A veg post after a long time. Its a very basic recipe with no frills.
I should say dal (lentils) is kind of new on our menu. Both of us didn't prefer dal, may be because we had too much of it during our hostel days.
It all changed because of my dear friend Preeta, who was also my neighbor till a few months back (she relocated to India recently). We used to have tea time chatting sessions regularly and one of our major topics of discussion was food. Since she is from North of India & me from south, we used to discuss the different food habits, preparations etc;Â Once during our usual chatting session, she said she made dal makhni that day & I told her I've never had that. She was so surprised (or shall i say shocked?) to hear that. She immediately packed some dal makhni for me. My whole perception about dal was changed with a spoonful of Preeta's dal makhni :) and I was hoping that it will be the same for hubby also…though he was a bit hesitant in the beginning to try it, I somehow succeeded in convincing him and he also fell in love with it.
That gave me the inspiration to try out different dal recipes, I started with her dal makhni itself (recipe coming soon). I was so happy that we both like dal now, because I can now experiment with one more ingredient which can be prepared in many ways & moreover its healthy too.
So after ice breaking session with Preeta's dal makhni, I made an effort to know it more and have started noticing dal recipes and that's how I got this one. This was shown on a TV cookery show. I liked it because of its simplicity.
Preeta dear, thanks once again for your wonderful dal makhni and for helping us to change our attitude towards dal :) and I miss our chatting sessions a lot :( . Wishing you the best…
You can see other dal recipes here
Here is the recipe…
Ingredients
- 1 cup Moong Dal
- 1 cup Spinach leaves / Palak (chopped)
- 2 small – medium Onion (chopped)
- 4 -5 cloves Garlic ( crushed)
- 4 -5 Green chili
- 2 small – medium Tomato (chopped)
- 1/2 tsp Turmeric powder
- 1/2 tsp Jeera
- 1/2 – 1 tsp Garam masala
- 3/4 cup Medium thick Coconut milk ((optional))
Instructions
- Roast moong dal in a saucepan without oil for 5-7 minutes. When the colour is slightly changed add 2 cups of water and cook till its done. Let it cool for sometime. Mash the dal using a blender/food processor (you can also mash it using the back of a wooden spoon, since I like the dal to be mashed well I used food processor).
- Heat oil in a pan & splutter jeera. Add crushed garlic & saute for a few minutes. Add chopped onion and green chili . Saute till the onion becomes soft. Add turmeric powder, chopped tomatoes & salt. When tomato becomes soft add mashed dal and 3/4 – 1 cup of water. Mix well & add palak. Cook till the palak leaves are done.
- At this stage you can add either 3/4 cup of coconut milk or water. Sprinkle the garam masala and cook for 5 more minutes. Adjust the gravy as per your requirements.
good one maria…. had been searching side dishes for chappathi. Made this Dal palak today. Tasty. Thank u.
Thanks dear :) I think if you liked this one, please check out the latest dal recipe. I think you will like that too as a side dish for chapathi.
Hi,
I would like to know if whole moong dal is used or the split ones.
Sajna, I used the slit ones..
hi maria,
can i make this widout using palak??
Yep, you can do that…
i came across ur blog randomly while i was searching for dal palak recipe
n first i tht its owned by sme north indian bt when i saw the typical kottayam menus i felt so happy coz iam from kottayam.now iam a fan of u n ur blog..maria thanx a lot for ur recipe it came out very well.next iam gn to try ur malai kofta…
Hi Rani,
I’m glad your random search brought you here :) Nice to know that you liked the recipe. Thanks for the comment!
Wish you a happy new year!
Cheers
Maria
hi,
I am really thankful to u for ur delicious recipes,as it is really helpful to people like me who finds cooking as a tough job.I really like the presentation as well as the intro about each menu which makes me feel comfortable .
Hi Prasita,
Thanks a bunch for your comment dear :) It’s a pleasure to know that you find this place helpful!
Best wishes!
