati rice, if desired. Dal may be made in advance, refrigerated and reheated (it will solidify when chilled and need thinning). Cool to room temperature before refrigerating. It will keep 2 to 3 days.

Ratings

4 out of 5
353 user ratings
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Comments

PaulB

This recipe is not in any way authentic. The result is egregiously soupy - even when cooked with only 4 cups liquid; and grossly underseasoned. Try 3-3.5 cups of water, and check other recipes for ways to approach a plausible tarka dal. (BTW - I've spent three years on the sub-continent, and eaten a whole lot of dal in various forms.)

Gren

I made a NYT account just for the purposes of reviewing this recipe. I have no earthly idea how the average rating of 31 people would be end up as five stars. There is FAR too much water and no where near enough seasoning. I wouldn't serve this to someone I hated.

shel

i never measure the water - start with enough water to cover the dal by an inch. you do need to stay near the pot as it does boil over easily - as the dal absorbs the water, just keep adding more, 1/2 cup at a time, to maintain the consistency you want. a cup of lentils will take about an hour to soften to the right consistency - no need to use the blender.

Luke

I made the mistake of not reading the comments before starting the first step of this recipe, and as others have suggested the amount of water called for is significantly off. I would estimate by a factor of two. After letting it boil off for an extra 40 minutes, it was still too thin. The seasoning was also quite dull. I'm not an expert on Indian cooking, so I won't suggest what should be changed, but it was fairly bland.

Anne

This dal is delicious, and even better with a tablespoon to more of grated ginger. II double the cumin, and puree it with an immersion blender before adding the tarka directly to the soup. I serve it with some plum chutney and brown rice.

Gaspar

I didn’t measure and used vegetable stock, two chiles (Fresno and Italian), six garlic cloves, maybe a half fistful of kosher salt, a healthy squeeze of tomato paste, and red lentils from the pantry that didn’t hold up. This was soup and it was tasty. I sopped it up with sourdough boule. I might add ginger and go with Serranos next time for more kick.

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