Green Moong Daal - Stovetop or Instant Pot - Delicious, Warming, Comforting, Nourishing and Nutritious Moong Daal is our go to Autumn/Winter meal and many an indian household. In this North Indian recipe by my Mother in Law, Mung Daal is boiled and then cooked with Spices before a tempering of whole Spices and Yoghurt is mixed in. To make it in the Instant Pot - you simply add all the ingredients to the Instant Pot but make the tempering seperately and mix in the Yoghurt at the end. This consistency of the Dal is thick and creamy.
1 - 2tspSaltAdd 1 tsp and add extra after tasting at the end if needed
1tspRed Chilli or Kashmiri Chilli Powder
1.5tspCumin Powder
2tspCoriander Powder
1 tbspMadras Curry PowderOr any Curry Powder, Optional
1tspGaram Masala Powder
100gYoghurtNatural Plain
Tempering
2tbspGhee
1tbspCumin Seeds
2DryRed Chillies
6 clovesGarlicFinely Sliced
Small HandfulFresh Curry Leaves
Instructions
Rinse the beans until the water runs clear. Soak them in water for an hour. Discard the water and add the beans to a pan with 6 cups of boiling water. Once it comes to a boil, turn the heat to low and cover the pan. Simmer for 30 - 45 minutes. (Check every ten minutes and add more water if necessary).
In a separate pan, heat the oil and ghee over medium/high heat. Add the onions and allow to cook until golden brown. Around 10 minutes.
Add the garlic, ginger and chopped green chilli and saute for a further 2 minutes.
Pour in the Tomatoes and mix well. Simmer on low until the tomato and oil seperate. Around 10 minutes.
Stir in the turmeric, salt, red chilli, coriander and cumin powders. Cook for 4 - 5 minutes over a low heat.
Add the Curry Powder and Garam Masala Powder and simmer for 2 minutes.
Tempering and Completion
Meanwhile, heat the ghee for tempering in a pan.
Add all the spices and simmer on medium low until they begin to crackle and colour. Keep a close eye on the garlic. Remove from the heat.
Add the yoghurt to a small bowl and whisk well. Stir in the tempered spices.
Ladle (2 ladles at least) some of the Mung Daal into the yoghurt and mix well. Pour the wholw bowl into the Daal whilst mixing it into the Daal with a large spoon.
Simmer for a couple of minutes then remove from the heat and ladle into bowls.
Notes
How to make it - Instant Pot
To make it in the instant pot, simply add all the ingredients that are used before tempering to the instant pot and cook on manual high pressure.Secure the lid, close the pressure valve and cook for 15 minutes at high pressure and then do a natural pressure release.
Top Tips
Because this is a simple dish, there are a few steps that take it from average to divine. These are:Build Flavour - Making sure that the flavour layers are cooked out properly so that the ingredients natural flavour is released as they should be. Tomato - Taste your tomato. Many companies add a lot of citric acid to tomato tins/cartons. This can make the Daal extra sour. If the tomatoes are sour, add a pinch of sugar in with the tomato. Curry Leaves - Use fresh curry leaves if possible. There is nothing that they can be replaced with. They add alot of fragrance and flavour. Yoghurt and Tempering - The yoghurt in this recipe adds richness, depth and loads of flavour. After adding the tempered spices to the yoghurt, you then need to add the yoghurt to the Daal and because the yoghurt is so cold and the Daal so hot, the Daal can split and you will see loads of little dots of yoghurt in the Daal. If you instead add a couple of ladles of the Daal into the yoghurt mix before stirring the whole bowl back into the Daal, this won't happen. Soaking the Mung Beans - Doing so just makes the cooking of the Mung Beans quicker and aids in digestion.
Variations
Yoghurt - Use Coconut Milk in place of Yoghurt for an earthy taste.
Serving Suggestions
With Flatbread or RiceServe with Chappatti or Rice like Jeera Rice or Ghee Rice.With GheeA dollop of ghee/butter is ALWAYS a good idea on any Moong Daal recipe.With LemonA squeeze of Lemon Juice works well too. I prefer not to add lemon but others love it. This is down to personal preference.With OnionLike many others, I usually serve mine with half an onion diced finely, steeped in 2 tbsp of malt vinegar.As a QuesadillaThe leftovers can be turned it into a quesadilla. If you haven't had it before it sounds strange but please do try it if you do have leftovers.So you reduce the daal down to dry it out a bit and spoon it onto half of a wrap or chappati. Then fold it over and dry fry in a pan flipping once in between. Simple and delicious!With SaladKachumber Salad Onion Raita
Leftovers
Store leftovers in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 3 days. You can also freeze it for 2 months. Make sure it is piping hot before serving.