Serve with rice for a truly Gujarati dal-bhaat experience. Delicious!My recipe for Gujarati Dal is so easy and flavoursome. It’s a classic Indian comfort food recipe I make at least once every fortnight.

How to serve this Dal

While Gujarati Dal at weddings is usually a more filling affair, at home, it can be much more casual. I like to eat it as it is, with boiled rice and a dollop of plain set yoghurt. There’s something so satisfying about the hot and sour dal against the cold yoghurt. A touch of jaggery in the dal offsets the flavours so beautifully.

If you’d like to make a meal of it, try serving your dal with the following to create a Gujarati thali at home:

Gujarati Ravaiya (Stuffed Aubergine Curry)

Ask any Gujarati and they’ll rave about their mum or gran’s Ravaiya (stuffed aubergine curry). It’s in our nature. There is no love greater than the love you feel when you eat these hand-stuffed baby aubergines.

Check out this recipe

Foolproof Indian Boiled Rice

Learn how to achieve the longest, most separate grains of rice with this easy recipe for boiled Basmati rice. Serve alongside your favourite curries and daals.

Check out this recipe

Puffy Masala Poori

Learn how to make puffy, crispy Masala Poori at home. This easy recipe is foolproof. Just follow the step-by-step video and enjoy your fresh Indian Poori with any curry. I love mine with Gujarati-style Bateta nu Shaak.

Check out this recipe

Key ingredients in Gujarati Dal

Oily toor dal (also called split pigeon peas, arhar or tuver), water, ginger, chilli, tomatoes, turmeric, kokum, salt, jaggery, coriander, ghee, cinnamon, curry leaves, star anise, cloves, asafoetida, dried chilli, mustard seeds, cumin seeds, peanuts, cashews.My favourite part are the simmered peanuts and cashews which become extremely tender and melt in your mouth.

What style of Dal should I choose?

For this type of dal, it’s best to use the oily style of split pigeon peas (toor/tuver/arhar). They are dried and coated in a slick of oil to preserve them for months, even years.This makes toor the ultimate pantry ingredient to have on standby when the contents of your fridge is looking sparse.

Tip: Always wash your dal!

Always wash dal to rinse away oil. As a child my mother would keep me occupied by placing a bowl of toor dal in warm water in front of me so I could swish and swoosh the oil away. It was the ultimate sensory activity for a bored little monkey like me, and something I still find utterly cathartic today.

How to make Gujarati Dal in a pressure cooker

To make light work of boiling dal, this recipe calls for a pressure cooker. I use a traditional pressure cooker with a whistle attachment. You can also use an Instant Pot or equivalent pressure pot.Place the dal in a pressure cooker along with 1L of water.

Close the pressure cooker (whistle on) and cook for 7 whistles. If you’re using an Instant Pot or similar pressure pot, cook on high pressure for 15 minutes. Carefully release the steam. The dal should be really mushy, almost liquid.

How to make Gujarati Dal without a pressure cooker

Fear not! You can still have your dal. Simply boil the dal in a large pan, covered with a tight-fitting lid for 30-35 minutes or until mushy. Add a teaspoon of oil to the pot to reduce the amount of foam that builds up inside the pot. Do not leave boiling dal unattended as it can overflow.

Gujarati Dal without onion and garlic

Since this is a wedding-style of Gujarati Dal, this recipe does not include onion or garlic. For various religious reasons, many people refrain from eating these two ingredients. Therefore the dal served at celebrations is almost always free from onion and garlic.

Types of Gujarati Dal

Dal simply refers to ‘pulses’. There are dozens of varieties of Gujarati Dal and each home will have a unique method of preparation for these variants. Eat these with rice, rotli, paratha or Let’s explore some of the most popular ones.

Dal Dhokli

Not only is Dal Dhokli a one-pot wonder, it’s also packed with mouth-puckering hot, sweet and sour flavours, protein and comforting carbs. The spicing is gentle and aromatic with star anise, cinnamon, cloves and ajwain-flecked dhokli (a cross between a dumpling and pasta).

Gujarati Mug

Gujarati Mug is a simple dish of whole green mug (moong/mung beans). There are so many ways to prepare this protein-packed pulse. The Gujarati way uses just a handful of spices, ginger, chilli and sometimes tomatoes. I like to add lots of garlic! Perfect with a bowl of plain rice or black pepper paratha.

Mug ni Dal

This variety of dal is similar to the above, except it calls for split, skinless mug (moong/mung beans). The final result is creamier than the dish with whole mug and the appearance is more yellow in colour, since the green skins are removed.

Urad

Thick and creamy black lentils (of Dal Makhani fame) with simple spices. A traditional dish for Saturdays. Saturday represents the day of Lord Hanuman. Belief has it that he gathers his otherworldly strength from eating such lentils. Urad is packed with vitamins, protein and iron, so move over Popeye- Hanuman’s in town and he brings with him the strength of a thousand elephants and karahi’s full of Urad!

