This recipe is my first introduction to dahl and the first ever side dish I had with rotis. This was also the first few dishes to get finalized, cooked and clicked for this BM. Being a South Indian, my house was never stocked with the vital masala (garam masala, dhaniya powder and jeera powder) of the Indian cooking. But, we use jeera seeds and dhaniya extensively in our day to day cooking! And, when you have grand parents with you, then their inveterate eating manner restricts us from venturing into other regional cuisines. But when we children pester our mom for variety she could not outrightly say no to us. so she struck a balance by giving us a dahl per se and at the same time even the elders in the family could relish it. If Onion and salt is omitted, they even got a Ekadashi palagaram ( food had during fasting).
This is a very simple dahl which does not require any recipe or instructions. It is very elementary and stark in flavour when compared to the rich luscious North Indian dahls. When I tried this out initially I never could get my mom's taste. It was very much like the regular dahl tadka. Then while talking to her I realized that she does not fry the tomatoes in oil. Either it is pressure cooked with the dahl or she just crushes and adds to the cooked dahl and puts it in the kadai, so it gets cooked just enough until the raw smell is gone, while the dahl boils. This imparts a different taste profile entirely from that of the regular Indian dahls. The original flavour of the cooked pasi parupu is retained and the only flavour that piques this dish are the tomatoes. To reduce the cooking time drastically you can add the tomatoes and even chillies in the pressure cooker along with the dahl.
- ½ Cup Pasi Parupu | Moong dahl
- 1 medium size tomato quartered
- 2 Green chillies slit lengthwise
- Salt to taste
- 1 teaspoon Ghee
- ¼ teaspoon Mustard seeds
- 3-4 Curry leaves torn
- ¼ Cup chopped Onions optional
- Coriander for garnish
- Pressure cook the dal with turmeric powder and keep aside. It should be soft and slightly mushy.
- Heat oil in a Kadai | Pan over medium high heat.
- Once the oil shimmers, add the mustard seeds and let it splutter. Then add the cumin seeds, curry leaves and fry for a second.
- Then add the chopped onions (if using it) and sauté until it turns translucent. Else go to step 5 after step 3.
- Add the chopped tomatoes give a quick stir and then add the cooked dahl.
- Once the dahl comes to a boil, add salt and mix it well. Garnish it with coriander leaves and turn off the flame.
Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM# 63 here.
Chef Mireille says
so interesting that one little switch could alter the taste so
Sapana Behl says
Such a comforting and delicious bowl of dal.
Smruti Shah says
Perfect comforting meal for days when you need something simple yet flavorful on your platter!!
Pavani N says
Simple, comforting and hearty dal. Subtle changes in cooking method changes the flavor a lot, right??
Harini-Jaya R says
Comfort food at its best.
Amara Annapaneni says
Such lovely and comforting dal. Love the presentation
Priya Suresh says
Comforting and my kind of dal, simply love with rice and spicy potato fries.
Srividhya Gopalakrishnan says
Love the tray and the serveware too. Quick and Quinoa are the ruling words it seems. Yummy dal.
Srivalli says
The basic moong dal with tomato and green chilies and a simple tadka was also the first I remember first making..lovely pictures and nice to know you got the taste right..
Gayathri Kumar says
I make this often and as you said it is a quick fix recipe. Looks yum..
Suma Gandlur says
Love both the dal and the clicks. ☺
Usha says
Such a comfort food. Even I don't cook tomatoes for too long in the tadka, just until it turns soft and then add dal.