Spinach & Masoor Dal-Pressure Cooker#MultiCookerMonday

Palak With Red Masoor Dal nutritious, healthy, wholesome and packed with protein and fiber.  It's very delicious and tasty.  Usually this is made with tur dal/pigeon pea, but, do try this with red lentil and you will love it.  This is made in the pressure cooker so it quick  to make.

Ingredients 
1/2 Cup Masoor Dal/Red Lentil
2 Green chillies - slit
1 Teaspoon Level Ginger Garlic paste
3/4 Teaspoon Level Sea Salt or to taste
1 Small Onion -chopped
1 Medium Tomato -chopped
21/2 Cups Water

1 Bundle Palak / Spinach Leaves

For the Tadka  

2 Tablespoon Oil
1 Teaspoon Mustard Seed
1/2 Teaspoon Cumin seed
2 Whole Dried Red Chillies
1 Tablespoon Bottle Masala
A Sprig Curry Leaves

Method 

Wash the  palak  leaves well. Remove the stems and take only the leaves. Keep it aside in a colander to drain the excess water.

Blanch the spinach and blend it with an immersion blender. Keep aside. 

Wash the masoor dal. In a pressure pan add the dal, onion, green chillies, tomatoes,  salt and 2 cups water.  Cover with a lid and on high flame take one whistle.  Reduce the flame to low and keep it for 5 -7 minutes.  Switch off the flame and set it aside till the cooker cools. 

When it cools  open the cooker and add the palak,  give it a good mix, taste for salt and dal consistency, add the remaining water and if necessary add more.  Keep it again on low flame to simmer for 5 - 7 minutes, stirring it in between.  

For the Tadka   

In a small pan heat oil mustard  and cumin seeds, when they crackle add the dried red chillies,  curry leaves and give it stir.   Switch off the flame and wait for a minute.  Now add a tablespoon of bottle masala. 

Pour the prepared dal in a serving bowl and add the tadka and serve.  

Enjoy this with boiled/steamed rice.

Labels :  Dal, Masoor dal, Palak Leaves, Pressure Cooker, Healthy, Main course, Multicooker Monday,  Vegan, Gluten free, East Indian

Multicooker Monday June 2020:
Recipes using Small Kitchen Appliances 
Beef and Smoked Sausage Goulash from Food Lust People Love
Instant Pot Ground Beef and Pasta from Making Miracles
Black Eyed Pea Hummus from Karen’s Kitchen Stories
Sweet Potato Fries using the Breville Smart Oven (air fryer) from A Day in the Life on the Farm
Crockpot Veggie Fajitas from Veggies First Then Dessert
Spinach & Masoor Dal – Pressure Cooker from Sneha’s Recipe
Saucy Taco Chicken Wings from Palatable Pastime (You are Here!)
Toaster Oven No-Knead Rolls from Sid’s Sea Palm Cooking 

Pressure Cooker Carrot And Drumstick Sambar#MultiCookerMonday

This is quick one pot pressure cooker sambar, so quick an easy to prepare. Just add all the ingredients and take 2 whistles on high flame and your sambar is ready.  

Thanks to Multi Cooker Monday where we can cook and post in all our small appliances, where other wise are hardly used. 

Ingredients
½  Cup Tur Dal
1 Large  Carrot - cut int sticks 
1 Tomato –  cut into four pieces
4 Drumsticks - cleaned and cut into long pieces 
1 Green Chilly
2 Teaspoons  Instant Sambar Masala Powder- Homemade
1 Teaspoon Red Chilly Powder
1 Teaspoon Heaped Coriander Powder
½ Teaspoon Turmeric Powder
1 Small Lemon Size Ball Tamarind
Salt to taste
1 Teaspoon Jaggery
A Sprig Curry Leaves 
For the Tadka
2 Tablespoons Oil
1 Teaspoon Mustard Seeds
1 Teaspoon Urad dal
1 Teaspoon Cumin Seeds ¼ Teaspoon  Asafoetida
A Sprig Curry Leaves

Method

Wash and soak the tur dal for atleast an hour.
Soak the tamarind in ½ cup warm water.

In a pressure  pan , add tur dal,  drumsticks, carrot, tomatoes whole green chilly,  all the given spices, jaggery, salt to taste . Add water  to the level of the veggies , give it a good mix .  Place this on high flame bring the water to a boil, when it come to boil cover with the lid and pressure cook for 2 whistles on high flame. Turn off the heat and let the steam settle  by itself. Open the cooker and set aside.

Add the tamarind juice and enough water, to make a gravy consistency and bring this to a boil.  Let this simmer for at least 5  to 7 minutes on low.

In a small takda pan,  heat oil, add mustard, urad dal, cumin seeds , curry leaves and asafoetida and let them sizzle. Add  this tadak to the dal and mix well.

Serve with rice or idli.  

Enjoy!! 
Lables:  Sambar, Pressure Cooker, South Indian, Dal, Carrot, Drumstick, Instant Sambar Masala Powder, Vegetables, Vegetarian, Multicooker Monday,  Vegan, Gluten free,  No Onion No Garlic
Multicooker Monday - March 2020 Recipes
Recipes for Instant Pots, Slow Cookers, Sous Vide and More! 