Trevti Dal

A combination of three types of lentils. Usually toor (arhar dal), chana dal and moong dal but the recipe can vary from cook to cook. I like to add split, skinless urad dal. Trevti Dal is creamy and thick, with a tempering of both whole spices and ground spices.

Gujarati Kadhi

I have mixed feelings about including Kadhi in this list, simply because it’s not technically a type of dal. However, most recipes call for besan (gram flour) which is a chickpea-based product, so I’ll let it slide!Yoghurt-laden Kadhi is almost always served in the same way as dal (with rice or as part of a thali). At most Gujarati weddings, the hosts will serve either Gujarati Toor Dal or Kadhi, not both.

Gujarati Wedding Dal recipe

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Gujarati Wedding Dal

Gujarati Wedding Dal, also called Gujarati Lagan Dal is an aromatic preparation of split pigeon peas, peanuts and whole spices. Serve with rice for a truly Gujarati dal-bhaat experience. Delicious!

Course Main Course, Side Dish

Cuisine Indian

Keyword daal, vegetarian, wedding

Servings 6

Author Sanjana

Equipment

• Pressure cooker

Ingredients

For the dal:

• 200 g oily toor dal also called split pigeon peas, arhar or tuver
• 1.5 L hot water
• 1 tbsp grated ginger
• 2-3 green chillies finely chopped
• 200 g chopped tomatoes I use tinned
• 1 tsp ground turmeric
• 1 piece kokum or juice of two large lemons
• 1 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp jaggery or brown sugar
• 2 tbsp chopped coriander

To temper the dal:

• 1 tbsp ghee
• 2- inch cinnamon stick
• 5-6 curry leaves
• ¼ tsp asafoetida hing
• 1 star anise
• 2 cloves
• 1 dried red chilli
• 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 10 peanuts whole
• 10 cashew nuts

Instructions

To cook the dal:

• Wash the dal in plenty of water. Drain and repeat twice more.
• Place the dal in a pressure cooker along with 1L of water. Close the pressure cooker (whistle on) and cook for 7 whistles. If you’re using an Instant Pot or similar pressure pot, cook on high pressure for 15 minutes. Carefully release the steam. The dal should be really mushy, almost liquid.
• Sieve the dal into a large bowl to ensure it’s of a flowing consistency. Set aside.

To temper the dal:

• Heat the ghee in a large, heavy-based pan. Add mustard seeds and allow them to crackle. Next, add the cumin seeds, cinnamon, star anise, dried red chilli, cloves, kokum, curry leaves, asafoetida, peanuts and cashews. Sauté over a low heat for 1-2 minutes, just until the cashews begin to brown slightly.
• Add the ginger and fresh chillies. Cook this for a further 30 seconds and then tip in the tomatoes. Add ground turmeric and jaggery. Stir well and allow the masala to come to a gently simmer. Stir all the time to help the jaggery melt in.
• Carefully pour in the dal mixture. Stir well. Add a further 500ml water and season with salt. Bring to the boil. Boil gently for 20 minutes. Stir frequently to ensure the dal doesn’t settle at the base of the pan. If you feel the dal is too thick, you can always thin it out with more water. The boiling extracts more flavours from the spices, resulting in a tastier dal.
• Garnish with fresh coriander. Serve hot with rice. For wedding vibes, I love this with a side of stuffed aubergine curry, farfar and poori.

Notes

What if I don’t have a pressure cooker?

Boil the dal in a large pan, covered with a tight-fitting lid for 30-35 minutes or until mushy. Add a teaspoon of oil to the pot to reduce the amount of foam that builds up inside the pot. Do not leave boiling dal unattended as it can overflow.

Other notes

• Dal will thicken on cooling. If making ahead, you may need to add additional water before serving.
• As dal boils, it will develop a skin on top. This is normal. Stir often to minimise.

How to freeze Gujarati Wedding Dal

This dal freezes particularly well. Place cold dal in a freezer-safe container and freeze for up to 3 months. Defrost at room temperature and reheat thoroughly before serving. You may need to loosen the dal with additional water to achieve a flowing consistency once more.

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You can also replace the dairy with plant-based ingredients with very little impact on flavour and texture.

My favourite Vegan Daal Makhani recipe

Here’s my vegan Daal Makhani recipe for the days you crave a soulful dinner that calls for time and care.

I don’t carve out time in my schedule for such preparations but when I happen to have such foresight, this Daal Makhani is my go-to recipe.

Restaurant-style Daal Makhani in your home kitchen

Simmer it low and slow for a velvety, stick-to-your ribs texture. In restaurants, Daal Makhani is often cooked in a clay pot over coal overnight for deep smokiness and layers of flavour. My recipe follows suit and calls for slow cooking, but adapted for the home kitchen.

What type of lentils do I need?

