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    Whisk Affair » Recipes » Dal & Curries » Dal » Cholar Dal

    Published: Feb 3, 2021 | Last Updated On: Feb 4, 2021 by Neha Mathur

    Cholar Dal

    160 shares
    Jump to Recipe

    Cholar dal is a traditional Bengali dish prepared from chana dal (Bengal gram lentil), ghee, coconut, and other spices. It is sweet and savory and is best paired with luchi or steamed rice.

    If you loved this Bengali recipe, then you must try a few more from my blog – Bengali Chicken Curry, Bengali Aloo Dum, Bengali Style Veg Pulao, Jhal Muri, and Kosha Mangsho.

    Cholar Dal served in a bowl.
    Jump to:
    • About This Recipe
    • Ingredients
    • How to make Cholar Dal?
    • Pro Tips By Neha
    • Serving Suggestions
    • Storage Suggestions
    • You might also like
    • Recipe Card

    About This Recipe

    Cholar dal (chholar dal) is a Bengali delicacy made using split Bengal gram (chana dal). Each household has its own way of making it. Some make it Niramish, that is without onion and garlic, and some add these ingredients to it.

    Cholar dal is served for breakfast, lunch, and dinner along with luchi, kochuri, porotta, or polao.

    Healthy, easy to make, and super delicious, this one is bursting with perfectly balanced sweet and savory flavors and is quite unique from other dal recipes.

    This spicy goodness is packed with nutrition as chana is high in fiber and protein. It takes hardly any time to prepare and makes for a simple yet satisfying lunch.

    It is light on the stomach, yet keeps you full and energetic all day long. If you are preparing this for special occasions try serving it with Bengali luchi for that extra dash of festive mood. This dal is slightly thicker in consistency and not mushy like other Indian lentils. So make sure to not add a lot of water to it while cooking.

    This Cholar Dal is,

    • Delicious
    • Easy + Quick
    • Unique
    • Perfect for weekdays

    Ingredients

    Cholar Dal Ingredients.

    Dal – Cholar dal is prepared with chana dal or Split Bengal gram. You can soak chana dal for about 30 minutes before cooking so that it cooks easily and becomes digestible too. Turmeric powder and salt are added to the dal while cooking.

    Coconut – You will need some fresh coconut slices that are fried and added to the dal, to add a unique flavor.

    Tempering – This dal is tempered with ghee, cumin seeds, asafetida (hing), whole spices, ginger, green chili pepper, raisins, and sugar.

    You can adjust the quantity of green chili peppers, as per your spice level.

    Raisins and sugar adds a nice hint of sweetness to the dal.

    The whole spices such as dry red chilies, cloves, cinnamon, cardamom, and bay leaf add a nice flavor when added to the hot ghee.

    Use ghee to add that authentic taste, but you can use oil too. In fact, if you can get your hand on Bengali ghee, there is nothing like it. You should be able to get it online or in any Indian grocery store near you.

    Use oil in place of ghee to make this dal vegan.

    How to make Cholar Dal?

    Wash 1 cup chana dal with water a few times and drain the water. Add the rinsed dal to a pressure cooker along with 3 cups of water, ½ teaspoon turmeric powder, and salt to taste. Pressure cook for one whistle on high heat. Then reduce the heat to low and cook for 8-10 minutes.

    Once cooked, remove the cooker from heat and let the pressure release naturally. Open the lid of the cooker. The dal should not be mushy after cooking. It should still hold its shape but cooked well.

    Note – You can also cook the dal in an Instant pot or a pan. To cook the dal in an instant pot, add the rinsed dal, salt, turmeric powder, and 2 cups of water to the pot. Press PRESSURE COOK and set the timer to 12 minutes. Once the timer goes off, let the pressure release naturally for 10 minutes. Release the remaining pressure manually and then open the lid.

    Chana dal, water, salt and turmeric powder added in a pressure cooker.

    Heat 3 tablespoon ghee for tempering in a small skillet over medium-high heat. Add ¼ cup fresh coconut slices and fry until golden brown. Keep flipping them while frying. Remove the browned slices to a plate.

