Masoor Dal is a delicious Indian red lentil recipe that is easy to cook, healthy and tastes fabulous. Pair it with rice or roti for a hearty meal. Here is how to make masoor dal recipe.
When someone asks me about my comfort food, the answer is almost instantaneous.
A steaming bowl of rice topped with dal, a dollop of ghee and some pickle on the side does it all for me.
It’s also strange how the taste of food changes from plate to plate.
I have fond memories of my childhood, when how much ever I have eaten and how much I am full, a bite of Dal rice from my mom’s plate was customary.
There was something about the way she mixed up her dal, rice, and pickle which gave a totally different taste which never came in my own plate.
For yesterday’s dinner, I made whole Masoor Dal which is a family favorite and the combination of Bharwan Bhindi with it was a killer.
Simple flavors, simple ingredients yet so much satisfaction.
Lentils are an integral part of our wholesome home-cooked meals. We all prepare some hot and steaming dal every other day in our kitchens.
There are a variety of dals that the Indian cuisine has to offer, such as toor dal, moong dal, urad dal, masoor dal, chana dal and they have their respective versions as well.
Amongst all of the above, today we will be discussing all masoor dal.
Masoor dal is a lentil that has lens-shaped seeds.
Today I am sharing my best recipe to prepare a fulfilling bowl of whole brown lentil.
Having a bowl of dal in our regular meals is quintessential for our bodies.
This is because it keeps our heart healthy by lowering down the cholesterol levels and also helps in our weight loss journey.
Masoor dal contains a lot of antioxidants that keep our skin healthy and our immune system strong.
Since masoor dal contains calcium and magnesium it helps in nourishing the teeth and bones of our body.
Maintaining a healthy vision is also an important benefit of having masoor dal in our diet.
Now after going through all the health benefits of masoor dal, let’s get some further insights about its recipe as well.
What is Masoor Dal?
Masoor dal is a lentil soup that is prepared by boiling the soaked dal and giving it a nice desi ghee tadka.
It’s a gluten-free recipe and can be easily turned to vegan as well by replacing ghee with oil.
This lentil soup is consumed as a part of our main course meal and if you wish you can also pack it in your office or kids’ lunch box as well.
Masoor Dal is cooked whole as Sabut Masoor. Also called as Khadi Masoor or Aakha Masoor, it is dark brown in color.
It can be split and de-skinned and is also called Red Masoor, Malka Masoor or Dhuli Masoor.
What to serve with Masoor Dal?
Masoor dal can be served with some steamed rice, boiled rice, quinoa, pulav or with some hot chapatis or parathas by its side.
Serve them along with some raw onions papad and green chutney to make it a full-fledged complete meal.
For how long do we need to boil Masoor Dal?
Whole Masoor, when soaked for 20 minutes, needs to be boiled in a pressure cooker for three to four whistles on a medium flame, which would roughly take you about 15 minutes or so.
Red Masoor on the other needs less time to cook.
Red Masoor Dal
Red masoor dal is a very special variety of dal which turns from a pinkish to a golden yellow colored dal post-cooking.
You can prepare it in the same way as you would prepare brown masoor dal.
The only difference which would arise is that the pink masoor dal will get cooked only in one whistle whereas the brown masoor dal would take you around 3-4 whistles on medium flame.
Masoor dal for babies
To prepare masoor dal for babies, use only pink masoor dal as it is lighter as compared to whole masoor dal.
Boil masoor dal as per the instructions given below. Now grind it in a mixer and pass it through a sieve.
Thin it with some boiled water. You can feed the resulting dal paste to your babies.
Oil-free Masoor Dal
To prepare an oil-free version of the masoor dal, just add all the ingredients mentioned below (including the tempering ones) in a pressure cooker, except ghee.
Now boil the dal as per the instructions given below.
After that, mix everything well and an oil-free version of masoor dal will be ready to serve.
Special tips to prepare Masoor Dal
If you wish you can also add a nice onion and tomato gravy in this recipe itself.
Just saute onion, tomatoes green chillies and ginger in two tablespoons of oil and cook until the oil separates.
Add this gravy into the dal and mix it nicely. So this is how you can make masoor dal with onion and tomato gravy as well.
Masoor Dal tends to thicken as soon as you turn off the flame. So kindly adjust the consistency of the dal accordingly.
You can also add chopped palak or spinach while cooking masoor dal.
Try and use unpolished organic dal for your daily use.
If you want a vegan version of this dal, replace ghee with oil to give tadka.
You might also like
How to make Masoor Dal Step by Step
Wash the dal and soak in enough water for 20 minutes.
Drain the water and add the dal in a pressure cooker. Add salt, turmeric powder and water in the cooker and pressure cook until dal is softened.
Remove the cooker from heat and let the pressure release. Add dry mango powder and mix well.
Heat ghee in a pan.
Once the ghee is hot, add hing, cumin seeds, and garlic and fry for a few seconds.
Remove the pan from heat and add red chilli powder and pour the tempering over the dal and mix well.
Serve hot with steamed rice or Roti and dry sabzi.
Whole Masoor Dal Recipe
Masoor Dal Recipe
Masoor Dal is a delicious Indian lentil recipe that is easy to cook, healthy and tastes fabulous. Pair it with rice or roti for a hearty meal.
Ingredients
- 1 cup Black Masoor Dal
- Salt to taste
- 1/2 tsp Turmeric Powder
- 4 cups Water
- 2 tsp Dry Mango Powder
For tempering
- 2 tbsp Ghee
- 1/4 tsp Heeng
- 1 tsp Cumin Seeds
- 1 tsp Garlic Chopped
- 1 tsp Red Chilli Powder
Instructions
Wash the dal and soak in enough water for 20 minutes.
Drain the water and add the dal in a pressure cooker.
Add salt, turmeric powder and water in the cooker and pressure cook until dal is softened.
Remove the cooker from heat and let the pressure release.
Add dry mango powder and mix well.
Heat ghee in a pan.
Once the ghee is hot, add heeng, cumin seeds and garlic and fry for a few seconds.
Remove the pan from heat and add red chilli powder and pour the tempering over the dal and mix well.
Serve hot with steamed rice or Roti and dry sabzi.
Recipe Notes
If you wish you can also add a nice onion and tomato gravy in this recipe itself. Just saute onion, tomatoes green chillies and ginger in two tablespoons of oil and cook until the oil separates. Add this gravy into the dal and mix it nicely. So this is how you can make masoor dal with onion and tomato gravy as well.
Masoor Dal tends to thicken as soon as you turn off the flame. So kindly adjust the consistency of dal accordingly.
Are you making this recipe? I LOVE to see your creations so snap a photo and tag Whiskaffair on Instagram with the hashtag #Whiskaffair and please give a star rating below ★. You can follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram for more such easy recipes.
Did you make this recipe? Let me know!