Hot and Tasty Dal

We usually call this as “Pindi Miriyum” in Telugu. It is also called as ‘Kootu’ in some places. This is one of my most favorite kinds of dal. I remember when my mom used to cook this, just the aroma of this dal used to make me very hungry. If you go traditionally, a lot of preparation is involved. I usually go the easier way. I have learned it from my mom.

To prepare this in the easier way, we need:

• 1 cup Toor Dal
• 1 small Plantain
• 1 tomato
• 2 tsp Black Pepper Powder or according to taste
• 1 tsp desiccated Coconut
• ½ tsp Coriander Powder or Rasam Powder
• A small piece of ginger
• ½ tsp Turmeric
• ½ tsp Asafetida
• Some Coriander leaves
• Salt to taste

For Seasoning:

• ½ tsp Mustard Seeds
• ½ tsp Cumin Seeds

Preparation:

Wash the toor dal well and cook it until soft. Peel the skin of the plantain, chop into medium pieces. Chop the tomato and ginger also. In a bowl add these pieces along with some water and cook them until soft. When they become soft, add the cooked dal along with all the other ingredients and mix well. Cook it for some time, but be careful not to burn the bottom as the dal has tendency of burning if left on the flame for a long time. This dal should be relatively thin in consistency. The black pepper powder gives a unique spiciness to this dal.

In a small pan, heat 1 tsp oil and add the mustard seeds. When they splutter add the cumin seeds and fry for a while. Add this seasoning to the prepared dal.

Serve with hot rice, ghee and papads.

Traditional way of preparation:

We need:

• All the above ingredients excluding the powders (coriander or rasam and pepper)
• 1 tsp Bengal Gram (Chana Dal)
• 1 tsp Coriander Seeds
• 1 tsp Peppercorns or according to taste

Dry roast the chana dal, coriander seeds, peppercorns and the desiccated coconut until they turn golden brown. Grind them into a fine powder. Add this powder to the cooked dal instead of coriander powder or rasam powder and the black pepper powder.

Variation: The plantain can be substituted with a potato or 2 arvi or zucchini.