← Nouns Cooking · Indian

Ingredients

• 100 g Long-grain rice
• 100 g Toor dal (split pigeon peas)
• 1 l Water
• ¼ tsp Ground turmeric
• 1 tsp Vegetable oil
• 2 tbsp Coriander seeds
• 1 tbsp Chana dal (split Bengal gram)
• 1 tsp Urad dal (split, skinned)
• 1 tsp Cumin seeds
• ¼ tsp fenugreek seeds
• 2 cm piece cinnamon stick
• 3 Cloves
• 6 dried red chillies (Byadgi or Kashmiri)
• 2 tbsp dried or desiccated coconut
• 1 tbsp Vegetable oil
• 6 small shallots, peeled
• 1 Carrot, diced
• 1 Potato, diced
• 75 g Green beans, cut into 2 cm pieces
• 50 g Peas
• 1 Tomato, chopped
• 400 ml Water
• 2 tbsp Tamarind paste
• 1 tsp Jaggery (gur)
• 1 tsp salt, or to taste
• 2 tbsp Ghee
• 1 tsp Mustard seeds
• 1 dried red chilli
• 1 sprig Curry leaves
• 1 pinch Asafoetida (hing)
• 2 tbsp Cashews (optional)

Method

1. Rinse the rice and toor dal together, then simmer with the water and turmeric for 25 min (or pressure-cook for 4 whistles), until very soft. Mash lightly.
2. Meanwhile, make the masala: heat the oil in a small pan over low heat and roast the coriander seeds, chana dal, urad dal, cumin, fenugreek, cinnamon, cloves and chillies for 4–5 min, until the dals turn golden. Add the coconut for the last 30 seconds, then cool and grind to a fine powder.
3. Heat the oil in a large pot and sauté the shallots for 2 min. Add the carrot, potato, beans, peas, tomato and the 400 ml water, cover and cook for 10 min until tender.
4. Stir in the tamarind, jaggery, salt and 3 tbsp of the masala powder and simmer for 5 min.
5. Add the mashed rice and dal and stir well. Simmer on low for 5 min, adding hot water as needed: it should be loose and porridge-like, as it thickens on standing.
6. For the tempering, heat the ghee and fry the mustard seeds until they pop, then add the chilli, curry leaves, asafoetida and cashews and fry until the nuts are golden. Pour over the pot and serve hot, with crisps or boondi on the side.

Tips

• The masala makes a little extra; keep it in a jar for next time. Shop-bought bisi bele bath powder works in a hurry.
• Most asafoetida contains wheat; leave it out if you need the dish gluten-free.

Sources

Written in our own words after cross-checking these recipes:

Hebbar's Kitchen Archana's Kitchen Ministry of Curry