Dal with Roasted Garlic and Whole Spices Recipe
Tarka Bhuna hu'ā Le-sun Dal
Roasted Garlic Lentils with Whole Spices
Submitted By: Taz

Ingredients:

1 Cup Split Yellow Lentils (Moong Dal) - picked and rinsed
4-5 Shallots (Gradana) - sliced
3 Roma Tomatoes (Tamatar) - peeled and diced
1 Medium Onion (Pyaz) - chopped
5 cloves Fresh Garlic (Le-sun) - roasted and puréed into a paste
2 cloves Fresh Garlic (Le-sun) - thin sliced
2 Fresh Green Chiles (Hara Mirch) - seeded and chopped
1 inch piece Fresh Ginger (Adrak) – diced
8-10 Curry Leaves (Kaddi Patta)
3-4 Dried Red Chile (Lal Mirch) - broken into pieces
1 tsp Cumin Seed (Jeera)
1 tsp Cumin Seed (Jeera) - roasted and ground into a powder
1 tsp Coriander Seed (Dhania) - roasted and ground into a powder
1 tsp Black Mustard Seed (Rai)
Juice of ½ Lemon (Nimbu Ras)
2 Tbs Grape Seed oil (Draksh-bij Tel) - can substitute olive oil
4 Tbs Ghee - separated
Kosher Salt (Namak) to taste
Fresh Ground Black Pepper (Kali Mirch) to Taste

Preparation:
  1. Wrap 5 cloves garlic drizzled with a little olive oil in aluminum foil - Place in a 400ºF oven and allow to bake for 40-50 minutes until completely soft - Remove and purée into a paste - Set aside
  2. Heat grape seed oil in a large heavy bottomed pan over medium heat - Add shallots and fry until crisp and brown (apx 8-10 minutes) - Add sliced garlic and continue to fry until slightly colored (apx 2 minutes) - remove shallot/garlic from pan using a slotted spoon and set aside
  3. Add 3 Tbs of ghee to the pan and add onion, green chile, and ginger - Sauté until onions are golden (apx 10 minutes)
  4. Add lentils to onion mixture along with 4 cups water and bring to a boil - Reduce heat to a simmer and loosely cover pan - Allow lentils to simmer (stirring occasionally) until the consistency of a stew or very thick soup (apx 1 hour)
  5. Stir in roasted garlic, ground cumin, ground coriander, and salt and pepper to taste - Allow to cook (uncovered) for 15 minutes stirring frequently
  6. Stir in tomatoes and lemon juice - Adjust seasoning
  7. Heat 1 Tbs ghee in a medium skillet over medium-high heat - Add whole cumin and mustard seeds and stir fry until mustard seeds pop - Add dried red chile, curry leaves, and the earlier prepared shallot/garlic - Stir fry for 1 minute - Transfer to the lentils and stir in
  8. Serve hot garnished with a little chopped fresh coriander if desired
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