Name: Slow-Cooked Creamy Black Lentils with Whole Spices (Maa di Dal)
Yield: Makes 6 cups
Cuisine: India
Ingredients: 2 fresh or dried bay leaves; 4 green, white, or black cardamom pods; 4 tablespoons Ghee or unsalted butter; 2 cinnamon sticks (each 3 inches long); 1 cup whole black lentils (sabud urad), picked over for stones; ½ cup yellow split peas (chana dal), picked over for stones; 2 to 4 fresh green Thai, cayenne, or serrano chiles, to taste, stems removed; 8 medium-size cloves garlic; 2 lengthwise slices fresh ginger (each 2 inches long, 1 inch wide, and ⅛ inch thick); ½ teaspoon cayenne (ground red pepper); 2 teaspoons coarse kosher or sea salt; 1 cup crushed tomatoes or tomato sauce, canned or homemade; ½ cup heavy (whipping) cream; 1 cup cooked red kidney beans, coarsely mashed (see Tips); 1 cup finely chopped red onion; 1 teaspoon cumin seeds; 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh cilantro leaves and tender stems

Preparation info

Makes
6 cups

Appears in

660 Curries

By Raghavan Iyer

Published 2008

About

Mother is maa, and to call this Punjabi curry “Mother’s Lentils” signifies the importance of the dish. There are as many legume and spice combinations as there are cooks in northwestern India, when it comes to Maa di dal. This version makes liberal use of cream and clarified butter, along with simple spices and herbs, and allows the natural creaminess of the cooked black lentils to shine. I often serve it as a first course with baskets of either store-bought or homemade