    Coconut slices frying in ghee.

    In the same ghee, add 1 teaspoon cumin seeds and ¼ teaspoon asafetida and let them crackle for 3-4 seconds.

    Cumin seeds and asafoetida added in ghee.

    Add 4-5 whole dry red chilies, 3-4 cloves, 1-inch piece of cinnamon stick, 2-3 whole green cardamoms, and 2 bay leaves and fry for 5-6 seconds. Add 1 teaspoon grated ginger and 1 teaspoon chopped green chili peppers and fry for another 5-6 seconds. You can add spices like coriander powder, cumin powder, and garam masala at this stage and fry for 2-3 seconds. 

    Other tempering ingredients added in the pan.

    Pour the tempering over the cooked dal along with fried coconut slices, 2 tablespoon raisins, and 1 teaspoon sugar and mix well.

    Tempering poured over the dal.

    Serve hot.

    Ready cholar dal.

    Pro Tips By Neha

    Being a North Indian, the addition of sugar in savory recipes is a big no-no for me but trust me, a hint of sugar in this recipe elevates the taste to the next level. So do not miss adding that tad bit of sugar however reluctant you be.

    No cholar dal is complete without some fried coconut slices garnishing it and a few raisins added to it.

    Soaking the dal for 30 minutes before cooking makes the cooking process faster and saves fuel.

    This dal is supposed to be thick, a consistency like a latpati sabzi.

    I sometimes like to add dry spices to this dal but make it without the spices too. Try both the versions and see which one you like better. To make dal with spices, add 2 teaspoon coriander powder, 1 teaspoon cumin powder, and ½ teaspoon garam masala powder in the tempering and roast them for 2-3 seconds along with the other below mentioned ingredients. Then add the tempering to the dal.

    To make it vegan, replace ghee with oil.

    Serving Suggestions

    This Bengali style cholar dal is best served with luchi, koraishutir kochori, or radhavallabhi. It also tastes great with steamed rice or jeera rice. For a healthy alternative, serve it with bhakri or jowar ki roti.

    Storage Suggestions

    This delicious dal will last in the fridge for about 3 to 4 days when stored in an airtight container. You can reheat it in a pan or in the microwave until nice and warm before serving.

    If you feel it has become a little dry after refrigerating, add in a little water while reheating and heat it well.

    You might also like

    • Bengali Chicken Curry
    • Bengali Aloo Dum (Alur Dom)
    • Kosha Mangsho (Bengali Style Mutton Curry)
    • Jhal Muri

    Recipe Card

    Loved this recipe?Click here to leave a review and give us a five star rating ★★★★★
    Cholar Dal is a traditional Bengali dish prepared from Chana Dal (Bengal Gram Lentil), ghee, coconut, and other spices. It is sweet and savory and is best paired with Luchi or Steamed Rice.

    Cholar Dal Recipe

    Cholar Dal is a traditional Bengali dish prepared from Chana Dal (Bengal Gram Lentil), ghee, coconut, and other spices. It is sweet and savory and is best paired with Luchi or Steamed Rice.
    4.67 from 6 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: Main Course
    Cuisine: Indian
    Prep Time: 10 minutes
    Cook Time: 20 minutes
    Total Time: 30 minutes
    Servings: 4 people
    Calories: 337kcal
    Author: Neha Mathur

    Ingredients 

    • 1 cup chana dal (Bengal gram)
    • ½ teaspoon turmeric powder
    • salt to taste

    For Tempering

    • 3 tablespoons ghee
    • ¼ cup thinly sliced fresh coconut
    • 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
    • ¼ teaspoon asafetida
    • 4-5 whole dry red chilies
    • 3-4 whole cloves
    • 1 inch piece of cinnamon stick
    • 2-3 whole green cardamoms
    • 2 whole bay leaves
    • 1 teaspoon grated ginger
    • 1 teaspoon chopped green chili peppers
    • 2 tablespoons raisins
    • 1 teaspoon sugar
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    Instructions

