A home-cooked meal without dal is quite incomplete. Whether it’s a simple moong dal with tadka, or an elaborate panchmel dal; hot dal with steaming rice and heavy glob of ghee on top is a combination we cannot resist. Dal is prepared in over 200 ways in India, each preparation more mouth-watering than the previous one. But, every home has their favourite dal that’s made when in a pinch.
Toor or tur dal is by far the more common dal along with yellow moong dal. And these two dals are generally cooked first and tempered with a variety of spices later. The tempering of dal depends on geography. Where you are in the country will determine what your tadka will include. Common ingredients are green or red chillies, mustard seeds, jeera, asafoetida, curry leaves, garlic, methi seeds, dried coconut, kasuri methi – the list is long.
The correct tempering brings out the flavours of the dal itself. Coconut in tur dal tastes amazing and is used in Amti in Maharashtra. Try using it in another dal and the result won’t be as pleasant. Down South where rasam is so common and a staple, there are plenty of ways to make it. The most common way is the heavy use of tomatoes. But can you make tur dal rasam without tomatoes?
Yes you can. The result is just as delicious and satisfying. You can control the thickness of the dal if your meal is just going to be rasam rice and papadum on the side. In this case, a slightly thick rasam will fill you up nicely and not to mention the nutrition level is more than adequate. This recipe doesn’t call for any ready made masalas or rasam/sambaar powders.
To make tur dal rasam for 4 people you will need:
For the dal
¾ cup tur dal
3 teaspoons dhaniya powder
2 teaspoons chilli powder
¼ teaspoon haldi
2 tablespoons of tamarind paste
Salt to taste
1 teaspoon jaggery or sugar
For the tempering
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 teaspoon jeera
4 green chillies slit
A bit of hing
Handful of fresh curry leaves
Chopped coriander leaves
– Wash the dal thoroughly and soak it for about 10 minutes.
– Do this in the pressure cooker itself.
– Drain it and then add about 2 and half cups of water. Essentially the water should be at least an inch above the dal.
– Add all the spices mentioned above for the dal and pressure cook till you know that the dal has cooked completely. Since, each pressure cooker is different and you know your vessel best, the time it takes to cook may vary.
– Let the cooker cool down completely.
– Open and stir well.
If the dal is too thick, add some water and stir again to bring it to the consistency you want. The dal will thicken as it cools down so keep this in mind when adding water.
– Now in a tadka pan, heat two tablespoons of thick ghee. Dig into the jar and take the thick part from the bottom of the jar. Using two spoonfuls of the melted ghee that tends to collect on the top, won’t be enough to impart the flavour you want.
– When the ghee melts through completely add the jeera and mustard seeds. Once they splutter add the green chillies or dried chillies whichever you prefer.
– After a few seconds add the hing and last the curry leaves.
– As soon as the leaves turn crisp, pour the entire contents of the tadka pan into the cooker. Do it cautiously, as it tends to splutter and spray quite a bit.
Put a spoonful of dal in the tadka pan, swirl it around and empty it again into the cooker.
Rasam is ready.
Stir it nicely so the ghee mixes well.
Garnish with finely chopped coriander.
This rasam is best eaten with hot white rice and pappadums. Fried not roasted. Fresh curd on the side balances the spice and the tanginess of the rasam quite well and anyway curd is a great addition to any meal. If you want to add a vegetable, a cabbage thoran is the perfect pairing.
If you don’t have ready-made tamarind paste, take some tamarind and boil it in about a cup of water. Let it cool down and then squeeze the tamarind to remove the pulp from the white skin. Add that water to the dal and then pressure cook. Adjust the amount of water accordingly.
