Bengali Red Masoor Dal (Bangali Musuri’r Dal)

I’m back to blogging with Blogging Marathon #5. Big thanks to Valli for organizing this event yet again and coming up with very interesting themes. I chose "7 Days of Regional Special" and decided to make dishes from Bengal. I was debating whether to go with Rajastani or Bengali dishes since I’ve never tried these before, but finally settled with the Bangla recipes. There are quite a few Bengali bloggers with authentic recipes that I’ve been trying and will be posting for the next 7 days.

For my first recipe, I made this very comforting dal from Sandeepa’s bongcookbook. It’s a simple preparation made with masoor dal and tomato that is tempered with panch phoron. Panch phoron or Panch puran is a mixture of 5 spices, fenugreek, mustard, fennel, nigella and cumin seeds. I bought a packet of panch phoron some time back and have been adding to curries just because I like the subtle flavor the different seeds impart to the dish. But this is the first time I used them in a dal and we really LOVED it. As Sandeepa says in her post that this is a comfort dish, I totally agree with her. It was so easy to make and wasn’t any different from how I make, but the final dish was amazing and oh-so comforting.

Sandeepa's original recipe here.
Ingredients:
Red masoor dal – 1 cup
Red onion – 1 medium, thinly sliced
Green chilies – 2-3, slit vertically
Tomatoes – 2 medium, chopped
Panch phoron – 1tsp
Curry leaves – 6-8
Salt – to taste
Lemon juice – 2tbsp or more to taste

Method:

• Pressure cook dal until tender, I cook for 4 whistles in my cooker.
• Heat 1tsp oil in a sauce pan, add panch phoron and curry leaves; once the seeds to splutter, add onions and green chilies. Sauté until onions are lightly browned and translucent.
• Add chopped tomatoes and a pinch of turmeric; cover and cook until tomatoes are mushy, about 4-5 minutes.
• Add the cooked dal along with 2-3 cups of water and salt. Bring to a boil on medium high flame, lower the heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Stir in the lemon juice and mix well.

Serve with steamy hot rice for a comforting meal anytime of the day.

Let's check out what my fellow marathoners have been cooking up today:
Curry in a hurry under 30 min: Priya Suresh, Srivalli, Usha
Seven Days of Colorful Dishes Kid's Special: Vardhini,
Seven Days of Indian Sweets: Harini, Suma, Veena
Seven Days of Regional Specials: Aarthi, Kalyani, Pavani, Shylaja
Summer Coolers: PJ, Vaishali
Under 15 mins Quick Breakfast: Sushma Pinjala