Pressure Cooker & Instant Pot Recipes:
Instant Pot Carolina-Style Pulled Pork from Karen's Kitchen Stories
Instant Pot Orange Chicken from Making Miracles
Pressure Cooker Carrot And Drumstick Sambar from Sneha's Recipe
Thai Green Curry Mussels (Instant Pot) from Palatable Pastime

Slow Cooker Recipes:
Maple & Honey Butter Crockpot Sweet Potatoes from Faith, Hope, Love, & Luck Survive Despite a Whiskered Accomplice
Slow Cooker Chicken Fajitas from A Day in the Life on the Farm

Sous Vide Recipes:
Sous Vide Bone-in Leg of Lamb from Food Lust People Love
Sous Vide Chicken from Sid's Sea Palm Cooking

Tell your friends about #MulticookerMonday! We post each month on the third Monday with trusted recipes for your favorite small appliances!

Ambat Varan

This is a CKP Special Maharashtrian Dal.  Tur Dal / Pigeon Lentils cooked with tamarind and jaggery. It has a delicious sweet and tangy taste, a comfort , soul food and everyone's favorite,  especially my daughter's. She had this at a restaurant and would pester me to prepare it, made it for our Diwali lunch. She enjoyed it with just steamed rice. After having her lunch she exclaimed Ma! over ate my lunch today, it was delicious and real soul food, loved it!

Here is the recipe for this simple and delicious soul filling meal.

Ingredients
1 Cup Tur Dal / Pigeon Lentils
1/2 Teaspoon Turmeric powder
A pinch of Asafoetida / Hing
1 Medium Onion -chopped
2 Big Light Green chilies - made into pieces
1 Tablespoon Jaggery
2 Tablespoon Thick Tamarind paste
1 Teaspoon Salt or to taste

To Grind to paste

1/2 Cup Freshly Grated Coconut 

1/3 Cup Fresh Coriander Leaves  

4 Curry Leaves

For Tadka / Tempering
1 Big Curry Spoon Oil
1 Teaspoon Mustard seeds
A pinch of Asafoetida / Hing

Method

Wash and soak the dal for at least 30 minutes .

Pressure cook the dal with turmeric powder, pinch  of asafoetida, onion, green chilies and sufficient water till  soft and tender.

In the meanwhile as the dal is getting cooked, lets grind the  coconut paste.

In a blender jar add coconut, coriander and curry leaves, add  2 tablespoons water and grind it to a fine paste. 

Once the dal is cooked transfer the dal to large pan / kadai add coconut paste and  water enough to make a thick consistency, then add  salt, jaggery and tamarind paste. Keep it on high flame stirring till it come to rolling boil, reduce the flame and  let it simmer, stirring at intervals so that the dal does not settle at the base of the pan and get burnt. Let simmer for 7 to 10 minutes on low flame,  keep stirring at intervals.  Taste for salt and the sourness of dal, add more of either if necessary. 

Now let's prepare the Tempering / Tadka

Heat oil in a small pan, add mustard seeds when it crackles take off flame, add the asafoetida and immediately pour this on to the simmering dal. Cover with a lid, switch off the flame and let is stand for 5 to 7 minutes.   Ambat Varan is ready.

Serve hot with rice or chapatti and a teaspoon  of desi ghee on rice... hmmm delicious.

The next day with the remaining dal.  I, had it with stale chapatti broken into pieces, heated the Ambat Varan poured it over the chappati pieces,  added  a teaspoon of desi ghee. Let it soak for a couple of mins and then relished it.. hmmm.. delicious....

Labels : Dal, Vegetarian, Vegetables, Ambat  Varan, CKP Cuisine, Maharashtra,  Maharastrian Cuisine, Healthy, Complete Meal

Dal Sultani - Mughlai Cuisine

This yummy dal is a Mughlai cuisine of Uttar Pradesh. Its rich and creamy .  Goes well with both rice/pulao or chapattis.

Ingredients

1 Cup Moong Dal - washed and soaked for an hour
2 Cups Water
1 Tablespoon Red Chilly Powder
1 Teaspoon Salt 

For the Gravy

200 Grams Yogurt
200 ML Milk
100 ML Fresh Cream
6 Cloves  - coarsely ground
6 Small Cardamoms  - coarsely ground
1/2 Teaspoon Saffron Strands - mix in a Tablespoon water

For Tempering:

1/2 Cup  Butter or Ghee - I used  half of each
1 Teaspoon Cumin Seeds
8 Cloves Garlic  - chopped
For garnishing coriander leaves  - finely chopped
A Piece of Coal for dungar

Method

Soak lentil for half an hour, add in it water, salt, chily powder and boil the dal till its cooked. 

In a bowl mix,  yogurt,  milk and  malai,  beat  well , add the cardamon and cloves powder mix well.  

When lentils  is cooked, add in creamy mixture, stir the dal well, cook on slow flame for 10 minutes  stirring it so that it does not burn at  the bottom.  Switch off flame,  add the saffron water give it quick stir.

Prepare the tempering

Heat ghee and butter in a pan add the cumin, chopped garlic when the garlic starts to brown take off flame and pour on dal . Cover with a lid. Lastly place the lighted coal in piece of foil or a small bowl pour ghee over it and keep it over the dal covered for 5 minutes. Open garnish with coriander leaves. Serve hot. We had this thick, rich, creamy and yummy dal with Yeasted Jowar Naan. 

My Notes:

This dal is not spicy so do add more chilly powder, this will ruin the taste and color of the dal.

Do skip giving dungar to the dal, as this enhances the flavor.

You can use split pigeons peas / tur dal too instead of moong dal

Labels : Dal, Moong dal, Lentils, Mughlai Cuisine, Uttar Pradesh