Dal Amritsari

Dal Amritsari -

Dal Amritsari, as the name suggests is a dal from the city of Amritsar in North India. Prepared with whole black lentils or whole urad, this dal is ready in a jiffy when cooked in a pressure cooker, without compromising on the taste. A tadka or tempering is prepared for this dal with tomatoes onions and a blend of Punjabi spices. No Punjabi dal is complete without the use of some Punjabi garam masalas. Serve hot garnished with some chopped coriander or butter.

Ingredients:

3/4 cup urad (whole black lentil)
1 cup chopped onions
1 tsp chopped ginger (adrak)
salt to taste
1/2 cup fresh cream
1 tbsp oil
1 tbsp ghee
1 tsp ginger (adrak) paste
1 tsp garlic (lehsun) paste
1 tsp finely chopped green chillies
1/2 cup chopped tomatoes
1/2 tsp chilli powder
1/2 tsp turmeric powder (haldi)
1/2 tsp dried mango powder (amchur)
1/2 tsp coriander (dhania) powder
1/2 tsp cumin seeds (jeera) powder
1/2 tsp Punjabi garam masala
1 tbsp coriander (dhania) for the garnish

Method:

Clean, wash and soak the whole urad in water overnight.
Drain, add ½ cup onions, ginger, salt and 2½ cups of water and pressure cook for 15 to 20 minutes, over medium flame, till the urad is cooked.
Allow the steam to escape before opening the lid.
Whisk so as to mash the dal, add the cream and cook on low flame for 10 minutes so it thickens. Keep aside.
For the tempering, heat the oil and ghee in a small pan, add the remaining onions, ginger paste, garlic paste and green chillies and sauté till the onions turn translucent.
Add the tomatoes and sauté for 3-4 minutes or till the mixture leaves oil.
Add the chilli powder, turmeric powder, dry mango powder, coriander powder, cumin seeds powder, Punjabi garam masala and salt and sauté for 2-3 minutes.
Add it to the dal and simmer for 5 minutes.
Serve hot garnished with coriander.