This Gujarati dish takes up to an hour to cook but requires only a few minutes of preparation and very little attention. It is nutritious and exceptionally easy to digest. If you don’t have chana dal , you could substitute yellow split peas. Try this with a green salad or Raw Vegetables in Smooth Yogurt and hot Griddle-Baked Whole Wheat Bread or whole wheat toast.
Dal soaking time: 5 hours
Preparation time (after assembling ingredients): 5 minutes
Cooking time: 1–1½ hours
Serves: 5 or 6
• ¾ cup (150 g) split chana dal or split peas
• ¾ cup (70 g) basmati or other long-grain white rice
• 6½ cups (1.5 liters) water
• 1 teaspoon (5 ml) turmeric
• ½ tablespoon (7 ml) dried dill weed or 3 tablespoons (45 ml) chopped fresh dill
• ½ teaspoon (2 ml) garam masala
• 3 tablespoons (45 ml) ghee or vegetable oil
• 2 teaspoons (10 ml) cumin seeds
• ½–1 whole dried red chili
• ¼ teaspoon (1 ml) yellow asafetida powder ( hing)
• 2 medium-sized tomatoes, each cut into 8 pieces
• 1 teaspoon (5 ml) salt
* This amount applies only to yellow Cobra brand. Reduce any other asafetida by three-fourths .
1. Soak the dal or split peas in 3 cups (710 ml) of hot water for 5 hours, then drain. If basmati rice is used, clean, wash, soak and drain as explained on our Blog .
2. Place the dal , rice, water, turmeric, dill and garam masala in a heavy 3–4-quart/liter nonstick heavy saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to low, partially cover, and slowly cook for 1–1½ hours or until the dal is butter-soft and the liquid is absorbed. Remove from the heat.
3. Heat the ghee or oil in a small saucepan over moderate to moderately high heat. When it is hot, stir in the cumin seeds and red chili. Fry until the cumin seeds are brown. Sprinkle in the asafetida powder and immediately add the tomato pieces. Fry for 1–2 minutes or until the tomatoes soften and glisten with ghee or oil. Pour the fried seasoning into the cooked dal , stir in the salt and serve.
