Masoor ki dal | Brown Lentil Curry | By- Anu Appetizing Recipes

Why should we include Lentils in our diet?

We should include lentils in our diet because they are eco-friendly, economical, healthy, and versatile.
Lentils and pulses are the heart of Indian cuisine just like spices. Indians know the right way to cook and consume it in a delicious way. Most Indian families, take protein from cottage cheese and lentils. Some lentils are rich in protein, fiber, calcium, and each of them has its own taste, texture, and color. I love to eat lentils with rice or roti, it is a super satisfying meal.

Masoor Dal

Masoor Dal aka Brown lentil and Red lentil is a great source of calcium, folate, potassium, magnesium as well as naturally vegan and gluten-free. Today, I'll teach you how to make delicious masoor dal with few ingredients. This dal is one of my absolute favorite and is best of all. Lentils are a superfood that you can store up to one month and a handful of lentils are enough for your family. Also, the preparation time is less than 15 minutes in a pressure cooker, it is an effective tool for cooking lentils. Brown lentils need a longer time for soaking but yellow lentils are generally required less time. You can buy these lentils in any grocery store or order by Amazon, they are super cheap, super healthy, and stay longer in your pantry. Especially in the state of the Covid-19 crisis, people are concerned about what to stock? They are buying rice, frozen food, frozen veggies, etc
Honestly, eating frozen food once in a while is fine, but not every day, they are neither a healthy choice nor great in taste, it's just for our convenience.
I highly recommend you to stock lentils which you can prepare easily and even children will like it with rice. 


What do we need to make Masoor Dal?

We need a few basic ingredients to prepare brown lentils. See the list of ingredients down below:

INGREDIENTS
FOR BOILING

• 1.5 cup of masoor dal/ Brown lentil ( sorted and rinsed well)
• 2 glasses of water
• Salt to taste
• 1 tsp turmeric powder

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FOR SEASONING/TADKA

• 1 tbsp Amul ghee ( or any other cooking oil)
• Pinch of asafoetida 
• 1 tsp coriander powder
• 1 tsp red chili powder
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 diced tomato/ puree
• 1 tsp minced ginger
• Fresh coriander leaves for garnishing
• 1/2 lemon juice

How to make Masoor ki Dal?

Masoor dal is a basic recipe that you can prepare easily in a pressure cooker or crockpot in just 15 to 20 minutes. Consistency of this Dal varies it could be semi-dry or like a soup. Dal can be enjoyed with rice or chapatti.

Method

• Firstly, soak masoor dal overnight in water.
• Wash and rinse thoroughly and remove the water.
• Into a pressure cooker add masoor dal with two glasses of freshwater.
• Add 1 tsp turmeric and salt to taste.
• Close the lid of the pressure cooker, place it on a medium flame until 2 whistles. It will take at least 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile, prepare a spicy Dal Tadka/seasoning.
• Place a small pan on medium heat, add a tablespoon of ghee, asafoetida/Hing, cumin seeds, red chili powder, coriander powder, ginger, and diced tomatoes.
• Stir for about 2 minutes ( add little water if needed, it helps in soften tomatoes)
•  Now, pour this seasoning onto dal with lemon juice. Mix well
• Garnish with coriander leaves.
• Serve with Basmati rice/brown rice/ couscous/quinoa or plain roti.

ESSENTIAL TIPS

1. Soak Brown lentils overnight, it will take less time to cook.
2. Feel free to use any vegetable oil, I prefer Amul ghee you can also use coconut oil, olive oil as well.
3. You can use canned lentils if you don't have a pressure cooker, but the taste will not be the same if using canned lentils. Fresh is best.
4. I always use water to make all kinds of lentils and they are very good in taste, you can substitute water with milk, but I don't particularly like dairy products in making lentils.
5. You can store boiled lentils in an airtight container, it will stay up to 2 days and in the freezer for one week.

SHOP HERE 🛒

• Pressure cooker
• Crockpot 

Did you try out this recipe?

Please let me know how it goes in the comments section below! Your feedback is so important to me and I hope you love this okra recipe as much as I do. It's my absolute favorite.
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