Whole black urad (sabut urad or urid) are at the heart of any Daal Makhani recipe. Their onyx skin means they’re often referred to as black daal, despite being creamy white inside. Once soaked (and soak them you must), they take on a deep olive hue which mellows once boiled. Their texture is wholesome and starchy which lends this dish richness.

But what about the butter/cream?

To keep this Daal Makhani vegan, I use a combination of vegan butter and oat cream in place of dairy products. If you aren’t vegan, you can certainly use dairy butter and cream.

What equipment do I need?

Pressure cooker OR Instant pot/pressure pot

AND Slow cooker (a pressure pot with this function is also fine)

OR

Oven-safe casserole or Dutch oven with lid (optional if you would like to slow cook this for some time).

I use a combination of a conventional pressure cooker and the slow cooker function on my pressure pot. You can also cook this in a pressure pot from start to finish.

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Vegan Daal Makhani

Here’s my vegan Daal Makhani recipe for the days you crave a soulful dinner that calls for time and care. Simmer it low and slow for a velvety, stick-to-your ribs texture.Simmer it low and slow for a velvety, stick-to-your ribs texture. Serve with garlic naan, jeera rice, roti or paratha.

Course Main Course, Side Dish

Cuisine Indian

Keyword black daal, daal, lentils, urad, vegan

Prep Time 45 minutes minutes

Cook Time 40 minutes minutes

Inactive prep 10 hours hours

Total Time 11 hours hours 25 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Author Sanjana

Equipment

• Pressure cooker or instant pot

Ingredients

• 220 g 220g urad (whole black gram)
• 50 g dried kidney beans
• 1/8 tsp baking soda
• 1.2 L water
• 1 tbsp oil or vegan butter
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 dried bay leaf
• 2 whole black cardamom
• 5 cm stick cinnamon
• 3 large cloves garlic crushed
• 2 tbsp ginger grated
• 2 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder or to taste
• 1/4 tsp turmeric
• 2 green cardamom pods, seeds ground
• 1 tsp ground coriander seeds
• 400 g fresh or tinned tomatoes blended
• 1 tbsp garam masala
• 1 tsp dried fenugreek leaves (kasoori methi)
• 2 tsp salt or to taste
• 100 ml oat cream
• 50 g vegan butter
• 1 tbsp chopped coriander leaves

To serve:

• 1 tbsp oat cream
• 1/4 tsp dried fenugreek leaves (kasoori methi)
• 2cm ginger julienned

Instructions

• In a bowl, mix together the urad and kidney beans. Wash well in plenty of water, changing the water at least 3 times until it's no longer murky. Add the baking soda and cover with lots of hot water. Cover and allow to soak for 6 at least 6 hours or overnight, if possible. Keep any water used by for feeding your indoor plants – they will love it!
• Drain the water from the soaked lentil and beans and wash again in plenty of water.
• Next, add the urad and kidney beans to a pressure cooker or pressure pot. Cover with 1.2L room temperature water and cook with the lid on until tender. For regular pressure cookers, this will be approximately 8 whistles, or 30 minutes if using a pressure pot (the stew/soup function does a good job of cooking them through). They should be cooked enough so that you can mash them with the back of a spoon.
• Heat 1 tbsp vegan butter or oil in a pan. Over a low heat, add the cumin seeds, black cardamom, bay leaves and cinnamon. Cook briefly and then add the ginger and garlic, garam masala, green cardamom, kasoori methi, turmeric, chilli powder, ground coriander seeds and salt.
• After a minute, add the tomatoes and mix well. Allow to cook for 5-10 minutes, over a medium-low heat until the oil separates from the sides of the pan. Partially cover the pan with a lid to stop it spluttering everywhere.
• Once the masala is cooked, add the cooked daal. Mix well. Take a sturdy spoon or ladle and begin to mash the daal against the base and sides of the pan to crush some of them. This is what thickens the daal for a perfect restaurant-style Daal Makhani. Do this over a low heat to stop it spluttering over your hands. Once it thickens a little, you're ready for the next step which is to simmer the daal low and slow.

For slow cooking:

• Quick: Continue to cook the daal in the same pan, covered for 35 minutes minimum. Stir often to avoid it sticking at the base of the pan.
• Medium/slow but so delicious: Transfer the daal to a slow cooker or pressure pot and slow cook (if using a pressure pot use the slow cook function) to cook the daal for a maximum of 12 hours). The longer you cook it, the better it will taste.
• Oven cook: Transfer the daal to a casserole dish or Dutch oven and cook at 100C/210F for a maximum of 12 hours. Stir every hour or so.

To serve:

• Stir 100ml oat cream and 50g vegan butter through the daal before serving.
• Garnish the daal with chopped coriander, ginger juliennes, kasoori methi and optional oat cream.

Video

Notes

Urad has a tendency to thicken as it cools so you may need to loosen it up with some hot water before serving.

To store leftovers in the fridge: Allow the daal to cool completely and then pack into an airtight container. Refrigerate for up to 3 days. Heat through until piping hot before serving.

