There are some that things synonymous with our childhood. For me, its weekends spent at my grand parents home. My Grandmother is a phenomenal cook and weekends at their home always meant wonderful treats and little, made- from-scratch afternoon snacks. It was a time for playing, swinging from trees and listening to the National news on the radio. More often than not, punctuated by my Grandmother's voice rising above all others as she hollered at my Granddad who invariably fell asleep reading the newspaper in the middle of the day.
Those days remind me of afternoons in flannel!
Except for meal times - now these were always an event - a parade of dishes would make their way into the dining area. There are certain dishes that almost always served in Gujarati meals. Chach which is a thin butter milk (hand churned of course) a selection of vegetable dishes, various pickles, steamed rice, super thin rotis embellished with 'ghee', papads and always a dal.
In my Grandmother's home that dal would invariably be 'Traveti dal' - A wonderfully simple creation, incensed by the process of tempering (a selection of whole spices, cast into hot oil) and infused with flavor. Here, once again,' less is more'!
Before we go any further, if you are new to Indian cooking, you will possibly need to take a trip to your neighborhood Indo-Pak store to load up on some rations. I have never seen these dals - lentils in the grocery aisle of a regular supermarket.
The 3 lentils (dals) we need are -
Toor dal - A yellow lentil - 1 cup
Channa dal - a split chickpeas of sorts - 2 tbs
Moong dal - yellow split mung beans (different from the green mung beans found at the Asian store) - 1/4 cup
Mix all 3 dals together and soak in plenty of water for approx an hour or overnight until they absorb the water swell up.
Add 1 small diced tomato, 2 tsp salt & 1/2 tsp turmeric powder to the dal. There are a couple of ways to prepare any 'dal, depending on the amount of time you have-
- Quickest method - The most commonly used method in Indian homes is the use of a pressure cooker. Place 'dal' with salt and water ( in this case 4 cups of water) and pressure cook for 15-20 minutes on medium heat.
- Regular pace - The other is to put 1/2 tsp baking soda with the dal and water ( in this case4 cups of water) and let it cook on medium heat till cooked. This will probably take an hour or so.
- Slowest method - If you have the time, cooking in a crock pot for 7 hours is great. (My mother loves this way of cooking her dal. She allows her dals to cook overnight)
Cook's Note-The dals must have completely blended and homogeous once cooked. If you can tell the grains apart, it need to be cooked longer.
Gather the whole spices required to 'temper' the dal - whole mustard seeds, 1" cinnamon bark, asafoetida also known as hing. It is a digestive aid and condiment almost always used in Indian dal preparations.
Heat the vegetable oil in a small kadhai or saute pan until fuming, and add the mustard seeds first and wait for them to crackle.
Cook's Note -It is important to always add the mustard seeds first when you have an assortment of spices. Also these must be allowed to crackle once you add to the oil or you will end up with a bitter taste when you bite into the dal.
Pour the hot tempered oil with spices over the dal. Stand back as it will splatter. Stir well to combine. Add the red chilly powder and chopped cilantro. Simmer for 5 minutes on medium heat. Taste and adjust the seasonings.
Cook's Note -I have found that this dal needs the right amount of salt to taste its best. Inadequate salt in this dal diminishes its flavor.
I love this dal with hot rotis or steamed rice and left overs are just as good the next day as long as the rice is freshly cooked. Do not serve this dal with Naan which is a North Indian bread and not eaten with Gujarati food. This is comfort food at its best!
Recipe for
TRAVETI DAL
Serves 4
Shopping list
Toor dal - 1 cup
Moong dal - 1/4 cup
Channa dal - 2 tbs
1 small tomato diced
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
3/4 tsp red chilly powder
1/2 tbs + 1/4 tsp salt
Water - 4 cups
For tempering -
1-1/2 tbs oil
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/4 tsp asafoetida
4 cloves
1" cinnamon bark
Preparation
Mix the 3 dals together and soak in plenty of water for atleast 1-2 hours or till swollen. Drain the water and discard.
Cooking method -
Add 4 cups of fresh water, tomato, turmeric powder and salt. Cook the dals using a pressure cooker or regular method on the stove or in the crock pot. Cook until the dals are completely blended and mushy.
Cooks Tip - The dal should be the consistency of a thick soup. If it is too thick add a little water and stir. If it is too thin, you may need to boil on medium flame till desired consistency is reached. Stir regularly.
Heat the oil till fuming. Add the mustard seeds and let it crackle. Add the remaining spices.
Immediately pour the oil and spices into the dal. Stir well. Add the turmeric powder, red chilly powder and chopped cilantro. Simmer for 5 minutes.
Taste and adjust the seasonings.
I love this dal with hot rotis or steamed rice and left overs are just as good the next day as long as the rice is freshly cooked. Do not serve this dal with Naan which is a North Indian bread and not eaten with Gujarati food. This is comfort food at its best!
Enjoy!
