Gujarati Dal

Gujarat's sweet-sour tuvar dal: thin, silky split pigeon peas balanced with jaggery and kokum, tempered with mustard seeds, cloves, and curry leaves, and poured over rice in the everyday thali

Origin: Ahmedabad & Gujarat, India

From the journey of Pigeon Pea.

The dal of the Gujarati thali is unlike any other in India. It is made from tuvar, split pigeon peas, cooked until they dissolve and then thinned to a silky, pourable soup, and it is deliberately sweet and sour at once: jaggery balances kokum or lemon, and green chilli and ginger keep the sweetness honest. The tempering, the vaghar, is of mustard seeds, cloves, a stick of cinnamon, dried chilli, and curry leaves, and many households add a handful of peanuts or pieces of drumstick. Gujaratis call the style khatti meethi, sour-sweet. It is poured over rice as dal bhaat and eaten beside the thin wheat rotli, the vegetable shaak, and the pickles and farsan of the everyday meal. The same dal, with diamonds of spiced wheat dough simmered in it, becomes dal dhokli, the Gujarati one-pot meal.

Ingredients

Dal

  • 150 g split pigeon peas (tuvar dal), rinsed and soaked for 30 minutes
  • 1 tsp fresh ginger, grated
  • 2 green chillies, slit
  • 0.5 tsp ground turmeric
  • 30 g jaggery, grated
  • 4 pieces of dried kokum, rinsed, or 2 tbsp lemon juice
  • 2 tbsp raw peanuts (optional)
  • 1 tsp salt, or to taste

Vaghar

  • 1 tbsp ghee or groundnut oil
  • 1 tsp mustard seeds
  • 4 cloves
  • 1 small cinnamon stick
  • 2 dried red chillies
  • 1 sprig curry leaves
  • 1 pinch asafoetida

To Finish

  • 2 tbsp chopped coriander leaves

Method

  1. Drain the tuvar dal and cook it in 600 ml of water with the turmeric and peanuts for 30 minutes, until completely soft. Whisk until smooth.
  2. Add 400 ml of hot water, the ginger, green chillies, jaggery, kokum, and salt, and simmer for 10 minutes. The dal should be thin and pourable, like a light soup.
  3. Heat the ghee in a small pan, add the mustard seeds and, when they pop, the cloves, cinnamon, dried chillies, curry leaves, and asafoetida. Pour into the dal and simmer for 2 minutes more.
  4. Finish with coriander and serve hot over rice.

Notes

Gujarati dal is thinner than most Indian dals by design; it is meant to soak into rice. Drumstick pieces or a few slices of tomato are common additions. Kokum gives a rounder sourness than lemon. If using lemon, add it off the heat.

The Gastrographer

The Gastrographer

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