Tarka dhal
- Preparation and cooking time
- Prep:
- Cook:
- Easy
- Serves 4
Ingredients
- 250g toor dal
- 1 tsp asafoetida
- 1 tsp ground turmeric
- 2 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
- ½cm piece of ginger, peeled and roughly chopped
- 1 tomato (about 80g), roughly chopped
- roti or jeera pulao, to serve
TARKA
- 3 tbsp ghee
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 2 mild dried red chillies
- 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 1cm piece of ginger, peeled and finely chopped
- 60g onion, finely chopped
- 1 tsp kashmiri chilli powder
- 2 tbsp finely chopped coriander
Method
- STEP 1
Tip the toor dal, asafoetida, turmeric, garlic, ginger, tomato and 1 litre of water into a large saucepan, season to taste and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 1 hr, stirring often to prevent it from sticking. Cover, turn off the heat and leave to cool slightly. Break down the mixture slightly using a potato masher or hand blender – you don’t want it too smooth. Set aside.
- STEP 2
Melt the ghee in a medium saucepan over a medium heat. Add the cumin seeds and dried chillies and, as they begin to sizzle, the garlic and ginger. Fry for a few seconds. Add the onions and continue to fry for 3-4 mins until softened. Stir well, then add the kashmiri chilli powder. Stir and then transfer half the tarka to a small bowl. Add the cooked dal to the rest of the tarka in the pan, along with 100ml of water. Simmer over a low heat for 2 mins, then turn the off heat and garnish with the reserved tarka and the coriander. Serve with roti or jeera pulao.
