This Easy Moong Masoor Dal {Lentil Curry} is a staple in most Pakistani households. Ready in an hour or less, depending on the cooking method being used, this is a great recipe to have on hand for a busy day.
What Are Lentils?
For most South Asians lentils are the ultimate comfort food! There’s nothing more soothing than a bowl of dal with some Chawal {Rice} and kachumber! I also love eating the lentil curry as a side with one of my meat or vegetable curries as a main.
There are 3 main variety of lentils:
- Whole
- Split
- Split & Skinned
This recipe uses the split and skinned variety, which is very easy and quick to cook.
What Is Moong Masoor Dal?
The Easy Moong Masoor Dal {Lentil Curry} is made with split and skinned yellow lentils and red lentils. The moong dal comes from the mung bean, which is green in its whole form and is also known as green gram. The whole masoor dal is a brown lentil when cooked as is. When skinned and split, the brown outer shell parts to reveal a beautiful pinkish orange center.
Some other types of lentils are urad dal or kaali dal, bengal gram or chana dal and toor dal or split pigeon peas. All are delicious, healthy and affordable and as such, feature prominently in south asian cuisine.
Healthy For You!
The best part is that all type of dal is not only delicious, but super healthy! In fact, tasteofhome.com calls all lentils “The Secret Superfood”. Some key benefits are:
- They’re a great source of protein
- Since they're low in fat they make a great weight loss food
- The high fiber content of lentils provides prolonged satiety
- They make the perfect Vegetarian and Vegan main entree due to their nutritional content
The Easy Moong Masoor Dal {Lentil Curry} Recipe
This delicious dal recipe is a blend of masoor {red masoor dal} and yellow moong dal. Red masoor dal is probably the quickest and easiest dal to cook and many people often turn to it when in need of a quick meal.
However, the moong dal is a bit more fibrous and as such, gives this dal recipe a bit more substance. It can add a bit more time to the cooking process but not too much and if you have an Instant Pot then your whole life just got even easier!
Both the Stove Top and Instant Pot Instructions are outlined below! Pick whichever one works best for you!
The Ingredients
Part of what makes this recipe so easy is that no special ingredients are necessary! The red split lentils and mung lentils are simply boiled with some water and a few spices you’re likely to have in your pantry. Once ready, a tempering of some fresh ingredients is added and your curry is ready!
The Spices
I make a simple spice powder mix comprising of red chili powder, salt and turmeric powder for this moong masoor daal recipe. Some people add other spices such as garam masala and coriander powder to their lentil recipes.
In my opinion, these particular lentils have a very mild taste and don’t need very strong spices. I prefer to add my flavor through my tempering instead but if you want to experiment and add in some other spices feel free to do so.
The Tempering
The process of tempering, known as tadka, is a popular cooking technique used in south asian cooking. Whole spices and fresh ingredients such as garlic cloves and onions are sauteed in hot oil with the purpose of enhancing their flavor.
This happens through the release of essential oils in the food products. These tempered ingredients and seasoned oil are then added to the cooked food and the end result is amazing!
The blend I use to temper these cooked lentils is simply sliced garlic, whole dry red chili and a teaspoon cumin seeds. Some other popular ingredients are curry leaves and mustard seeds.
If you’d like, you can serve the dal topped with some chopped cilantro and green chilies for added flavor and a pretty finish.
The Technique
Here are the two methods for cooking the Easy Moong Masoor Dal {Lentil Curry}, both are easy, but the Instant Pot one is a little bit quicker.
Stove Top Method
When cooking the dal on the stove top, I usually add about 4 cups of water for every cup of lentils. I add all the dry spices and cook the mixture on high heat till it comes to a boil.
At this point reduce the cooking temperature to medium heat. Remove and discard any scum that forms on the surface of the dal at this point. Stir, cover and cook the dal for about 20 minutes on a low flame.
After 20 minutes, turn the flame up and keep cooking the dal, stirring it intermittently to mash it a little bit. Once the water has evaporated {this can take anywhere from 10-15 minutes} and it is the desired consistency, turn the stove to the lowest setting.
At this point, prep your ‘tadka’ or tempering and pour it over the simmering dal. Turn the stove off, add any garnish and serve!
