Spicy Urad Daal

1. Commence your work by either cooking or pressure cooking the dal with the following ingredients, i.e., ginger, turmeric, cayenne, or paprika. Cook until the urad dal becomes tender and mushy. If you opt for creamy dal, then blend half of the urad dal to obtain a smooth consistency. Afterward, add this smooth puree into the remaining dal.
2. Next, take a large saucepan and heat a tablespoon of vegetable oil.
3. Now, add minced or grated garlic as the oil sizzles and stir it for about a minute. Then, add the pureed tomatoes and cook it until the color of the puree darkens. This step will take five minutes.
4. Upon the darkening of the puree, add the cooked urad dal, garam masala powder, and Kasuri methi. Make sure to crush the Kasuri methi between your fingers before adding it into the pot. Stir all the constituents to mix this concoction nicely.
5. If you find that dal is too thick, then add water or vegetable stock. Increase the flame to medium-low and bring the urad daal to boil. After this, for ten minutes, simmer this mixture.
6. Lastly, add salt as per your taste. Then, stir in the butter in the urad dal and garnish it with chopped coriander leaves.
7. Spicy urad dal is ready to serve. Dish this dal out in a bowl and serve it with chapati, naan, and rice.

RECIPE NOTES:

1. Make sure to soak the dal for six to eight hours before cooking or pressure cooking it.
2. If you do not have cayenne or paprika, or if you want to use some other constituent, then add one to two chilies, minced depending upon how spicier you want your urad dal to be.
3. Other ingredients that you can add to enhance flavors are:
● Curry powder - 1 ½ teaspoon
● Lemon juice, squeezed - 1 tablespoon
● Shredded coconut - ¼ cup
4. Spicy urad dal tastes delicious with both kinds of Basmati rice, i.e., white or brown.