To freeze: Allow the daal to cool completely and then pack into an airtight container/freezer-safe container. Freeze for up to 3 months. Defrost at room temperature. Heat through until piping hot before serving.

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If you like this, you’ll love my recipe for Rajma

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I’m making Khichdi, Gujarati style, like how they eat it on the farm in my ancestral home of Porbandar. It’s served with Gujarati Lasan ni Chutney, a blow-your-socks-off garlic and chilli preserve, and a cold glass of Chaas (salted buttermilk with roasted cumin). This is the comfort food every Gujarati has precious memories of growing up. The porridge-like consistency of a ghee-beaten rice and lentil mishmash was usually the first solid food we ever ate as toothless babies and our fondness for it stayed with us right through to adulthood. It became a familiar and nostalgic comfort blanket for the belly.

Loaded with hearty goodness and family tradition, Khichdi was and (still is) regarded as being every doting Gujarati mother’s nourishment of choice for her child.

My recipe uses salt but feel free to omit it or reduce the amount for weaning. Just a few weeks ago, I prepared a salt-free version for my 6-month old and he gobbled it up with gusto. It was his first real taste of food, as it was mine 29 years ago.

Unlike other regional variations of the dish, Gujarati Khichdi is subtle and gently spiced but still creamy with ghee or butter. It’s not pilau or biryani and traditionally, Khichdi is not loved for its long, separate grains you strive to achieve with other rice dishes. Think risotto. It’s a stodgy, filling rice and lentil porridge with or without a blend of spices depending on the regional style and interpretation you choose.

I like to use dried, split mung beans with the husks on (mung daal chilla) but you can also use the skinned yellow variety of mung daal if you prefer. As far as spices go, turmeric, asafoetida and black pepper are all that’s needed.

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Village-Style Gujarati Khichdi

Unlike other regional variations of the dish, Gujarati Khichdi is subtle and gently spiced but still creamy with ghee or butter. It’s not pilau or biryani and traditionally, Khichdi is not loved for its long, separate grains you strive to achieve with other rice dishes. Think risotto. It’s a stodgy, filling rice and lentil porridge with or without a blend of spices depending on the regional style and interpretation you choose.

Course Main Course, Side Dish

Cuisine Indian

Keyword gujarati, lentils, rice, turmeric

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes minutes

Total Time 25 minutes minutes

Servings 6

Ingredients

• 125 g basmati rice
• 125 g dried split mung beans (the kind with the husks left on)
• 600 ml hot water
• 1/4 tsp turmeric
• 1/8 tsp asafoetida
• 1 tsp salt
• 100 g butter or ghee
• 1 tsp freshly-ground black peppercorns

Instructions

• Combine the rice and dried split mung beans. Wash them in cold water several times and then place them in a pan that has a tight-fitting lid.
• Add the water, turmeric, asafoetida and salt. Stir and bring to the boil. Place the lid on the pan and reduce the burner to low. Cook for 25 minutes or until all the water has been absorbed and the khichdi is tender.
• Next, add in the butter and black pepper and beat the khichdi with a wooden spoon for a minute until creamy and porridge-like in consistency.
• Serve with more butter or ghee and Gujarati Lasan ni Chutney (optional but delicious).
• You can also cook the khichdi in a pressure cooker. Follow the same method and cook for 10 minutes. Allow to cool slightly before opening the cooker and beating in the butter and black pepper.

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Comfort food doesn’t get any better than a bowl of piping hot, creamy, spicy lentils topped with crispy onions, fried green chillies and crunchy fried spinach.

Urad, or black gram lentils are a staple in Indian homes and are used for making a variety of dishes from simple daals to elaborate Masala Dosa. They’re packed with protein and have a heartier texture than mung beans. Because of their tougher texture, they need to be cooked thoroughly to extract as much of their creamy starchiness as possible. I find the easiest way to do this is to soak the urad daal overnight and cook them using a pressure cooker – something you’ll find in every Indian home, rather than it being just an alien contraption collecting dust in the back of your Nan’s cupboard. After that, I slow cook for 6-8 hours for the creamiest, most off the hook daal you’ve ever tasted.

I love dinners like these. A shot from the other day. Spinach, sweet potato and peas in coconut milk, daal makhani, samosas, Indian churros, lime and coriander sour cream chutney and a mega stack of soft chapattis.

Growing up, I was reared on Gujarati Urad Daal rather than the richer Punjabi version of black gram lentils more popular on restaurant menus around the globe. We were taught that eating urad daal every Saturday (the holy day of Hanuman, the ever-powerful monkey god), we’d become so strong we’d be able to lift mountains. To no surprise, my wrestling-obsessed brother would wolf it down it with plenty of hope and hot, buttery chapattis.

