Gujarati Wedding Dal, also called Gujarati Lagan Dal is an aromatic preparation of split pigeon peas, peanuts and whole spices. Serve with rice for a truly Gujarati dal-bhaat experience. Delicious!
Course: Main Course, Side Dish
Cuisine: Indian
Keyword: daal, vegetarian, wedding
Servings: 6
Author: Sanjana
Equipment
Pressure cooker
Ingredients
For the dal:
200goily toor dalalso called split pigeon peas, arhar or tuver
1.5Lhot water
1tbspgrated ginger
2-3green chillies finely chopped
200gchopped tomatoesI use tinned
1tspground turmeric
1piecekokumor juice of two large lemons
1 1/2tspsalt
1tbspjaggery or brown sugar
2tbspchopped coriander
To temper the dal:
1tbspghee
2-inchcinnamon stick
5-6curry leaves
¼tspasafoetidahing
1star anise
2cloves
1dried red chilli
1/2tspmustard seeds
1tspcumin seeds
10peanuts whole
10cashew nuts
Instructions
To cook the dal:
Wash the dal in plenty of water. Drain and repeat twice more.
Place the dal in a pressure cooker along with 1L of water. Close the pressure cooker (whistle on) and cook for 7 whistles. If you're using an Instant Pot or similar pressure pot, cook on high pressure for 15 minutes. Carefully release the steam. The dal should be really mushy, almost liquid.
Sieve the dal into a large bowl to ensure it's of a flowing consistency. Set aside.
To temper the dal:
Heat the ghee in a large, heavy-based pan. Add mustard seeds and allow them to crackle. Next, add the cumin seeds, cinnamon, star anise, dried red chilli, cloves, kokum, curry leaves, asafoetida, peanuts and cashews. Sauté over a low heat for 1-2 minutes, just until the cashews begin to brown slightly.
Add the ginger and fresh chillies. Cook this for a further 30 seconds and then tip in the tomatoes. Add ground turmeric and jaggery. Stir well and allow the masala to come to a gently simmer. Stir all the time to help the jaggery melt in.
Carefully pour in the dal mixture. Stir well. Add a further 500ml water and season with salt. Bring to the boil. Boil gently for 20 minutes. Stir frequently to ensure the dal doesn't settle at the base of the pan. If you feel the dal is too thick, you can always thin it out with more water. The boiling extracts more flavours from the spices, resulting in a tastier dal.
Garnish with fresh coriander. Serve hot with rice. For wedding vibes, I love this with a side of stuffed aubergine curry, farfar and poori.
Notes
What if I don’t have a pressure cooker?Boil the dal in a large pan, covered with a tight-fitting lid for 30-35 minutes or until mushy. Add a teaspoon of oil to the pot to reduce the amount of foam that builds up inside the pot. Do not leave boiling dal unattended as it can overflow.Other notes
Dal will thicken on cooling. If making ahead, you may need to add additional water before serving.
As dal boils, it will develop a skin on top. This is normal. Stir often to minimise.
How to freeze Gujarati Wedding DalThis dal freezes particularly well. Place cold dal in a freezer-safe container and freeze for up to 3 months. Defrost at room temperature and reheat thoroughly before serving. You may need to loosen the dal with additional water to achieve a flowing consistency once more.