Easy Chana Dal Recipe | Dhaba Style Chana Dal Fry Tips & Tricks

Recipe Snapshot

  • Prep time: 10 minutes
  • Cook time: 20 minutes
  • Total time: 60 minutes
  • Yield: 4 Servings
  • Category: dal
  • Cuisine: north indian

Ingredients

for pressure cooking:

  • 1 cup chana dal
  • 2 tbsp masoor dal
  • ¼ tsp turmeric
  • ½ tsp salt
  • 1 tbsp ghee
  • 3 cup water

for dal:

  • 2 tbsp ghee
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 2 pods cardamom
  • 1 pod black cardamom
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • pinch hing
  • 5 cloves garlic (finely chopped)
  • 1 onion (finely chopped)
  • 1 tbsp ginger paste
  • ½ tsp turmeric
  • 1 tsp chilli powder
  • 1 tsp coriander powder
  • ½ tsp cumin powder
  • ¾ tsp salt
  • 2 tomato (finely chopped)
  • 2 tbsp coriander (chopped)
  • 1 tsp kasuri methi (crushed)

for tadka:

  • 2 tbsp ghee
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • 2 dried red chilli
  • pinch chilli powder

Method

  1. Firstly, soak 1 cup chana dal and 2 tbsp masoor dal for 30 minutes. You can also use moong dal in place of masoor dal.
  2. Transfer the soaked dal to the pressure cooker.
  3. Add ¼ tsp turmeric, ½ tsp salt, 1 tbsp ghee and 3 cup water.
  4. Cover and pressure cook for 5 whistles or until the dal is cooked well.
  5. Once the pressure is released, check whether the dal is well-cooked or not. Keep aside.
  6. In a large kadai heat 2 tbsp ghee. add 1 bay leaf, 2 pods cardamom, 1 pod black cardamom, 1 tsp cumin and pinch hing. saute until the spices turn aromatic.
  7. Add 5 cloves garlic and saute slightly.
  8. Further add 1 onion, 1 tbsp ginger paste and saute until the onions turn golden brown.
  9. Further keeping the flame on low, add ½ tsp turmeric, 1 tsp chilli powder, 1 tsp coriander powder, ½ tsp cumin powder and ¾ tsp salt
  10. Saute on low flame until the spices turn aromatic.
  11. Also, add 2 tomato and saute until the oil releases.
  12. Now add in cooked dal and mix gently. adjust the consistency as required.
  13. Cover and simmer for 5 minutes, or until the dal absorbs the flavour.
  14. Furthermore, in a pan heat 2 tbsp ghee, 1 tsp cumin, 2 dried red chilli and pinch chilli powder.
  15. Pour the tempering over the dal.
  16. Also add 2 tbsp coriander, 1 tsp kasuri methi and mix well.
  17. Finally, enjoy Chana Dal Tadka Recipe with jeera rice.

Kiyaan Singh’s Kitchen Note

Keep this recipe as a working base: cook once as written, then adjust spice, texture, and serving style for your own table.