Put everything you have to do aside and make a Creamy Shahi Dal for yourself. The sheer indulgence of this buttery, creamy Tadka Dal would give you foodgasm in every bite. This Indian rooted delicacy is a beautiful blend of simmered dals tempered with Tadka that is simply out of this World. No, I am not exaggerating when I say you are missing on serious life fun if you haven’t made this restaurant-style Dal Tadka, yet. I could easily get the award for the best dal tadka recipe for this after experimenting with recipes over the years.
Restaurant Style Dal Tadka at Home
The argument for homemade food can never taste as good as the restaurant is quite baseless. Indulge in a spoonful of this delicacy and you are sure to change your mind. This simple dal tadka recipe will make you drool with its aromatic smell and creamy texture. Pour it over some hot steamed rice or take it a notch higher with Jeera Rice and you are in for a happy delicious treat. You can hardly go wrong with Dal Tadka. You have the freedom to modify the recipe to cater for your taste buds and we assure you the dal would still taste this phenomenal. Scroll down and get the best 20 minutes dal Tadka recipe which is undoubtedly the perfect Indian meal. Power-packed with protein-enriched Daal and flavoursome tadka this dal will checklist your everyday protein intake.
Types of Dal used in this Creamy Shahi Dal.
Such is the beauty of Tadka Dal, you get to play around with lentils the way you like. Lentils in general may taste boring to individuals. But this particular recipe will make you an absolute lentils fan and you will keep finding reasons to make this every day. Tadka Dal is usually made of Toor Dal also known as split pigeon peas in English. However, this recipe uses a combination of 4 beautiful lentils that will eventually give our shahi dal the creamy and velvety texture.
Chana Dal, Masoor Dal, Toor Dal and Urad Dal are used in this recipe and trust me these Lentils together would make a perfect hit. The flavour, texture and taste of each would bring out a flavoursome combination that would be hard for you to resist. So let’s indulge in this bright yellow world filled with flavours, aroma and taste.
My Dal Tadka Recipe
This magical recipe is packed with flavours in every bite. As we discussed, this recipe uses 4 types of lentils, each of which will contribute differently to taste, texture and flavour. The Toor Dal forms the base while the Chana and Masoor Dal add their unique flavour to the Tadka Dal. You will be amazed by how a small addition of Urad Dal will give you a dreamy velvety texture for your dal.
Be patient and don’t rush the process. Slower the better. This Dal Tadka is a special recipe and it sure needs to be made with love. Turn on some music, indulge in chopping vegetables and enjoy the process of cooking this scrumptious meal.
Ingredients required to make Shahi Tadka Dal.
Note that this recipe serves 4 adult individuals
- ½ Cup Toor Dal
- ⅓ Cup Chana Dal
- ⅓ Cup Masoor Dal
- ¼ Cup Urad Dal
- 1 TBSP Grated Ginger
- 1 TBSP Grated Garlic
- Ghee
- 2-3 Dried red chillies or 1-2 Fresh green slit chillies
- 1 Finely grated Onion
- 1 Finely Chopped Tomato
- 1 TBSP Red Chilly Powder
- ¼ TSP Turmeric
- ½ TSP Garam Masala
- ½ TBSP Kasuri Methi
- Salt
- 1 TBSP Cumin Seeds
- Ginger Juliens (5-6)
- Asafoetida
Instructions to Cook
- Clean and soak the lentils in sufficient water for at least 1-2 hours. If you have less time on hand, you can soak the dal in hot water for 30 minutes. However, clean the lentils thoroughly 4-5 times before soaking them.
- Remove the water and keep the dal aside.
- In a pressure cooker, add a TBSP of ghee. Once hot, add 1 TSP cumin seeds and ginger juliennes to it. Let it cook until the cumin seeds splutter. Add Lentils to the pressure cooker and add 2 cups of freshwater to it. Add 1 TSP salt and ¼ Tsp Haldi to the pressure cooker. Mix everything well and close the lid. Keep the flame on medium-high and pressure cook the Lentils for 4-5 whistles.
- In a separate pan, add 2 TBSP ghee. Once the ghee is hot, add 1 TBSP of cumin seeds to it. Let it splutter and then immediately add ¼ Tsp Asafoetida to it. Add 1 TBSP ginger garlic to the pan and let it cook for 2 minutes. Note that the flame is on medium at this time. The high flame would burn your Tadka and would kill the flavours. Add dried red chillies and let it saute for a few seconds.
- Add finely grated onion to the pan and cook it till translucent. Next add the spices – Turmeric, red chilli powder and garam masala to the pan. Mix everything well.
- Now, add chopped tomatoes to the pan and cook until soft and mushy.
- Meanwhile, depressurize your pressure cooker and check if the dals are ready. Whisk the lentils with Baloon whisk for 1 minute. This will give your Tadka dal a velvety creamy texture.
- Empty the lentils from your pressure cooker into the pan. Now mix everything well and let the flavours immerse by cooking the dal for 6-7 minutes.
- Add Kasuri Methi to the dal and salt as per your taste.
How to prepare Tadka for Shahi Dal?
In a small separate pan, add 1 TBSP Ghee. Once hot, add 2 TSP cumin seeds to it. Add finely chopped garlic to the Tadka and let it cook until golden brown.
You can add dried red chillies and some chilly powder to the tadka if you like your dal extra spicy. Pour this tadka over your hot dal.
Garnish the dal with some finely chopped fresh coriander and fried onions.
Serve this hot and dig in.
This golden elixir in the form of Tadka Dal is one of the first recipes you need to try from our collection. Serve this with some hot Naan, Parathas or rice and enjoy your scrumptious meal.
