Tomato Moong Dal w/ Garlic & Cumin Tarka

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You will need:

  • 1/2 cup of moong beans (use up to a cup if you want a large batch of dal)

    • Soak the moong beans in water for at least 24 hours. You can put the bowl in the (turned off) oven to speed up this process if you don’t have a full 24 hours. The warmth inside the oven will help it go faster.

  • 1 can of chopped tomatoes

  • 1 large onion — roughly chop half the onion, and thinly slice the other half

  • 1 tbsp turmeric

  • 1 tbsp cumin seeds

  • A few large garlic cloves — sliced into chips

  • Ghee, butter or oil

  • 1 Lemon

  • Chilies (fresh or flaked) OPTIONAL

You will also need:

  • One large pot

  • One small pot

  • One frying pan

In the large pot, heat up the butter ghee or oil on medium/high heat and toss in the onion chunks. Cook down until soft and melty and then add the can of tomatoes, about half a can’s worth of water and the turmeric. Stir well and simmer until soft. Add some salt.

Rinse the soaked moong beans VERY VERY thoroughly under cold water. Once you think you’ve rinsed them enough, rinse some more. This will help to remove all the excess starch and hopefully avoid that gross foam that can build on top of simmering lentils. Pour the beans into the small pot, cover with water and bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer and leave it uncovered.

Return to the pot of onions and tomatoes. For a smooth dal you can puree this mixture either using an immersion blender or transferring to a food processor. You can also leave it soft and chunky. Your choice! Cover to keep warm.

Heat up your frying pan and dry fry the cumin seeds for about 30 seconds or until aromatic— add more ghee butter or oil and add the garlic chips, thinly sliced onion and some chilies if you’re using. Fry until dark and caramelised. You almost want those garlic chips to burn a little! Mmmmm!

Check on the moong beans, you want most of the water to be absorbed and for the beans to be soft and mushy. if you push on them with a wooden spoon do they smush? That’s what you want. Add more water if they’re not yet mushy. Once soft, drain and add the beans to the tomato onion sauce. You can add a bit more water to get the consistency you want. Taste, adjust with more salt and gently warm. Squeeze in one half of the lemon and slice up the other half to serve.

When you’re ready to serve, stir in 2/3rds of the caramelised onions & garlic and use the remaining third to scatter on top. Top with fresh coriander and lemon wedges.

Serve with fluffy basmati, popadoms or warm flatbread!

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