    • Wash 1 cup chana dal with water a few times and drain the water. Add the rinsed dal to a pressure cooker along with 3 cups of water, ½ teaspoon turmeric powder, and salt to taste. Pressure cook for one whistle on high heat. Then reduce the heat to low and cook for 8-10 minutes.
    • Once cooked, remove the cooker from heat and let the pressure release naturally. Open the lid of the cooker. The dal should not be mushy after cooking. It should still hold its shape but cooked well.
    • Note – You can also cook the dal in an Instant pot or a pan. To cook the dal in an instant pot, add the rinsed dal, salt, turmeric powder, and 2 cups of water to the pot. Press PRESSURE COOK and set the timer to 12 minutes. Once the timer goes off, let the pressure release naturally for 10 minutes. Release the remaining pressure manually and then open the lid.
    • Heat 3 tablespoon ghee for tempering in a small skillet over medium-high heat. Add ¼ cup fresh coconut slices and fry until golden brown. Keep flipping them while frying. Remove the browned slices to a plate.
    • In the same ghee, add 1 teaspoon cumin seeds and ¼ teaspoon asafetida and let them crackle for 3-4 seconds.
    • Add 4-5 whole dry red chilies, 3-4 cloves, 1-inch piece of cinnamon stick, 2-3 whole green cardamoms, and 2 bay leaves and fry for 5-6 seconds. Add 1 teaspoon grated ginger and 1 teaspoon chopped green chili peppers and fry for another 5-6 seconds. You can add spices like coriander powder, cumin powder, and garam masala at this stage and fry for 2-3 seconds. 
    • Pour the tempering over the cooked dal along with fried coconut slices, 2 tablespoon raisins, and 1 teaspoon sugar and mix well.
    • Serve hot.

    Notes

    Being a North Indian, the addition of sugar in savory recipes is a big no-no for me but trust me, a hint of sugar in this recipe elevates the taste to the next level. So do not miss adding that tad bit of sugar however reluctant you be.
    No cholar dal is complete without some fried coconut slices garnishing it and a few raisins added to it.
    Soaking the dal for 30 minutes before cooking makes the cooking process faster and saves fuel.
    This dal is supposed to be thick, a consistency like a latpati sabzi.
    I sometimes like to add dry spices to this dal but make it without the spices too. Try both the versions and see which one you like better. To make dal with spices, add 2 teaspoon coriander powder, 1 teaspoon cumin powder, and ½ teaspoon garam masala powder in the tempering and roast them for 2-3 seconds along with the other below mentioned ingredients. Then add the tempering to the dal.
    To make it vegan, replace ghee with oil.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 337kcal | Carbohydrates: 42g | Protein: 13g | Fat: 13g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Cholesterol: 28mg | Sodium: 20mg | Potassium: 692mg | Fiber: 16g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 445IU | Vitamin C: 67.5mg | Calcium: 38mg | Iron: 5mg
    Pin this recipe for later use!I LOVE to see your creations so pin and mention @WhiskAffair!
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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. M

      February 23, 2020 at 8:21 am

      IT was great ????

      Reply
      • Neha Mathur

        February 24, 2020 at 2:23 am

        Thanks for trying.

        Reply
    2. Puneet

      May 09, 2020 at 9:04 pm

      5 stars
      Simple and delicious. Substituted dessicated coconut for fresh coconut slices and omitted the raisins. Even my 2 year old enjoyed it with rice. Paired it with your baingan bhaja recipe. An easy and tasty lockdown meal.

      Reply
      • Neha Mathur

        May 11, 2020 at 2:07 am

        Awesome 🙂

        Reply
    3. Shruti chandak

      June 22, 2020 at 4:17 pm

      Easy and good

      Reply
      • Neha Mathur

        June 23, 2020 at 7:50 am

        Thanks

        Reply
    4. Shyamali

      July 17, 2020 at 6:52 am

      5 stars
      Beautifully explained. Appears easy to cook. I am trying it now.

      Reply
      • Neha Mathur

        July 19, 2020 at 4:57 am

        It’s fab recipe. Do try.

        Reply

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