Bengali Cholar Daal

About this Recipe...

Cholar Dal is a traditional bengali lentil dish made from Bengal gram lentil. In this recipe first the dal is boiled in pressure cooker and then it is cooked with whole garam masala, chopped coconut, ginger paste, salt, sugar, raisins and ghee. The raisins and sugar adds little sweetness to this dish. It is a must item for any special occasion, wedding feast or puja. This dish doesn't have onion or garlic added to it.
This dal is best served with luchi, kachori or even plain basmati rice. Make this lip smacking dal at home and enjoy it with your loved ones.

Ingredients

• 1 Cup Bengal gram lentil
• Oil
• Whole garam masala
• 1 Bay leaf
• 1 Dried red chili
• 1 tsp Cumin seeds
• 1/4 tsp Asafoetida
• 1/2 tsp Turmeric powder
• 1 tsp Ginger paste
• 1 tsp Green chilli paste
• Freshly grated coconut or coconut cut into small pieces
• 8-10 Raisins
• Salt as per taste
• Sugar as per taste
• 3 Pieces Slitted green chili
• 1/2 tsp Coriander powder
• 1 tsp Clarified butter

Directions

1. Boil the daal till it is tender but not mushy.
2. For tempering take some oil in a pan and add whole garam masala (here I am using 2-3 cloves, one small cinnamon stick, one cardamom, 4-5 black pepper corn), bay leaf, dried red chili, cumin seeds and asafoetida and fry everything for 30 seconds.
3. Now add ginger and green chili paste and fry for sometime and then add turmeric powder and coriander powder and mix everything well.
4. Now add raisins and coconut followed by the boil daal and add salt and sugar as per your taste and green chilies. (this daal is a bit sweeter kind of dish so add salt and sugar accordingly)
5. Now bring it to a boil and the consistency of the daal will be in thicker side. When it came to a boil add clarified butter and your daal is ready to serve.
   You can enjoy this daal with puri, roti, pulao or even white rice, it tastes great.