Katachi Amti is tangy and spicy Maharashtrian dal prepared with chana dal (Bengal gram), dry coconut, tamarind pulp, jaggery, and a few spices. This thin tempered dal is popularly served with puran poli (vegan, can be easily made gluten-free).
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About Katachi Amti
Katachi Amti is a thin Maharashtrian lentil recipe prepared with chana dal, jaggery, tamarind, and freshly ground coconut paste. It is tangy, slightly sweet, and bursting with incredible flavors.
Traditionally, leftover water from cooking the chana dal for puran poli is used to make katachi amti, whereas cooked chana dal is used to make puran poli stuffing.
This Katachi amti recipe can also be made if you are cooking chana dal to make chana dal kababs, chana dal sundal, chana dal paratha, or faree. I also make it whenever I cook chana dal to make the stuffing for my Aloo Tikki recipe.
It is served with puran poli, especially during Maharashtrian festivals such as Ganesh Chaturthi and Gudi Padwa. You can also serve it with plain steamed rice for a comforting weekday meal.
This recipe is vegan and can be easily made gluten-free. You can also double or triple the recipe.
I cooked the dal in my 6-quart instant pot (or 3-liter pressure cooker). If you want to scale the recipe, then use an 8-quart instant pot (or a 5-liter pressure cooker). The time of pressure cooking will remain the same.
Here are a few more Maharashtrian recipes that you can try at home
- Masale Bhat
- Green Chilli Thecha
- Taak
- Misal Pav
- Kolhapuri Egg Curry
- Shankarpali
- Shengdana Amti
- Batata Vada
- Basundi
- Bharli Vangi
Ingredients
For The Dal Water
To make the dal water, you will need chana dal (Bengal Gram), water, salt, tamarind pulp, gud (jaggery), and cilantro (fresh coriander leaves).
For The Ground Paste
A freshly ground paste is made with dry coconut, white sesame seeds (til), cinnamon (dalchini), green cardamoms (hari elaichi), cloves (laung), and black peppercorns (kali mirch).
You can replace dry coconut with fresh coconut too.
For The Tempering
To temper the amti, you will need vegetable oil, black mustard seeds, cumin seeds, curry leaves, asafetida (hing), turmeric powder, and Kashmiri red chilli powder.
Avoid adding asafetida (hing) to make it gluten-free.
You can also add onions in tempering to make the Katachi amti more flavorful.
Add a little garam masala to spice it up further.
How To Make Katachi Amti
Cook The Dal
Wash 1 cup chana dal with water 2-3 times and soak it in 4-5 cups of water for 30 minutes.
Once the dal is soaked, drain the water and add the soaked dal to an instant pot.
Add 3 cups of water and close the lid of the instant pot.
Press PRESSURE COOK and set the timer to 15 minutes on high pressure.
Once the timer goes off, let the pressure release naturally for 10 minutes.
Release the remaining pressure manually and open the lid of the instant pot.
Strain the cooked dal using a fine-mesh strainer and reserve the strained stock for making katachi amti. Use the cooked dal to make Puran Poli.
Note – To cook the dal in a traditional pressure cooker, cook on high heat for one whistle, then reduce the heat to low and cook for another 15 minutes.
Make The Ground Paste
Add
- 1 tablespoon grated dry coconut
- 1 teaspoon white sesame seeds
- 1-inch piece of cinnamon stick
- 2 whole green cardamoms
- 2-3 cloves
- 2-3 black peppercorns
to a pan and dry roast on medium heat until nicely browned, stirring continuously.
Remove the pan from the heat and let the roasted ingredients cool slightly.
Add the roasted ingredients to a blender jar along with ¼ cup water and blend to make a smooth paste.
Make The Amti
Add the chana dal stock and the ground masala paste to a pan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring frequently.
Add
- 2 teaspoon tamarind pulp
- 2 teaspoon grated jaggery
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder
- ½ teaspoon turmeric powder
and mix well.
Reduce the heat to low and cook for 5-6 minutes, stirring a few times in between.
Add little water if you like thinner amti and bring it to a boil once.
Temper The Amti
Heat 1 tablespoon vegetable oil in a pan over medium-high heat.
Once the oil is hot, add
- ½ teaspoon brown mustard seeds
- ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
- 10-12 curry leaves
- ¼ teaspoon asafetida
and let them crackle for 4-5 seconds.
