Dal Makhani

This is an easy dal recipe.  A buttery Punjabi dal if I may say so.  In India, we usually love to have a dal (lentil) in our daily diet, be it red or yellow lentils.  Since we tend to keep it simple on a daily basis. Occasionally making dal makhani is a welcome change.  Probably when you want to have restaurant like food at home. This dish has a rich texture and lengthy preparation process.  Usually, the authentic way to cook this dal is overnight.  But thanks to the modern amenities, cooking this at home would take about 2-3 hours, and tastes good too.  Though I must add that, the dal cooked the traditional way is the best. 

Originally introduced by Kundal Lal Gujral who opened the Moti Mahal Restaurant.  This lentil preparation is loved by almost everyone.  So here goes the recipe.

INGREDIENTS:

Whole black gram lentil (sabut urad)	½ cup
Red kidney beans (rajma)	2 tbsp
Ginger (grated)	2 inch
Butter	3 tbsp
Oil	1 tbsp
Cumin seeds	1 tsp
Onion (finely chopped)	1 big
Tomatoes (pureed)	¾
Garlic (finely chopped)	6 cloves
Garam masala powder	1 tsp
Red chilli powder	1 tsp
Cream	½ cup
Salt	1 tsp

METHOD:
1.      Wash whole black gram dal n rajma well and soak it overnight in 3 cups of water.
2.      Cook them in a pressure cooker along with half the ginger for up-to 10-15 whistles.  It should be very soft.  Just mash them a little once removed from the cooker.
3.      Heat a kadai, add butter and oil.  Add cumin seeds, when they begin to change colour add finely chopped onion and fry till golden brown.  Add the remaining ginger, garlic and pureed tomatoes.
4.      Saute well till the fat leaves the gravy.  Add the cooked dals to this gravy.  Add salt and a cup of water to this.
5.      Add garam masala and mix well.  Let this simmer well on low flame for at least 15 mins.
6.      Keeping aside two tbsp of cream, add the rest of the cream to the dal along with the chilli powder and mix well.
7.      Let the dal simmer for another 10 minutes more.  Remove into a serving bowl and garnish with cream.  Serve hot with naan, parantha or any roti of your choice.

NOTES:

1.      The dal and rajma should be very soft. 
2.      You could make this dish only in butter, but mixing butter and oil will help the butter not to burn.