Simple Moong Dal Tadka| One-Pot Moong Dal Tadka

This moong dal tadka is comfort food for the husband and me. The recipe has been in our family for ever, and it has helped us sail through several rainy nights, tough days, sicknesses and bad moods. It is a super easy thing to make, taking bare minutes to put together in a pressure cooker. It is a life-saver on the days when you need something comforting to eat, but are pressed for time. Try it out, with either parathas, rotis or plain rice!

Ingredients (about 4 servings):

1. 1/2 cup moong dal
2. Salt, to taste
3. 1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
4. 3 medium-sized tomatoes, or as per taste, finely chopped
5. 3-4 green chillies, or as per taste, slit length-wise
6. A 1-inch piece of ginger, peeled and finely chopped
7. A few fresh curry leaves

For the tempering:

1. 1 tablespoon oil
2. 2 pinches of asafoetida
3. 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
4. 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
5. Juice of 1/2 lemon, or as needed
6. A few stalks of fresh coriander, finely chopped

Method:

1. Wash the moong dal under running water a couple of times or until the water runs clear. Drain out all the excess water.
2. Take the drained moong dal in a pressure cooker container, along with salt to take, slit green chillies, turmeric powder, chopped ginger, tomatoes, and just enough water to cover all of it.
3. Pressure cook these ingredients on high flame for 5 whistles.
4. When the pressure has come down entirely, mash the ingredients together roughly.
5. In a pan, heat the oil and add in the mustard seeds. Allow them to splutter. Add the asafoetida and the cumin seeds. Allow them to stay in for a couple of seconds.
6. Now, reduce the flame to medium, and add in the cooked moong dal. Add about 1 cup of water,or as needed to bring the dal to the consistency you require. Remember that the dal thickened slightly on cooling, so it is better to keep it runny at this stage. Mix well.
7. Adjust salt if needed. Cook on medium flame for 2-3 minutes, stirring intermittently.
8. Add the finely chopped coriander leaves and lemon juice. Mix well.
9. Serve hot with plain rice, rotis or parathas.

Do you like moong dal tadka? How do you make it?

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This recipe is for the Foodie Monday Blog Hop. The theme for this week – the 110th edition of the blog hop – is ‘lentil-based dishes’.

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