Recipe: Yellow Moong Dal

At request...

Yellow Moong Dal

1 Cup dry yellow moong dal

2 tsp cumin seeds

1 tbsp olive oil

1 green chilli, stemmed and chopped (or 1/2 tsp. red chilli powder)

1 tsp. ground turmeric

1/2" piece ginger, peeled and minced

1 chopped tomato

Salt to taste

1/2 Cup finely chopped fresh cilantro

If you don't have a pressure cooker, soak dal in 2 Cups water overnight (or for several hours during the day).  In a pot over high heat, roast cumin seeds until fragrant, being careful not to let them burn.  Turn heat down to medium high and add oil, a stemmed and chopped green chilli (or 1/2 tsp. red chilli powder), ground turmeric, and ginger.  Add the dal and the water it's been soaking in, the chopped tomato, and salt to taste, and stir.  You can add more water at this point if you like your dal to be more soup-y.  If you are using a pressure cooker, follow its instructions for pressure cooking at this point.  If you're using a regular pot, turn heat back to high, bring to boil, then turn heat down to medium, cover, and let simmer until dal is cooked (~20 minutes).  The dal should be so mushy that each lentil is no longer distinct.  When it's cooked, turn off heat and stir in chopped cilantro.  Serve hot with rice if it's soup-y or chapatis if it's thick, or drink like soup.

Variations: 

- add a clove of minced garlic at the same time as the ginger.

- add 1/4 of a chopped onion, and saute it in the oil until at least translucent or at most browned before adding anything else to the oil.  

- add popped mustard seeds.

- add a pinch of asafoetida (also known as hing).

- add chopped greens like mustard greens or spinach at the same time as the tomato (if you add greens, you won't need the cilantro).