The key difference between Gujarati and Punjabi urad daal is that the Gujarati version has no garam masala, kidney beans or cream. This isn’t to say it’s not delicious but more practical to eat often. However, if I’m honest, the ingredients my native Gujarati version lacked are the things I love so much about the classic Punjabi recipe here. Once you’ve made this version at home, Daal Makhani you get down your local Indian restaurant or takeaway won’t suffice, trust me.

My favourite way to eat Daal Makhani is with Garlic and Coriander Naan, Salted Lassi and nothing more. My recipe may not make you strong enough to uproot mountains like Hanuman dada, but it sure as hell will make you crave a weekly fix every Saturday… or Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday.

Daal Makhani
Serves 4-6

Ingredients

220g urad (black gram lentils), washed and soaked in cold water overnight
200g kidney beans, washed (I use tinned)
1 tbsp oil
3 large cloves garlic, crushed
5 tbsp ginger, grated (loads, don’t be shy)
2 large, thin green chillies, chopped
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp fennel seeds, ground
200g passata
900ml hot water
Pinch bicarbonate of soda
1 tbsp brown sugar or jaggery
1 tbsp garam masala
1 tsp dried fenugreek leaves (kasoori methi)
1 tsp coriander seeds, ground
1 tsp ground cinnamon
2 tsp salt
100ml double cream
50g butter

Method

1. Heat the butter in a pressure cooker, add the cumin seeds, garlic, ginger, chillies, tomato puree and passata. Cook for 3-4 minutes. Add the hot water and bring to the boil. Stir in the soaked urad and baking powder (this helps them cook quickly and evenly).

2. Put the lid on the pressure cooker and cook on a medium heat for 35 minutes or until the lentils are soft.

3. Stir in the ground coriander seeds, fenugreek seeds, cinnamon, sugar, salt and double cream and stir.

3. Blend very briefly with a stick blender, leaving the majority of the urad whole. This is just to make it thick and creamy. Add the kidney beans. Pour in to a slow cooker and cook on high for 6-8 hours, stirring often. At the very end, add the garam masala and a dollop of butter.

3. Serve with fried onions, fried spinach, fried green chillies and a splash of cream (optional).

Note: Urad daal has a tendency to thicken as it cools so you may need to loosen it up with some hot water before serving.

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They’re the snack of my father’s childhood and this is a recipe that together, we have developed over the years.

What are Kachori?

Deep fried snacks of flaky pastry and spicy filling. Filling options are endless but these moong daal Kachori are my favourite. Once you eat one, you’ll always go back for a second. Fact.

Kachori are like the forgotten little sister of samosa – the underdog starter that accidentally slipped through the fingers of Western restaurateurs.

What do Mombasa-Style Daal Kachori taste like?

I cannot emphasise enough how good lentils are with sweet, hot and sour flavours. The addition of sour green mango cuts through the richness of the daal and spices and balances the deep heat of the chillies, ginger and cinnamon perfectly.

These Kachori are inspired by those sold at the famous Bhagwanjis sweet mart in Mombasa, Kenya. My entire family raves about Kenya-style kachori and these, along with Bateta Vada, are guaranteed to put a smile on my dad’s face. And I can vouch that he has great taste.

What are some other popular Kachori fillings?

Kachori come in all flavours, shapes and sizes. You can stuff the classic flaky pastry with onions, crushed green peas, urad daal or even potatoes. The filling is always strong and spicy. This heat is what give Kachori thie robustness.

The three bite-sized snacks can be made into UFO-like patties. Top them with yoghurt, sev, chopped onions and tomatoes to make Kachori chaat.

What do you eat with Kachori?

These Kenya-style Kachori are delicious with Tamarind and Date Chutney but you can serve them with any chutney you like.

In India, Delhi is the state most famous for Khasta Kachori. There, the flat-style of Kachori (usually filled with onions and/or potatoes, or peas) are served with a green coriander chutney or red chilli. Kachori are always a delicious accompaniment to serve with Masala Chai.

Can I make Kachori ahead of time?

Absolutely. They’re a popular weddings party snack so if you’d like to feed a crowd, they are ideal. Make the filling for these Kachori a day or two in advance. Simply wrap in cling film keep in the fridge.

Having said this, I recommend that you make the dough on the same day.

How to make Kachori ahead of time

You can prepare Mombasa-Style Daal Kachori in advance and keep in the freezer for easy cooking later. Half-fry the Kachori for around 6 minutes until light blonde in colour. Allow to cool on absorbent kitchen paper and then pack into a freezer-safe container. Freeze for up to 6 months. Cook straight from frozen.

How to cook Kachori from frozen

Heat oil in a pan suitable for deep frying. The oil temperature should be 175°C/350°F. Fry the Kachori in small batches until golden brown and piping hot, about 4 minutes.

To oven bake or air-fry half-fried Kachori

While these Kachori may not be suitable for baking or air frying, half-fried and then frozen Kachori can be reheated in the oven or air fryer. Cook from frozen at 175°C/350°F for 10-15 minutes until golden brown.

