Masoor Dal Fry with Pearl Onions- Capsicum and Fresh Turmeric.

“Masoor Dal Fry with Pearl Onions- Capsicum and Fresh Turmeric” … dal fry is a popular dish from Indian cuisine prepared with dals/ lentils along with onions, tomatoes, veggies, spices etc. … each one has their own variation depending upon their family preferences and they all taste lovely .... one of the best combination is dal fry served with roti/ chapati … Yummilicious ….

** Dal fry is a famous dish from Indian Cuisine and is famous now all round the world. There are many variations to this dish and each one prepares it to suit their own taste and to their family liking. This time I have prepared it using red lentils/ masoor dal with whole pearl onions and addition of spices to be served as a side dish along with roti and it was awesome. Without running into more details let me move on to sharing the recipe, do try it out and enjoy with family and friends.

** Here is my recipe for “Masoor Dal Fry with Pearl Onions- Capsicum and Fresh Turmeric” … my style, tastes best served with roti ….

** Ingredients :

Masoor dal/ Red lentils : 1 cup

Capsicum/ Donnemirsanga/ Simla Mirchi :3 medium sized

Tomatoes : 4-5 small sized

Fresh Haldi Mande/ Turmeric root : one inch piece

Ginger/ Alle’/ Adrak : ½ inch piece

Hing/ Asafoetida Powder : a large pinch

Goda Masala Powder or Garam Masala Powder : ½ tsp

Malwani Masala Powder or Any Curry Masala Powder : 1-2 tblsp

Kashmiri Red Chilly Powder : 1 tsp

Ghee/ Toop : 1 tblsp

Salt/ Namak/ Meeta : to taste

** For the Curry :

Oil/ Tel/ Tela : 2 tblsp (any edible oil)

Green Chillies/ Tarni Mirsanga/ Hari Mirchi : 2-3 finely chopped

Jeera/ Cumin Seeds : ½ tsp

Curry Leaves/ Kadipatta/ Karbevu : 4-5 fresh ones

Garlic/ Losun/ Lehsun : 3-4 finely chopped

Whole Pearl Onions/ Small Single Onions : 4-5 peeled and cut into halves.

** For Tempering/ Seasoning/ Tadka/ Pannaka :

Coconut Oil/ Nariyal Tel/ Narlel Tela : 2 tblsp

Garlic/ Losun/ Lehsun : 3-4 crushed with skin

Whole Pearl Onions/ Small Single Onions : 8 peeled

Jeera/ Cumin Seeds : ½ tsp

Mustard Seeds/ Sasam/ Rai : ½ tsp

Dry Red Chillies/ Sukkile Mirsanga/ Sukki Mirsanga : 3-4 cut to pieces

Curry Leaves/ Kadipatta/ Karbevu : 8-10 fresh ones

** Wash and soak masoor dal in plenty of water for 30 mins. Drain, wash well and then add into a pressure cooker pan with 1.5 cups of water. Let cook on medium heat to 1 whistle and then keep it aside for to cool. Once the pressure falls on its own, remove and churn the dal slightly to remove lumps if any and keep it ready aside.

** Wash and wipe dry the capsicums and tomatoes. Cut them both into one inch sized cubes and keep them ready separately to be added to the curry.

** For the Curry : Heat oil in a thick bottomed kadai, when hot add jeera, finely chopped green chillies and garlic, curry leaves and fry for few seconds, then add peeled and halved pearl onions and continue frying till transparent. Add the kashmiri red chilly powder and fry for a few seconds only, do not let burn. 

** Note : I always add a little bit of red kashmiri chilly powder to oil while frying for curry as it imparts a lovely color to the dish, you may skip it.

** Add the capsicums pieces and fry on high heat for 1-2 minutes, lower the heat, cover and cook for a few minutes until the capsicum is 60% cooked. Now add tomatoes pieces, mix well, cover and let cook for 2-3 minutes until half cooked.

** Note : I have always found that addition of capsicums to dal fry enhances its taste as capsicum imparts a different taste to curries. However, if you do not want to use them for any reason, you can go ahead without including the same.

** Add grated fresh turmeric root, grated ginger and fry for a minute. Add hing, goda masala or garam masala powder, malwani masala powder or any curry masala powder, mix well continue frying for a few minutes, until powders are well done.

** All veggies should be only 70% cooked so be careful and do not overcook them. Add  cooked masoor dal, salt to taste, mix well, bring all together to a boil stirring frequently to avoid being burnt till you see bubbles appearing on surface. If too thick you can add in some water and bring to required consistency.

** Lower the heat to minimum and simmer for 5-7 minutes covered stirring a few times in between to avoid being burnt. When the curry is well cooked and done remove from heat, add a large tablespoon of fresh homemade ghee and keep it aside covered while we go ahead preparing seasoning for dal fry.

** For Tempering/ Tadka/ Pannaka : Heat coconut oil in a small pan, when hot add mustard seeds, when they splutter add jeera, crushed garlic with skin on and fry for 1-2 minutes, then peeled whole pearl onions and continue frying for few minutes till they turn transparent. Lastly add whole red chillies cut into pieces, curry leaves and fry all together for a minute and then pour over the simmering dal fry and mix well.

** Note : It is very tasty to relish those transparent pearl onions as whole and if available do make plenty use of the same in dishes. However if not, you can prepare the same by cutting larger onions also into medium sized pieces.

** Once seasoned, cover and keep the dal fry aside to rest and for the flavors to infuse well for about 15-20 minutes and it is done. You can garnish the dal with finely chopped fresh coriander leaves/ dhania, I did not have fresh ones, so could not do so.

** “Masoor Dal Fry with Pearl Onions- Capsicum and Fresh Turmeric” is done and ready to be served. A delicious dal fry that tastes best served as a side dish for chapati/ parathas/ roti/ poori though it can be served with ghee rice/ jeera rice or any other dish of your choice. This is spicy and aromatic dish, however if desired you can decrease the spice level to suit your family taste.

** There are a variety of delicious easy to prepare dishes included in the blog. You can access them using search option or the label section on the left side of the Blog. If you are still not able to find it or have a query, please leave a message in comment section or mail me the same. I will try my best to get back to you as soon as possible. Do try out various types of dishes included in the Blog and enjoy them with your family and friends and give me a feedback if possible. I am sure your family will love them, they are all tried and tested in my kitchen … Thank You ….