Instant Pot Dal Bukhara - try this easy creamy black lentils made in the Instant Pot using my dump and done method. A rich, slow-cooked whole black gram curry recipe made with tomato puree, vegan butter and vegan cream. Gluten-free Soyfree, easily Nutfree

Recipe Snapshot

  • Prep time: 10 minutes
  • Cook time: 60 minutes
  • Total time: 550 minutes
  • Yield: 6
  • Category: Main Course
  • Cuisine: Indian

Ingredients

For the dal:

  • 1 cup whole urad ((black gram lentils/black matpe beans), soaked overnight or atleast 4 hours. You can also use mung beans instead, see recipe notes for other lentil cooking time)
  • 2 1/2 cups water
  • 1/4 teaspoon turmeric
  • 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds crushed ((preferably toasted))
  • 1 inch ginger minced
  • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika (or Kashmiri chili powder)
  • 1 teaspoon garam masala (use less or more to preference)
  • 1/8 teaspoon asafoetida or hing (see recipe notes for substitutes)
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried fenugreek leaves (kasoori methi)
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 cup tomato puree

For adding later:

  • 3/4 cup tomato puree(canned) (or unseasoned tomato sauce/passata.)
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried fenugreek leaves
  • 1 tablespoon vegan butter
  • 1/4-1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika ((see notes for other smoky options))
  • 1/4 cup non-dairy cream such as cashew cream or non dairy yogurt (use coconut cream or coconut yogurt for Nutfree.)

Method

  1. Oil the instant pot in the bottom because some pots can heat up unevenly and the lentils might stick.
  2. Then add all of the dal ingredients to the pot and mix well. Close the lid and pressure cook at bean mode at high pressure for 50 minutes or pressure cook at pressure cook mode at 50 minutes.
  3. Let the pressure release naturally then open the lid. Add in the tomato puree, salt, fenugreek leaves, optional smoked paprika and butter and mix well.
  4. Start saute and keep cooking until the mixture comes to a boil. Then add in the non-dairy cream or yogurt and mix in.
  5. Let it simmer for another minute. Mash some of the beans using your spatula. Mash them between the spatula and the side of the pot. Taste and adjust salt and flavor switch off the saute.
  6. If the consistency is not thick enough then you can saute for a few more minutes. Usually, this dal gets really thick after sitting so you want to keep a little bit of liquid in the dal. Or if you want it to be thinner, you can add some water or non-dairy milk and continue sauteing to bring it to a boil.
  7. Then remove the inner pot from the instant pot so that the dal doesn't stick to the bottom plate which is going to stay hot even after you switched off the saute.
  8. Serve it topped with some more non-dairy cream and cilantro and pepperflakes. A dash of lemon juice also goes well with the dal. Serve with roti, Naan, flatbread (regular or glutenfree) or rice or even garlic bread.
  9. Storage: Store refrigerated for upto 3 days. Freeze for upto 2 months.

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.