Creamy, rich, and luscious, this Restaurant Style Dal Maharani is a version of the popular Indian lentil curry Dal Makhani. Make it using my easy recipe from scratch at home (vegetarian).
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About Dal Maharani
Dal Maharani is a creamy and luscious North Indian lentil curry prepared with whole urad (black lentils), rajma, and chana dal as its base.
This creamy lentil curry is perfect to serve for festivals or special occasions.
Serve it with jeera rice or Indian bread such as naan, missi roti, or tandoori roti.
You can cook this restaurant-style dal maharani recipe in a traditional pressure cooker or in an instant pot.
This recipe can be easily doubled or tripled. I cook it in my 3-liter stovetop pressure cooker or a 6-quart instant pot. If scaling the recipe, use a bigger cooker or instant pot. The time of cooking will remain the same.
Dal is something that is made in every Indian household. Here are a few dal recipes that I personally like a lot
- Green Moong Dal
- Malwa Dal
- Dal Makhani
- Shahi Dal
- Restaurant Style Yellow Dal Tadka
- Cholar Dal
- Toor Dal
- Lauki Chana Dal
Difference Between Dal Maharani And Dal Makhani
Dal Maharani is very similar to Dal Makhani, but has its own unique taste and flavor.
Dal Makhani is a richer preparation made with lots of butter added to it while the quantity of butter, ghee, and cream is slightly less in Dal Maharani.
Dal Maharani is also spicier than its cousin Dal Makhani which is very mildly spiced.
Dal Makhani has a mildly sweet taste while the taste of Dal maharani is on the robust side.
Ingredients
You will get all the ingredients to make this lentil curry at any Indian grocery store.
For The Dal
To make the lentils, you will need whole urad (whole black gram lentils), chitra rajma (red kidney beans), chana dal (Bengal gram lentils), ghee, Kashmiri red chili powder, salt, ginger garlic paste, bay leaves, toasted Kasuri methi (dried fenugreek leaves), garam masala powder, butter, unsweetened heavy cream, and fresh ginger.
In case you don’t have chitra variety of rajma, use the regular rajma (kidney beans).
You can skip adding cream if making it for everyday meals.
To make this maharani dal recipe spicier, you can add a few whole spices like black cardamom (badi elaichi), green cardamom (hari elaichi), cloves (laung), cinnamon stick (dalchini), cumin seeds, etc while cooking the lentils.
For The First Tempering
You will need ghee, onions, Kashmiri red chili powder, and canned tomato puree.
If tomato puree is not available, then you can use tomato paste in its place.
For The Second Tempering
This is optional but gives a great flavor to this dal. You will need butter (or ghee), garlic, and Kashmiri red chili powder for this tadka.
How To Make Restaurant-Style Dal Maharani
Soak The Lentils
Wash
- ½ cup whole urad (whole black lentils)
- ¼ cup chitra rajma (red kidney beans)
- ¼ cup chana dal (Bengal gram lentils)
with water.
Soak them together or separately in 3-4 cups of water for 8-10 hours or overnight.
Cook The Lentils
In A Pressure Cooker
Wash the soaked lentils once again and drain them well.
Add them to a pressure cooker along with
- 2 tablespoon ghee
- 1 teaspoon Kashmiri chili powder
- 1 tablespoon ginger garlic paste
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 whole bay leaves.
Add 3 cups of water and stir well. Close the lid of the cooker.
Pressure cook for 1 whistle on high heat. Then reduce the heat to low and cook for 20 minutes.
Remove the cooker from the heat and let the pressure release naturally.
Open the lid and mash the lentils with the back of a ladle or a potato masher until creamy.
Heat the dal on medium heat until it starts to bubble.
Add
- 1 tablespoon of crushed Kasuri methi
- ½ teaspoon garam masala
- 1 tablespoon butter (salted or unsalted)
- 2 tablespoon unsweetened heavy cream
- 2 teaspoon of ginger juliennes
and mix well.
Cook for 5-6 minutes, stirring frequently.
Add some more water if the dal is too thick.
Check for salt and add more if needed.
In An Instant Pot
Follow the steps until adding bay leaves to an instant pot.
Add 2.5 cups of water and stir well. Close the lid of the pot.
Press PRESSURE COOK and set the timer to 20 minutes on HIGH PRESSURE. The instant pot will take some time to build the pressure and the timer to start.
Once the timer goes off, let the pressure release naturally for 10 minutes.
Release the remaining pressure manually by moving the vent to the venting position. Use a spoon to move the vent to prevent steam burn off the fingers.
Open the lid and mash the dal with the back of a ladle or a potato masher until creamy.
Press SAUTE and heat until the lentils start to bubble.
Add
- 1 tablespoon of crushed Kasuri methi
- ½ teaspoon garam masala
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 2 tablespoon heavy cream
- 2 teaspoon of ginger juliennes
and mix well.
Cook for 5-6 minutes, stirring frequently.
Add some more water if the dal is too thick.
Check for salt and add more if needed.
Temper The Lentils
Heat 3 tablespoon ghee in a pan over medium heat.
Once the ghee is hot, add ¼ cup of chopped onions and fry until they turn golden brown, stirring frequently.
