Darling Dal

Ever heard of dal?  Dal is the Indian name for any member of the legume family- chickpeas, split peas, beans and lentils.  When you order dal at an Indian restaurant, what you're asking for is spiced or seasoned legumes.  I've made dal about a dozen different ways- depending on the legume available and the ingredients in the house.  Here's Sundays at Moosewood Restaurant's recipe made with mung beans (nice little green legumes).

Soak 1 cup dried legumes overnight.

Saute in a large pot until soft:

1 cup chopped onions

2 dried chiles
1 teaspoon garam masala
1/4 teaspoon tumeric
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon fresh grated ginger

Add:

Legumes
2 cups water (4 cups if you did not overnight soak)

Bring to a boil, then lower heat to medium.  Simmer until legumes are soft and split and excess water has steamed of.  Stir in 1 tablespoon of fresh lemon juice.  Serve and Savor!

You can mix it up by adding more vegetables, additional legumes, tomatoes, etc.  I served the dal with rice and eggplant, pepper and greens curry.  Pic in the entry below.