Wednesday, July 25, 2007

Punjab di Shaan - Maa Choleyaan' di Daal - My contribution to RCI - Punjab

9:27 pm showed the digital band on my wrist, give or take a few seconds!
I looked up to see some one in a black over flowing robe with a wand in hand and a huge cone shaped hat, or so I thought!
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I'm imagining things I muttered and went back to my reading. Well, it was not the first time I traversed the ether into yet unbeknownst land, all while deeply engrossed in a book a-la 'Alice in Wonderland'!
Only to be interrupted again by the Barnes & Noble intercom 'Call for Molly, line 2'.

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I looked up and this time I saw a flood of kiddos' dressed up in pitch black costumes scurrying along to get into a queue, there was a fleck of color or two, the most obvious being a pair of twins in blue with matching blue hats and a pretty gal in a fluorescent green gown. Everyone seemed to be guessing what the other was dressed up as, needless to say they knew every character rather well! They were all well prepared for the best 'dressed in character' competition!
It was then that it dawned upon me that it was Friday, THE day of the book release, yes Harry Potter!
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Now, if you had read my meme you would know, I like to observe people, and people there were, in plenty, in hordes. I had already had my delicious meal of the Daal in question, so I decided to stay a little longer and enjoy the excitement in the air.
A couple of characters I was familiar with, having seen the movies, but the queue of participants far exceeded my exposure in the field. I watched as the young & the old alike came to the stage, did their thing and the judge, dressed in a costume herself belted out some words in a tongue familiar to the contestants :)
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Mind you, not all were participating. Moving further along in the mall, I saw people putting up tent for the next few hours, comfortably resting on mats or beach chairs. Well, they had to wait until 12:01 am before they could get their hands on this phenomenon of a book! Some families were playing cards, while others enjoying ice cream and popcorn. It seemed like a joyous family outing. The coffee shop did a brisk business, I too got into the act and bought myself a carrot cake for no apparent rhyme or reason ;)
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Anyway coming back to the Daal in question, it is one of my most beloved daals -
Maa Choleyaan' di Daal!

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I wanted to bring something from the wonderful fields of Punjab for this event, something that is cooked in the homes and left untouched and unadulterated by restaurant bulk productions :)

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This particular combination of dals brings out the best flavor and creamy texture within a shorter period of time as compared to the classic Maa' di Daal aka Dal Makhani!

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Maa is whole Urad daal, we use split Urad daal with skin for this preparation.
Choleyaan' di dal in this context is Chana dal (split gram dal).
Try this dal once and I promise you will want to go back to this dal again and again.
This recipe is one of my treasured recipes and I would like to share it with all of you :)

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The earthy taste of this dal is absolutely addictive, primarily brought out by the creaminess from chana dal melting into the pot as you cook it. This is one of those dals that DOES NOT require additions like cream and meva(cashews/almonds) to enhance its taste, it is delicious on it's own.
Can you see I am enamoured by this dal :)
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Maa Choleyaan' Di Daal
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3/4 cup split urad dal with skin (Maa)
1/4 cup chana dal (chole dal)
1 onion finely sliced
1 big juicy tomato chopped
2 green chili chopped
1 tsp ginger paste
1 tsp garlic paste
2 tbsp ghee (use as per your dietary constraints)
Cumin seeds, hing(asafoetida), 1 dry red chili(optional), 2 bay leaves,
a piece of cinnamon (optional, but then the love affair between chana dal & cinnamon is legendary, not putting it will be akin to separating Heer from Ranjha or Laila from Majnu or...... :) )
1 tbsp coriander seed powder
tumeric powder
1/2 tsp red chili powder
garam masala (as per taste, but not more than 2 pinches)
1 tsp kasuri methi (CAUTION: dried methi is potent, a little goes a long way)
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1. Wash dals very well. I like to soak my dals for a few hours, just b'coz my mom does it & mom's are always right :) But you can do it without the soaking too, if you are short on time.

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2. Cook them till done. I pressure cook them.

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3. Heat ghee. Add cumin seeds, hing & red chili, cinnamon & bay leaves. Let splutter. Add onion and fry till golden brown. Add ginger garlic paste & green chili, fry a few seconds. Add tomato, all masala powders and kasuri methi. Fry till tomatoes start breaking down.

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4. Add boiled dals and simmer a few minutes till chana dal creates a creamy texture. Adjust consistency as per your liking. Add garam masala if using. DO NOT garnish with coriander leaves, it will clash with the flavor of kasuri methi.

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5. You can enjoy this velvet dal with anything like naan, chapati, rice OR nothing at all, just on it's own :) My sis loves it with bread ;)
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This is my contribution to RCI-Punjab.



51 comments:

Sig said...