Pour the tempering over the amti and mix well.
Garnish with chopped cilantro and serve hot with Puran Poli or Steamed Rice.
Frequently Asked Questions
There is another version of this amti that is spiced with goda masala and the tang comes from tomatoes and not tamarind paste. Here is the recipe.
Cook the chana dal as mentioned in the main recipe.
Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a pan over medium-high heat.
Once the oil is hot, add ½ teaspoon mustard seeds, ½ teaspoon cumin seeds, and ¼ teaspoon asafetida, and let them crackle for 4-5 seconds.
Now add 5-6 whole curry leaves, ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder, and 1 teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder and saute for 10-12 seconds.
Add ¼ cup of finely chopped tomatoes and saute for 2-3 minutes until the tomatoes are mushy.
Add 2 tablespoon of cooked chana dal and the reserved stock of chana dal and mix well.
Stir in 1 teaspoon salt, 1 tablespoon chopped cilantro, and 1 teaspoon goda masala.
Reduce the heat to low and cook the amti for 8-10 minutes.
Serving Suggestions
Maharashtrian Style Katachi Amti is traditionally served with sweet Puran Poli. It is quite popular during Maharashtrian festivals such as Gudi Padwa, Ganesh Chaturthi, etc.
You can also serve katachi amti with steamed rice, jeera rice, or any lightly spiced pulao recipes.
Storage Suggestions
Katachi Amti can be stored for 3-4 days in an air-tight container in the refrigerator. Reheat in a pan or microwave until hot before serving.
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Recipe Card
Maharashtrian Katachi Amti Recipe
Ingredients
To Cook The Dal
- 1 cup chana dal (Bengal gram)
- 3 cups water
To Make A Paste
- 1 tablespoon grated dry coconut
- 1 teaspoon white sesame seeds (til)
- 1 inch piece of cinnamon stick (dalchini)
- 2 whole green cardamoms (hari elaichi)
- 2-3 cloves (laung)
- 2-3 whole black peppercorns (kali mirch)
For The Curry
- 2 teaspoons tamarind paste
- 2 teaspoons grated jaggery (gud)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder
- ½ teaspoon turmeric powder
- 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro (fresh coriander leaves)
For Tempering
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- ½ teaspoon brown mustard seeds
- ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
- 10-12 curry leaves
- ¼ teaspoon asafetida (hing) (skip for gluten-free recipe)
Instructions
Cook The Dal
- Wash the dal with water 2-3 times and soak it in 4-5 cups of water for 30 minutes.
- Once the dal is soaked, drain the water and add the soaked dal to an instant pot.
- Add 3 cups of water and close the lid of the instant pot.
- Press PRESSURE COOK and set the timer to 15 minutes on high pressure.
- Once the timer goes off, let the pressure release naturally for 10 minutes.
- Release the remaining pressure manually and open the lid of the instant pot.
- Strain the cooked dal using a fine-mesh strainer and reserve the water for making katachi amti. Use the cooked dal to make Puran Poli.
- Note – To cook the dal in a traditional pressure cooker, cook on high heat for one whistle, then reduce the heat to low and cook for another 15 minutes.
Make The Ground Paste
- Add dry coconut, sesame seeds, cinnamon stick, green cardamoms, cloves, and black peppercorns to a pan and dry roast on medium heat until nicely browned, stirring continuously.
- Remove the pan from the heat and let the roasted ingredients cool slightly.
- Add the roasted ingredients to a blender jar along with ¼ cup water and blend to make a smooth paste.
Make The Amti
- Add the dal water and the ground paste to a pan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring frequently.
- Add tamarind pulp, jaggery, salt, Kashmiri red chili powder, and turmeric powder, and mix well.
- Reduce the heat to low and cook for 5-6 minutes. Stir at regular intervals.
- Add some water fi you like thinner amti and bring it to a boil once.
Temper The Amti
- Heat vegetable oil in a pan over medium-high heat.
- Once the oil is hot, add mustard seeds, cumin seeds, curry leaves, and asafetida, and let them crackle for 4-5 seconds.
- Pour the tempering over the amti and mix well.
- Garnish with chopped cilantro and serve hot with Puran Poli or Steamed Rice.
Vaijayanti Naik
I use the puran that is made it gives more depth to the flavour.