Dal Tadka

Simple Tadka Dal

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A simple and quick Tadka Dal which can be made when you are running short of time to make Sambar.

Ingredients:	Quantity
Toor Dal	1 cup
Turmeric Powder	1/2 tsp
Cumin Powder	1/2 tsp
Asafoetida Powder	1/4 tsp
Medium sized Tomato	1 nos
Onion powder/Onion	1 tsp/1/4 cup
Garlic finely chopped	4 nos
Ginger finely chopped	1/2 tsp
Green Chillies chopped	2 nos
Lemon Juice	2 tbsp
Salt	To taste
Garam Masala Powder	1/2 tsp
Oil	1/2 tbsp
Tempering:
Mustard Seeds	1 tsp
Cumin Seeds	1/2 tsp
Fenugreek Seeds	1/2 tsp
Curry leaves	6-8 leaves
Dry red chili deseeded and halved	1 nos
Ghee	1 tbsp
Chopped Coriander leaves	To Garnish

Preparation:
1) Soak Dal for 30 mins and add two cups water, little salt, turmeric, asafoetida and cumin powder and pressure cook for 2-3 whistles.
2) Heat oil in a sauce pan and add the chopped garlic, ginger, green chillies, onion powder/onion and tomato and saute until the tomato is well cooked. Add the pressure cooked Dal.
3) Meanwhile heat ghee and add the ingredients for tempering, once they splutter add it to the Dal.
4) Sprinkle garam masala and lemon juice let it boil for a min and remove from heat and garnish with chopped coriander.
5) Serve hot with steamed rice, pulao rice or roti.

Note: You can make lot of variations to the tadka. Add whole garam masala for tempering. Use Masoor Dal instead of toor Dal.

Tomato Pappu

It is an easy recipe which can be made very quickly. It also tastes good. We can have this with rice or pulka. I learnt this from mu aunt who is an excellant cook.

Ingredients:
1 cup toor dal
2 big onion(if you prefer small onion and have got the patience to peel the skin for atleast 15 numbers you can go ahead)
6 big juicy tomatos(mostly use the country tomatos to get the tangy taste)
Haldi - 1 tsp
a pinch of Asafoetida/Hing
5 pods of garlic
3-5 green chillies(depends on your taste bud)
salt to taste
lime (Optional)

For Seasoning
Mustard - 1 tsp
bengal gram dal - 1 tsp,
curry leaves,
jeera - 1 tsp,
Corriander leaves,
oil/ghee to fry,

Preparation:
1) Fry the onions (Optional, generally people dont fry the onions, use them directly, but i like the onions to be fried well)
2) Add all the other ingredients after you fry the onions - garlic, chilly, turmeric, hing, tomato and mix them and add the toor dal to it.
3) Add required amount of water and pressure cook them.
4) Once done take them and smash them well with a smasher until the tomatoes are well blended and simmer it on low heat in the stove. Add salt to the dal.
5) Meanwhile fry all the ingredients for seasoning and add this to the dal mixture let it cook for 2 mins and switch it of. (If you like it more tangy, then you can add a pinch of lime juice to it).

Now the Dal is ready to eat.