Photo: Tracy Hunter · CC BY 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Punjab · Lunch

Dal Tadka

Yellow split lentils cooked soft and finished with a sizzling, smoky ghee tadka of cumin, garlic, and dried red chillies — the everyday dal of Punjabi households and the most-ordered dish at every Punjab dhaba.

🧺 Ingredients

• 250g arhar/toor dal (split pigeon peas) or moong dal
• 1 large tomato (150g), chopped
• 1 medium onion (100g), chopped
• 1 tsp turmeric
• Salt to taste
• 3 tbsp ghee
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 5 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 2 dried red chillies
• 1 tsp red chilli powder
• Pinch of asafoetida (hing)
• Fresh coriander and lemon juice
• The dhungar (smoking) technique: place a small piece of burning coal in dal, pour ghee, cover 2 min for smoky flavour.

👩‍🍳 How to make Dal Tadka

1. Wash dal 3 times.
2. Pressure cook with 600ml water, tomato, onion, turmeric, salt — HIGH heat, 4–5 whistles.
3. Dal should be completely soft and creamy when stirred.
4. Adjust consistency with warm water.
5. Heat dal on MEDIUM, stir smooth.
6. Adjust salt and consistency — should flow like thick soup.
7. In small tadka pan, heat ghee on HIGH until smoking.
8. Add cumin — splutter 15 sec.
9. Add garlic slices — fry HIGH 1 min until golden and crisp at edges.
10. Add dried chillies — 20 sec until they darken.
11. Add hing.
12. Remove from heat, add chilli powder (off heat to prevent burning) — sizzle.
13. Pour sizzling tadka directly over dal at the table.
14. Squeeze lemon, garnish coriander.

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