Add 7 oz (200 g) of canned tomato puree and 1 teaspoon of Kashmiri red chili powder and cook for 3-4 minutes. Stir frequently while cooking.
Pour the tempering over the cooked dal and mix well.
Do The Second Tempering
Transfer Dal Maharani to the serving bowl.
Heat 1 tablespoon butter (or ghee) in a small pan.
Once the butter is melted, add 1 tablespoon minced garlic and fry until it turns light brown in color.
Switch off the heat and add ½ teaspoon Kashmiri chili powder and stir gently.
Immediately pour the tempering over the dal. Serve!
Frequently Asked Questions
You can give a restaurant-style smoky flavor to home-cooked dal too. The method of smoking the food is called Dhungar method. Heat a small piece of charcoal over high heat on a direct flame until it is red hot. Now keep a bowl over the cooked dal and keep the hot piece of charcoal in the bowl. Pour a teaspoon of ghee over the charcoal and immediately close the lid of the pot. Rest for 10 minutes. Discard the charcoal and give your smoked lentils a nice stir. Serve!
Serving Suggestions
Daal Maharani tastes great with jeera rice, steamed rice, or Indian bread such as naan, garlic naan, phulka, lachha paratha, missi roti, or tandoori roti.
Storage Suggestions
Dal Maharani can be stored in a clean and dry air-tight container in the refrigerator for about 4-5 days. Reheat in a microwave-safe bowl or pan, until nice and hot.
In case it becomes a little thick after refrigeration, add a little hot water to adjust the consistency.
It is freezer friendly too. Do not add cream to the recipe and freeze the dal for up to 3 months in freezer-safe containers. Thaw at the counter for 3-4 hours or overnight in the refrigerator before reheating. Add cream once the dal is nicely hot and serve.
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Recipe Card
Restaurant Style Dal Maharani Recipe
Ingredients
To Cook The Lentils
- ½ cup whole urad (whole black gram lentils)
- ¼ cup chitra rajma (red kidney beans)
- ¼ cup chana dal (Bengal gram lentils)
- 2 tablespoons ghee
- 1 teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder
- 1 tablespoon ginger garlic paste
- 1 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
- 2 whole bay leaves (tejpatta)
- 1 tablespoon crushed Kasuri methi
- ½ teaspoon garam masala powder
- 1 tablespoon butter (salted or unsalted)
- 2 tablespoons unsweetened heavy cream
- 2 teaspoons ginger juliennes
For The First Tempering
- 3 tablespoons ghee
- ¼ cup chopped onions
- 7 ounce canned tomato puree (200 g, or 100 g tomato paste)
- 1 teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder
For The Second Tempering (optional)
- 1 tablespoon butter ( or ghee)
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- ½ teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder
Instructions
Soak The Lentils
- Wash whole urad, rajma, and chana dal with water.
- Soak them together or separately in 3-4 cups of water for 8-10 hours or overnight.
Cook The Lentils
In A Pressure Cooker
- Wash the soaked lentils once again and drain them well.
- Add them to a pressure cooker along with ghee, chili powder, ginger garlic paste, salt, and bay leaves.
- Add 3 cups of water and stir well. Close the lid of the cooker.
- Pressure cook for 1 whistle on high heat. Then reduce the heat to low and cook for 20 minutes.
- Remove the cooker from the heat and let the pressure release naturally.
- Open the lid and mash the dal with the back of a ladle or a potato masher until creamy.
- Heat the lentils on medium heat until it starts to bubble.
- Add Kasuri methi, garam masala, butter, heavy cream, and ginger juliennes and mix well.
- Cook for 5-6 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Add some more water if the dal is too thick.
- Check for salt and add more if needed.
In An Instant Pot
- Follow the steps until adding bay leaves to an instant pot.
- Add 2.5 cups of water and stir well. Close the lid of the pot.
- Press PRESSURE COOK and set the timer to 20 minutes on HIGH PRESSURE. The instant pot will take some time to build the pressure and the timer to start.
- Once the timer goes off, let the pressure release naturally for 10 minutes.
- Release the remaining pressure manually by moving the vent to the venting position. Use a spoon to move the vent to prevent steam burn off the fingers.
- Open the lid and mash the dal with the back of a ladle or a potato masher until creamy.
- Press SAUTE and heat the dal until it starts to bubble.
- Add Kasuri methi, garam masala, butter, heavy cream, and ginger juliennes, and mix well.
- Cook for 5-6 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Add some more water if the dal is too thick.
- Check for salt and add more if needed.
Temper The Lentils
- Heat ghee in a pan over medium heat.
- Once the ghee is hot, add onions and fry until they turn golden brown, stirring frequently.
- Add tomato puree and chili powder and cook for 3-4 minutes. Stir frequently while cooking.
- Pour the tempering over Dal Maharani and mix well.
Do The Second Tempering
- Transfer the dal to the serving bowl.
- Heat butter in a small pan.
- Once the butter is melted, add garlic and fry until it turns light brown in color.
- Switch off the heat and add chili powder and stir gently.
- Immediately pour the tempering over the dal. Serve!
Did you make this recipe? Let me know!