Dal Dhokli

Ingredients

• ½ cup atta
• A pinch of turmeric
• ½ teaspoon coriander powder
• ¼ teaspoon red chilli powder
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon oil
• 2-3 tablespoons water
• ½ cup tur dal
• ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
• 1 ½ cups water
• 1 ½ tablespoons cooking oil
• ½ teaspoon mustard seeds, rai
• ½ teaspoon cumin seeds, jeera
• ¼ teaspoon fenugreek seeds, methi
• ½ inch dalchini
• 4 cloves
• 2 dry red chillies, whole
• ½ teaspoon asafoetida, hing
• 1 green chilli, crushed
• 1 teaspoon ginger, crushed
• 6-7 garlic cloves, crushed
• 15-20 curry leaves
• ½ cup chopped tomatoes
• ½ teaspoon coriander powder
• ¼ teaspoon jeera powder
• ⅛ teaspoon turmeric powder
• 1 teaspoon kashmiri chilli powder
• ¾ teaspoon salt
• 2 ½ – 3 cups water, divided
• 2 tablespoons roasted peanuts
• 1 tablespoon tamarind pulp
• 1 teaspoon jaggery
• 1 tablespoon coriander leaves

Steps

1. Add all the ingredients to a bowl & mix everything well. add water as required to make a semi-soft dough, the dough should be of the same stiffness as a chapati dough. Cover with a damp cloth & set aside for 10-15 minutes.
2. Divide the dough into 3 portions & form round balls. coat one ball with dry flour & roll into a large chapati/roti, it shouldn’t be too thick nor too thin. Cut the chapati into squares, diamonds or strips using a knife (I have cut them into diamonds). Set aside on a plate covered with a damp cloth to avoid drying.
3. Repeat the same for rest of the dough.
4. Wash the toor dal & soak it in water for 30 minutes. Once soaked, add dal into a pressure cooker with 1 ½ cups of water & cook dal for 3-4 whistles or approx. 10 minutes and let it de-pressurize by itself. Open the cooker lid & while the dal is still hot, mash well and set aside.
5. Heat oil in a kadai or pan, add the cumin seeds, mustard seeds, cloves, cinnamon, red chillies, fenugreek seeds, asafoetida and saute for a few seconds. Add crushed green chilli, ginger & garlic, curry leaves and saute for a minute on medium. Add tomatoes, spice powders – coriander, cumin, turmeric, kashmiri chilli & salt, stir & cook over medium flame for 2-3 minutes till the tomatoes get slightly mushy.
6. Add cooked dal, 2 ½ cups of water to adjust the consistency of the dal. Add jaggery & tamarind pulp, stir well & boil for a minute. While the dal is boiling, add the dhoklis & gently stir them. Cook for 12-14 minutes on low till the dhoklis are cooked while stirring gently 2-3 times in between to ensure the dal does not stick to the bottom of the kadai. If the dal gets too thick, you may add ¼ – ½ cup of water to adjust the consistency to be that of soup. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve.