Subject: Dal
From: "Strawberry Girl" <[email-masked]>
Date: 24 Nov 1999 06:25:03 -0700
Newsgroups: rec.food.recipes

I made this for dinner tonight. It's amazing to me how fulfilling such a
simple recipe can be.

DAL

1 1/2  cups red or brown lentils, yellow or green split peas, or split,
hulled, mung beans (I use red lentils)
4 cups water
2 dried chilies, whole
1/2  tsp. turmeric
1/2  tsp. salt

2 tbsp. ghee or vegetable oil
1/2  tsp. cumin seeds
1 cup chopped onions
1 tsp. grated peeled fresh ginger
1 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
1/2 -1 tsp. garam masala
salt to taste

Wash the lentils, peas, or beans in several changes of cold water.  In a
medium pot, cover them with the water and add the whole dried chilies,
turmeric, and salt,  Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer, stirring
often, until very tender.  This will take about 30 minutes for red lentils,
45 minutes for peas, or an hour or more for mung beans.  It may be necessary
to add more water to prevent sticking, but only 1/2  cup at a time, because the
final consistency should be fairly thick.

When the lentils are almost cooked, heat the ghee or oil in a small pan, add
the cumin seeds, and cook for 10 or 12 seconds.  Stir in the onions and
ginger and cook until the onions begin to brown, about 5 or 10 minutes.

When the lentils are tender, remove and discard the hot peppers.  Stir in
the onion mixture, lemon juice, garam masala, and salt to taste.  Serve,
passing additional garam masala to sprinkle on top, if desired.

Variations:

Spinach Dal:  Add 4 cups of chopped, fresh spinach to the onions after they
have sautied for about 5 minutes and then cook for 5 minutes more.

Tomato Dal:  Add 1 cup chopped tomatoes to the onions after they have
sautied for about 5 minutes and then cook for about 5 minutes more.

Spinach-Tomato Dal:  Add both spinach and tomatoes

Christine's Sinful Dal: Sometimes when I'm feeling naughty (yes, I live life
on the edge!) I leave out the vegetable mixture. Instead I thickly slice 1/2
to 2/3 of a head of garlic and fry it in about 1/4 cup oil (preheated to
medium-high) with a red pepper pod or two. Stir constantly until the garlic
is golden and then immediately dump the oil mixture into the cooked lentils.
It gives a satisfying sizzle and the garlic is deliciously sweet. (Cooked
like this garlic is more like a vegetable than that typical strong flavour.)
YUM!!!
Source:            Sundays at Moosewood Restaurant

Christine
[email-masked]

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