Alternative cooking methods for Kachori

It’s possible to cook Kachori in an appam or paniyaram pan but the overall look and texture will be different to fried Kachori. I don’t do it but if you like, you can try that.

How to make perfect Kachori pastry

The trick to perfect kachori is to ensure the pastry is short, yet pliable enough to wrap thinly enough around the filling without creating holes which may break them when you fry them.

Make sure your kachori are perfect by tapping the pastry once cool – they should sound hollow.

Toasted semolina will give the pastry a delicious depth of flavour.

Why is my Kachori pastry breaking?

Not enough oil/fat or the dough has not been kneaded enough. Kachori dough must be short so fats are imperative. Add too little and the pastry will be thick and doughy. Knead the dough for at least 8 minutes and then rest for 30 minutes so the gluten has a chance to relax.

Why is my Kachori dough thick and soft?

Not enough water. Water not ice cold. Ensure you add ample ice-cold water to the dough for a crispy finish. If your Kachori pastry is thick and soft, the water was not cold enough to create shortness and flakiness.

How to wrap Kachori

To form the Kachori, take a portion of dough. Press it out to flatten onto your palm, about 5cm wide. Place the formed daal filling in the centre and gently pull the pastry around the daal to cover.

Pinch the dough closed and remove excess dough using the length of your index finger and thumb. Try to use pull gently from the top so that gravity naturally pulls the Kachori down. This will give the Kachori a very thin and even coverage.

How to make vegan Kachori

Replace the ghee in the pastry for the same measure of vegan butter or oil. Then follow the recipe as directed.

Mombasa-Style Daal Kachori recipe

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Mombasa-Style Daal Kachori

Crispy bites of pastry-covered daal. These kachoris are inspired by the ones sold at the famous Bhagwanjis sweet mart in Mombasa, Kenya. My entire family rave about these Kenya-style Kachori with moong daal and sour green mango.

Course Appetizer, Snack

Cuisine African, Indian

Keyword black daal, kachori, moong, pastry, snacks

Prep Time 1 hour hour 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 1 hour hour

Total Time 2 hours hours 10 minutes minutes

Servings 28 kachoris

Author Sanjana

Ingredients

For the pastry:

• 450 g plain flour (all purpose/maida)
• 80 g coarse semolina (lightly toasted in a dry frying pan)
• 2 tsp fine salt
• 4 tbsp ghee (soft but not melted)
• 5 tbsp any flavourless cooking oil (I used rapeseed)
• 275 g ice-cold water

For the filling:

• 400 g moong daal (yellow, skinless)
• 1/2 tsp ground turmeric
• 225 g raw green mango, peeled and grated (about 2 mangos)
• 2 tbsp any flavourless cooking oil (I used sunflower)
• 110 g onion, very finely chopped (1 medium onion)
• 2 tbsp grated ginger
• 6 thin green chillies, finely chopped
• 1/2 tbsp lemon juice
• 3 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp ground fennel seeds
• 1/2 tsp ground cloves
• 125 g crushed sev or gathia
• 2 tbsp chopped fresh coriander leaves
• 50 g sugar
• 2 tsp salt
• 2 L any flavourless cooking oil for deep frying

Instructions

To make the daal filling:

• Wash the moong daal in plenty of cold water. Drain and repeat 2-3 times. Allow the daal to soak in hot water for 2 hours.
• Drain the soaked daal and place in a pot filled with plenty of water. Add ground turmeric and bring to the boil. Cover with a lid and simmer for around 10-15 minutes until al dente, about 90% cooked. Keep checking and remove from the heat when the daal breaks when pressed between your fingers. It shouldn't mash completely. Drain.
• Heat oil in a frying pan. Add finely-chopped onions, minced ginger and chillies. Stir well and sauté just until the onions have softened, about 2-3 minutes. The onions shouldn't brown.
• Add the onion mixture to the cooked and drained daal, along with the grated raw mango, ground cinnamon, ground fennel seeds, ground cloves, salt, sugar, sev and fresh coriander leaves. Stir the mixture well to combine. It might seem like a lot of spices, salt and sugar but Kachori filling must be strong. The daal is very bland by itself and requires this amount of seasoning to produce a good result.

To make the dough:

• Place the plain flour in a bowl, along with semolina and salt. Mix briefly to combine.
• Add the ghee and oil and use your fingertips to rub the flours and fats together, similar to making shortcrust pastry or a crumble. This process is called "moarn" in Hindi. The step is complete when the flour holds together in a solid mass when squeezed together. It should crumble under gentle pressure.
• Next, add the water and mix to form a shaggy dough. Turn out onto a clean work surface and knead the dough for 8-10 minutes until smooth and elastic.
• Pop the dough back into a bowl and cover. Set aside to rest for 30 minutes.

