Name: Five-Lentil Stew with Cumin and Cayenne (Panchmela Dal)
Yield: Makes 3 cups
Cuisine: India
Ingredients: ¼ cup yellow split peas (chana dal), picked over for stones; ¼ cup oily or unoily skinned split yellow pigeon peas (toovar dal), picked over for stones; ¼ cup skin-on split green lentils (moong dal), picked over for stones; 1½ teaspoons coarse kosher or sea salt; ¼ cup skin-on split black lentils (urad dal), picked over for stones; ¼ cup skinned split green lentils (yellow in this form, moong dal), picked over for stones; 2 lengthwise slices fresh ginger (each 2 inches long, 1 inch wide, and ⅛ inch thick); 4 fresh green Thai, cayenne, or serrano chiles, stems removed, coarsely chopped (do not remove the seeds); 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh cilantro leaves and tender stems for garnishing; ½ teaspoon ground turmeric; ½ teaspoon cayenne (ground red pepper); 2 fresh or dried bay leaves; ½ teaspoon ground asafetida; 2 tablespoons Ghee or melted butter; 2 teaspoons cumin seeds

Preparation info

Makes
3 cups

Difficulty
Medium

Appears in

660 Curries

By Raghavan Iyer

Published 2008

About

Rajni Kedia is a neighbor and friend of my sister-in-law Geeta in suburban Mumbai. On a recent visit, her passion for the foods of her childhood in Rajasthan, which she still creates daily for her family, came through crystal-clear. It was a sunny Sunday afternoon, the auspicious day called Makar Sankranti, and hundreds of kites soared in the warm breeze in celebration of the first day of spring. Rajni’s lentil-rich stew simmered on the stove while she sizzled the sp