Moong Dal
This Moong Dal is comforting, hearty, protein-packed, flavorful and super tasty. Make this for a perfect, easy and wholesome vegetarian Indian meal. It is naturally gluten-free and can be made vegan if you use oil for tadka. This yellow mung daal is usually eaten with rice, pickle and papad. It also goes well with Indian flatbreads like roti and chapati. But you can also eat it on its own, like a soup alongside a veggie salad.
About Moong Dal
This lentil is known by different names such as mung dal, moong dal, mung lentils, yellow petite lentils and split yellow mung beans. They come from the whole green mung beans, which are split and skinned. Another variation known as chilka dal, comes with the green skin intact and only the beans are split.
Both these can be used in most preparations. They can also be used interchangeably if you are okay with the color of the dish. Using split moong dal with skin is the same as using the whole green gram, except for the cook time.
Did you know that moong dal nourishes, heals, detoxes and balances the disturbances in the body?
Moong dal is one of the most favored lentils in the traditional Indian cuisine, which is based on the age old Ayurveda principles. According to Ayurveda, moong lentils are believed to be Tridoshic, meaning they are capable of balancing any disturbances in the body (vata, pitta and kapha). This also means anyone can eat these.
So these lentils are used widely to make various dishes like Dal khichdi, Vegetable Sambar, stews, soups, salads, curry, stir fry, Pesarattu and Moong dal dosa.
My Recipe
This recipe starts by soaking the lentils briefly until you prep up the ingredients like onion, tomatoes and other spices. This step helps the lentils to cook faster and give a better texture to the finished dish.
We make the onion tomato masala and cook the dal with it until tender. The dish is finished off with a tadka. This adds another layer of flavors and pop of colors. Here is what you need to make this dish
Ingredients you need
- Whole spices like mustard seeds and cumin seeds add an earthy flavor and texture. If you don’t like mustard, omit them.
- Aromatics: Onions, ginger and garlic are the basic aromatics. They add varied flavors and texture.
- Green chilies add a little heat and flavor to the dish. You may use Indian / Thai chilies or serrano peppers.
- Dried red chilies impart a smoky and pungent flavor. Feel free to omit them if you don’t have.
- Ground spices like Kashmiri red chili powder, turmeric and garam masala are used for flavor & heat. You may substitute Kashmiri red chili powder with paprika.
- Hing is also known as asafetida and is a tree resin. It aids digestion and imparts a flavor to the dish. You may omit it if you don’t have. For a gluten-free dish, use a gluten-free version of hing. Most versions have some gluten-added to them.
- Herbs like curry leaves, kasuri methi and coriander leaves can be used. Fresh curry leaves add fresh flavors. If you don’t have use a Indian bay leaf or dried curry leaves but they don’t smell the same as fresh curry leaves. Kasuri methi is dried fenugreek leaves. They are super aromatic and there is no substitute to it. Coriander leaves are cilantro. They are used as a garnish.
- Lemon Juice or Amchur: I always serve my dal with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice. If you love more tang you can use amchur as well. Amchur is dried mango powder and adds a fruity tangy flavor to the dish.