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Before yesterdayFrom The Corner Table

Yellow Moong Dal with Vegetables

✇From The Corner Table
By: Rapti Bhaumick
29 September 2022 at 20:00

A comforting Bengali-style roasted yellow moong dal cooked with vegetables and whole spices. A wholesome everyday meal best served with steamed rice.

There is a quiet joy in dishes that ask for very little and yet deliver so much comfort. The reasons could be many: they’re fuss-free to cook, they soothe both the palate and the soul, or, in the case of Yellow Moong Dal with Vegetables—a personal favourite—they’re tied to childhood memories and special occasions.

This Bengali favourite relies on minimal spices and aromatics, allowing the roasted yellow moong dal to remain the star of the dish. A handful of vegetables adds sweetness, texture and a nutritional boost, turning it into a wholesome meal that’s equally at home alongside steaming rice and a simple bhaaja. For the uninitiated, a bhaaja is the Bengali word for a fried dish. With this dal, it could be a lightly fried begun (brinjal) bhaaja, aaloo (potato) bhaaja or even kumdo (pumpkin) bhaaja.

Better still, it comes together fairly quickly, especially in a pressure cooker, which is how we almost always make it at home.

Yellow Moong Dal with Veggies | copyright image | From The Corner Table
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Yellow Moong Dal with Vegetables

Golden, sweet yellow moong dal is roasted, tempered in whole spices and cooked with a handful of vegetables for a dish that soothes and satiates.
Course Main Course
Cuisine Indian

Ingredients

  • ¾ cup Yellow moong dal
  • ½ cup Green peas
  • ½ cup Potato cubed/diced
  • ½ cup Carrot cubed/diced
  • 1 Green chilli
  • 1 tablespoon Ghee
  • ½ inch Ginger crushed
  • ½ teaspoon Cumin seeds
  • 2-3 Cloves
  • 2-3 Cardamom pods
  • ½ stick Cinnamon
  • 1 Bay leaf
  • Salt to taste
  • ¼ teaspoon Sugar
  • ½ teaspoon Turmeric powder
  • Red chilli powder as required
  • 4 cups Water

Instructions

  • Peel and cube/dice the carrots and potato and set aside.
  • Slit the green chilli lengthwise, crush the ginger and keep ready.
  • In a kadhai/pan, dry roast the yellow moong dal until fragrant. Stir constantly to avoid the dal from burning. This will take approximately 5 minutes.
  • Pour the roasted yellow moong dal into a bowl and set aside to cool.
  • In a pressure cooker, heat ghee.
  • Add cumin seeds, cloves, cardamom pods, cinnamon and bay leaf. Stir fry till fragrant.
  • Add the crushed ginger, green chilli, potato and carrot.
  • Stir fry for 2-3 minutes, until the potatoes are slightly brown at the edges.
  • Add the yellow moong dal and green peas into the cooker. If you are a cleanliness maniac like me, wash the roasted yellow moong dal before you dump it into the cooker.
  • Add salt, turmeric powder, red chilli powder if using it and salt.
  • Pour in 3 cups of water and stir well.
  • Close the pressure cooker and let the dal cook for up to three whistles.
  • Gradually release the cooker’s steam.
  • Open and stir the dal gently to avoid breaking the cooked vegetables.
  • Check the seasoning and the consistency – a thicker dal pairs well with breads like roti, paratha, luchi or naan. A slightly soupy dal is best for rice.
  • To adjust the consistency, add warm water and gently stir the dal.
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