Cheers
Maria
thank you maria!! it was really yummy.. my husband is not a veggie but he enjoyed it so much that we are gonna make this once a week ;)..
Hi Aishwarya,
You are welcome dear. Thanks for the comment :)
Cheers
Maria
thanks maria, Dal palak turned out to be yummy.
You are welcome Sinju! Good to hear that you liked teh recipe. Thanks for the comment!
Cheers
Maria
Hi Maria,
Your recipes are great. Had a doubt, do we roast the dal without washing them or you wash and then roast the dal.( Dal Palak)
Regards,
Sinju
Hi Sinju,
I usually roast it without washing, otherwise when you dry roast it, it may stick to the vessel.
Cheers
Maria
wonderful receipe..
Thanks Musicalgenie!
Hi Maria,
Both me and my husband love dal but are not fond of palak. But both of us loved this dish. It was so tasty and healthy too. I didn’t add the coconut milk but still it was tasty..
In this lent season am on the lookout for veg dishes. Ur dal makhini is next on my list to try. Will let u know…
Hi Josphine,
Thanks dear, for trying this recipe. Nice to know that you guys liked it. It’s same with us too..even we are not big fans of palak.
Hope you’ll like dal makhani also :)
Cheers
Maria
Hi Maria,
Jus one question… Wd it be ok if I used Toor Dal instead of Moong Dal???
Hi Shauna,
Once I have used a combination of toor dal & moong dal, it came out well. I think it should be ok to use only toor dal.
Cheers
Maria
I accidently enter into ur blog while searching indri appam for maundy thrusday ….but i got many receipe frm ur blog and all are interesting to try…I tried dal palak it seems to me lovely thanks for ur receipies….
Hi Madona,
Welcome to my blog :)
Happy to hear that you find the recipes here interesting.
Thanks for trying out this recipe and also pls do try other recipes as well.
Wish you and your family a Happy Easter!
Cheers
Maria
Hi Maria
Your blog is very nice. I was searching for different type palak dal recipe, and I got you!! Adding coconut milk is new to me. I am going to try this today.
Hi Nivedita
Welcome to my blog !!
Hope you liked the dal palak :)
Cheers
Maria
Ohh it was a hit!!!!
But instead of coconut milk I used fresh cream.
And I never prepared so delicious dal palak !!
Thanks a lot.
Inviting you to my blog!! your comments are appreciated.
Dear Maria, iam trying for mooru kachiyathu tomorrow. And please do insert the recipe for nadan Kadala curry.
Iam from kannur. And you r basically from?
Hi Reepna
Did you try out moru kachiyathu? hope it came out well for you.
I will try to put kadala curry recipe.
Kannur is a beautiful place right? Am from cochin :)
Cheers
Maria
oh yes kannur is beautiful, but loads of hartals.
dear maria,
I tried out this recipe with coconut milk, its extreamely delicious, yummmmmmmyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy. do u have the recipe for sambhar
nadan style?
Hi Reepna
Thanks for visiting my blog and trying out this dish. Very happy to hear that it came out well for you.
I haven’t posted a sambar recipe yet, will try to post it sometime soon.
Meanwhile please do try out other dishes and let me know whether you like it :)
Take care
Maria
no probs shella :)ya it’s really a comfort food, I should say it’s a newly found comfort food for me :)
Sorry Sorry Sorry – i meant to say Daal Palak, but said daal makhani instead.
Daal makhani is an all time comfort food. Now that winters are here, i am looking forward to more of it..
Thanks Mona, you can take some of it :)
Maria, your Dal Palak is making me hungry. It looks fab. I never thought of adding palak and coconut milk to my dal. Thanks for sharing your recipe.
Thanks Veena :)
Thanks Deesha, am also seeing a dal preparation with coconut milk for the first time, though I didn’t try it yet with coconut milk, may be next time :)
Dal palak looks lovely … i make this often, but never considered adding coconut milk
Hi Maria ….
Dal palak looks very delicious ..U gt many mouth watering recipes..Keep posting recipes like this …
take care
love
veena