To assemble the Kachori:

• Once the daal mixture has cooled, mash it using a potato masher or pau bhaji masher. Whole daal should still be visible in the mixture but it should be mashed enough so that it holds together when you press it into a ball shape.
• Form the daal mixture into approximately 24g balls. They shouldn't be too large. Arrange on a tray or large plate.
• Divide the rested dough into 18g portions and cover again.
• To form the Kachori, take a portion of dough. Press it out to flatten onto your palm, about 5cm wide. Place the formed daal filling in the centre and gently pull the pastry around the daal to cover. Pinch the dough closed and remove excess dough using the length of your index finger and thumb. Try to use pull gently from the top so that gravity naturally pulls the Kachori down. This will give the Kachori a very thin and even coverage.
• Roll the ball gently between your palms ensuring there are no creases or holes in the dough, especially where you sealed. If there are, the Kachori will burst whilst frying and the filling will become really greasy. Repeat for the rest.

To fry the Kachori:

• Heat oil in a pan suitable for deep frying. The oil should be at least 6cm deep.
• Once the oil temperature reaches 160°C/320°F, you're ready to fry the Kachori.
• Carefully place the Kachori into the hot oil, one at a time. Fry only a handful at a time depending on the size of your pan. If you add to many at once, the oil temperature will drop and this will affect how your Kachori cook.
• Try not to move the Kachori around too much at first. Once the outer coating of pastry firms up, you can begin to move them around so that they cook evenly. Use a perforated spoon or frying spider to bob the Kachori around in the oil. Don't increase the temperature. A low frying temperature is ideal so that they Kachori become very crispy. The semolina will ensure they don't absorb a lot of oil.
• The Kachori will take around 8 minutes over a medium-low heat. After this time, you can increase the oil temperature to 175°C/350°F for the last 2 minutes. The Kachori will turn a beautiful golden brown colour. Once they have reached this point, lift the Kachori out of the oil and place them onto a plate lined with kitchen towel to absorb any excess oil.
• Repeat the frying process for all of the Kachori, ensuring you allow the oil to cool down to 160°C/320°F before you fry every new batch.
• Serve the Mombasa-Style Daal Kachori with my Tamarind & Date Chutney (recipe linked below).

Video

Notes

Make ahead

You can prepare Mombasa-Style Daal Kachori in advance and keep in the freezer for easy cooking later. Half-fry the Kachori for around 6 minutes until light blonde in colour. Allow to cool on absorbent kitchen paper and then pack into a freezer-safe container. Freeze for up to 6 months. Cook straight from frozen.

To cook Kachori from frozen

Heat oil in a pan suitable for deep frying. The oil temperature should be 175°C/350°F. Fry the Kachori in small batches until golden brown and piping hot, about 4 minutes.

To oven bake or air-fry half-fried Kachori

While these Kachori may not be suitable for baking or air frying, half-fried and then frozen Kachori can be reheated in the oven or air fryer. Cook from frozen at 175°C/350°F for 10-15 minutes until golden brown.

Alternative cooking methods

It’s possible to cook Kachori in an appam or paniyaram pan but the overall look and texture will be different to fried Kachori. I don’t do it but if you like, you can try that.

Pin this recipe for later!

If you like this, you’ll love my recipe for Chilli-Garlic Mogo

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The post Mombasa-Style Daal Kachori appeared first on Sanjana.Feasts.

Isn’t miniature food always better than supersized food? Take cupcakes for instance; tiny morsels of individually iced, fluffy cake is so much more alluring than a massive, calorie-laden, brick-ish cake.

Well, for me anyway.

In the same way, I would always pick a box of tiny chocolate truffles over a chunky chocolate bar. If you had given me the choice when I was a child I would have definitely supersized every time. Hence the regrettable existence of the unsightly pot-belly that tormented me in my early years.

I consume far too much salt, sugar and fat, which I am told will affect my twentysomething body in a number of gruesome ways before I hit my thirties and forties. This is one of those recipes which will carry most of the blame.

Luckily for you, I miniaturised these delicious mung daal and paneer samosas so that you can enjoy them without all of the guilt and fear of heart disease, diabetes and high blood pressure. Just don’t eat all of them at once. Having said this, I’m not a doctor and cannot advise against and diagnose illnesses using a computer. That’s how they all do it these days, right? I’m kidding with ya. Lots of prem to all of my doctor readers out there…

Whipping up samosas from scratch will play havoc with your new manicure, but it’s a labour of love and well worth the effort when you finally take a spicy bite. Lazy girls and boys may want to think twice about embarking upon this wonderful, time-consuming task.

These little pastries are perfect for parties and make excellent appetisers and hors d’œuvre’s. Your guests will also worship you for your delicious efforts.

They would partner well with a drizzle of tangy tamarind chutney (recipe coming soon due to a reader request) and served alongside a cooling raita (would you like me to post a recipe for this?)