NOTE: If at any point the dal seems to be too thick, add an extra cup water and keep cooking it. Make sure to add warm water or else the cooking process will be interrupted. Similarly, if the dal seems too thin, cook it uncovered on high heat to help evaporate the excess liquid.
Instant Pot Method
If you have an Instant Pot then making dal is even quicker! The process is similar to that of a pressure cooker, the cooking method relying on steam at a high temperature.
The water has to be measured precisely here and the accurate ratio is 1 cup of dal to 3 cups of water. The cooking time is 15 minutes at high pressure with a 5-minute release.
After this, just vent, remove the cover of your Instant Pot and apply the tempering directly in the pot.
Helpful Tips
Regardless of which method you choose to cook, here are a few helpful tips that can make your dal turn out perfect every single time!
- Soaking your lentils for a little while before cooking them can speed up the cooking process. This is especially helpful when you’re using the Stove Top method.
- Soaking also helps reduce the bloating and gas that is often associated with eating lentils. For more information on this check out recipe52.com.
- To save some time when using the Stove Top method, instead of stirring and mashing the dal by hand you can use an immersion blender. Just be careful not to over blend the lentils as they are supposed to have some texture to them.
What To eat Your Dal With
I love my dal with a steaming bowl of plain white rice and some kachumber best. Some people opt for the more elaborate cumin rice (zeera rice) or Roti, the popular Pakistani and Indian flatbread.
Some pairing options from the blog to try with your dal are:
- bhindi-masala-air-fried-okra-curry
- easy-eggplant-curry
- the-perfect-shami-kabab-recipe
- beef-karahi-gosht-recipe
- easy-tandoori-chicken-recipe
Other lentil recipes To Try
DID YOU TRY THE RECIPE?
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Easy Moong Masoor Dal {Lentil Curry}
Ingredients
- ½ cup masoor dal (red lentils)
- ½ cup moong dal (yellow lentils)
- ½ tsp turmeric powder
- 1 ½ tsp salt
- 1 ½ tsp red chili powder
- water (SEE NOTES)
Tadka/Tempering
- ¼ cup cooking oil
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 5 garlic cloves
- 3 dry red chilies
Instructions
Stove Top Method
- Soak the dal In water for 30 minutes {OPTIONAL-SEE NOTES}
- Drain the water and add the lentils, turmeric, red chilies, salt and 4 cups of fresh water in a medium sized cooking pot and set the heat on high.
- Once the mixture starts to boil, reduce the heat to medium.
- Using a slotted spoon, remove any scum that rises to the top.
- Cover and continue to cook on low heat for about 20 minutes.
- Uncover, turn the flame up and stir till the lentils are slightly blended and you have the desired consistency.
- Turn the stove off and cover while you prepare your tempering.
Instant Pot Method
- Wash the lentils well, rinsing until the water runs clear {SEE NOTES}
- Add the dal, turmeric, red chilies, salt and 3 cups of water to your instant pot.
- Seal the pot and set the timer on high pressure for 15 minutes.
- Once the 15 minutes are up, wait 5 minutes before you release the steam and open the Instant Pot.
- If you feel the need to thicken the dal, turn the Instant Pot on saute mode and cook till you have the desired consistency.
- Once the dal is done to your liking, turn the Instant Pot off and cover loosely while you prepare your tempering.
Tadka/Tempering
- Slice the garlic cloves into thin slices.
- Heat the ¼ cup cooking oil on high heat for about 1-2 minutes.
- First add the cumin seeds and let them cook for 30 seconds {SEE NOTES}
- Next add the garlic and cook till it is a light brown {SEE NOTES}
- At this point add the dry red chillies and saute for 10-15 seconds {SEE NOTES}
- Pour the entire mixture on your cooked dal, garnish with the cilantro and green chilies if desired and serve.
Notes
- Cumin - Don't roast the cumin for more than 30 seconds because it will continue to cook with the other ingredients and any longer than 30 seconds can cause it to burn and taste bitter.
- Garlic - Add the garlic next. This will take a little bit longer than the cumin since it contains moisture that needs to evaporate. As soon as it's a light brown add in the next ingredient.
- Dry Red Chilies - Once you add in the dry chilies, it barely takes a few seconds before they start turning brown. Immediately turn the stove off at this point to prevent them from burning and pour all the ingredients on the cooked lentils.
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