Little Mung Daal and Paneer Samosas
(makes 25-35 little samosas- this may vary according to the size of your samosas)

Ingredients for the filling
1 cup mung daal, washed, soaked overnight and boiled until tender
2 cups crumbled paneer (recipe coming soon due to a request via Facebook for KO Rasoi)
¾ cup onions, finely chopped
1 tbsp oil
2 tsp cumin seeds
½ tsp turmeric
1 tsp white or red chilli powder (I used extra hot white chilli powder)
3 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp sugar
½ tsp garam masala powder
¾ cup fresh coriander, chopped
Salt to taste

Ingredients for the pastry
(To form a firm, smooth dough. The basic rule of thumb is that if your dough becomes sticky, add a tsp of oil and knead, if it becomes too soft, work in a little more flour, and if it becomes way too firm add a little more water and combine)

1 ½ cups plain flour
4 tbsp oil
2 tbsp lemon juice (makes the pastry light and crisp)
½ tsp salt
½ cup cold water
½ tsp garlic, crushed (optional)

Other ingredients
Enough oil to deep fry the samosas
An extra bowl of flour
Cold water

Method
1. Heat the oil in a large non-stick pan and add the cumin seeds and onions. Sauté until translucent. Add the rest of the ingredients except the coriander and garam masala and cook the mixture until it’s dry and comes away from the sides of the pan. Add the coriander and garam masala. Set aside.

2. In a large bowl, mix together the ingredients for the dough. Knead until firm and non-sticky.

3. Get to work rolling out and lightly cooking your fresh pastry sheets (I rolled mine to around 4 inches- step 2). Use my step by step below as a guide. I cook my pastry sheets on a dry skillet (step 7) making sure they do not brown. You just want them sealed enough so that you can work with them. Sandwiching two circles of dough together with oil and flour and lightly rolling over the top of them (steps 3, 4, 5 and 6) makes the pastry thinner and the whole process a little quicker. When they are cooked, carefully peel them away from each other (step 8), then half the circles into semi-circles (step 9). Wrap these in a tea towel until you need to use them.

4. In a small bowl, make a sticky paste from flour and cold water. You will need this to seal the edges of the samosas when you fold them.

5. Use my next step by step below to fold and fill all of your samosas with the cooled mung daal and paneer mixture.

6. Heat enough oil in a deep pan to deep fry the samosas until they are golden brown. Place on kitchen paper to drain away any excess oil. That’s my contribution to promoting good health right there.

The post Little Mung Daal and Paneer Samosas appeared first on Sanjana.Feasts.

Great news. No, not great news. Amazing news.

KO Rasoi’s recipe for Melt in the Mouth Paneer Kofta has been selected as one of the top 100 entries for the Foodista Best of Food Blogs competition. The recipe will feature in a full colour cookbook which will be published by Andrews McMeel Publishing this October. I’ll give you more details as and when I find out information.

How exciting is this for us?! The little veggie blog is taking baby footsteps and I like where it seems to be heading.

Cooking, eating, writing; these are the things that I can use to escape in to a world where my passion for food roams freely and relentlessly. Rather like a starving gerbil on Shandy.

What I would like to do most is thank you all for such wonderful feedback and supportive comments. You are the people that make KO Rasoi shine, not other things like scrummy cheesecakes (although, those are yummy and almost as attractive than you are). Stop blushing.

Moving swiftly on…

In order to celebrate this exciting newsflash we have daal. Don’t make those sighing noises I used to make when I was little and had to eat daal, because this isn’t just any daal. It’s three lentil daal.

And I don’t have to justify that because it tastes marvellous and it’s good for you!

Celebrate the colours of India and happy times with this delicious three lentil daal (triveti daal). These lentils are widely available in all good supermarkets and Indian grocers.

Ingredients
(serves 4-6)

100g moong daal (mung bean daal)
100g urad daal
100g toor daal (pigeon pea daal)
1 ¼ litres hot water
1 large onion, chopped
3 large cloves garlic, minced
1 inch piece ginger, minced
2 hot green chillies, minced, (or to taste)
1 tbsp ghee (or oil)
2 star anise
1 small cinnamon stick
5-6 curry leaves
1 tsp mustard seeds
¼ tsp asafoetida
200g tin of chopped tomatoes
½ tsp turmeric
½ cup coriander, chopped
Salt to taste

Method

1. Wash the three daals together and boil in the hot water until tender. Hot tip: Adding a pinch of bicarbonate of soda to your boiling water will make the daal cook quicker. If your daal mixture is too dry add a little more water but do not drain any water from them. Set the cooked daal aside.

2. Heat the ghee/oil in a large pan and add the mustard seeds. Wait for them to pop, then add the onion, garlic, ginger, chillies, asafoetida, curry leaves, star anise and cinnamon. Cook until aromatic.

3. Add the tomatoes, turmeric and cooked daal mixture. Simmer for 5 minutes and season with salt. Remove from the heat and add the coriander. Remember to remove the cinnamon stick and star anise before serving.

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