:) so u were at B&N on HP release day? :D I wouldnt even dream of going near a bookstore on the day of the book release, thats why I oredered mine online... :) But looks like you had fun...
Hey, I love that first daal picture, it looks like a landscape... nice bowl :)

Richa said...

thanks sig! glad u liked the bowl & the pic ;)
yup i did not realize it was the hp book release, but it was fun looking at the campers :) have always liked to be around lots of activity :)

Tee said...

I am enamoured just by looking at the pics of this dal! :) I have been making urad dal and chana dal separately, but never together...recipe masta aahe, ani lavkarach try keli jail!
Loved your post and thanks for this authentic recipe :)

Coffee said...

I have eaten this before and truely agree with you! Its a heavenly conbination!! looks great!

I think you are a punjabi now!!?? Or are you not?

Richa said...

thanks tee! yup, this dal makes people go gaga over it. Make sure you get the split urad with skin and use juicy tomato. ikadche tomato mala ekdum bhusa vattat ;) thoda limbu pan piloo shaktes!
try karun mala sang kiti enamoured zhalis heh!heh!

Richa said...

thanks coffee! true, this combo makes people go weak in the knees ;) try karje aney maney kay :)

J said...

I made this the other day with the intent of sending it to you, but the pictures were soooooo terrible!! Nice bowl, btw.

Unknown said...

A very nice recipe!! Looks delicious..Would definitly like to try it!!

archana said...

Perfect recipe Richa :) Tu pakki punjaban ahes. He dal me pahilyanda Gurudwara madhye langar madhye khalli hoti. Tya nantar me hi ghari pun banvite. Chaan lagte, ekdum simple and tasty. Tandoori roti barobar mast lagte :)First class entry!!
Me Harry Potter chi crazy nahi, pun tuzya pictures varun kalte people kiti crazy hotat :)

archana said...

Comment lihita lihita ek lihay che rahile tuze pictures dal che mast ahet. To bowl dal barobar chan distoy :)

musical said...

Simple homestyle, but the most delicious of them all-thats maah chholyaan di daal :-D.

Tussin vi Harry Potter fan ho ji? Lovely :). mera bloglines sachhi bathera slow e, tuhada post hi nahin vikhaya haal tak. but i am glad i hopped on. Yum yum :).

hugs,
musical.

Padmaja said...

superb pictures and that daal made so hungry now!!
and hey even i bought this HP book but haven't had time to start, can't wait to read? have u finished reading it?

Viji said...

Lovely entry Richa. The picture is tempting. Very nice. Viji

Sia said...

so did u finish the book or not??? oh boy!!! u should have seen people queueing up from 2 days to get their hand on first book even when it was raining ctas n dogs here:)
just yest i made dal makhni n it was just yummmm... i have been cooking lots of punjabi dishes these days. pity that i could send u only one entry! can i substitute the spilt urad dal with whole one? i want to try this very soon.

Anonymous said...

so that's "Maa" daal...now I know!
Harry potter......ugh, please, no more mention of him, I'll stab myself with a fork.

Aruna said...

Hi Richa, The RCI is a great guide to new Cuisine/recipes & I know this is one I would be trying out soon...."Maa Choleyaan' Di Daal" havent heard the name before, but the picture says it all for me to give it a try...Nice one Richa. :)

themistressofspices.wordpress.com

Richa said...

thanks sia! sure do try it, the dal mithaas comes out the best in this combo :) as for the replacement, whole urad gives a different flavor and takes very long to cook, it won't work for this combo. whole urad will make it dal makhani, do see if you can get split urad with skin (not without skin) to get the authentic taste of this dish :)

Sia said...

oh ok...now the hunt begins for spilt urad dal with skin:)
by the way, u didn't post the answer for previous post of guessing game. i still want to know if its from this planet or from mars;)

Richa said...

thanks jyothsna.

thanks cinnamon, do try and let me know how you enjoyed it :)

thanks archana! mazhepan te fav bowls ahet :) tu langar madhye hi dal khalli ahes, tya sarcha taste ghari jamat nahi pan hi dal mazhi pharach avadti ahey :) nahi ga, me harry potter vagarey fan nahi, phakta melava pahila :)

Richa said...

haanji musical, aa dal jinni khao onni jyada khandi tamanna hundi e' :) badi metyas e' dal wich :) just happened to be there, saw lots of activity, mela jya siga :)

thanks padmaja, glad u liked the dal, do try it sometime :) no i've not read the book

thanks viji, glad u liked it.

thanks trupti. try karje aney maney kay, taney gamsey :)

thanks aruna, glad u liked it, lemme' know if you try it :)
enjoy...

Unknown said...

kya yaar, you could've opened a stall outside the bookstore with your dal and bread. it would have soldout.

okay, our pantry is bursting, but i neeed to buy this skinned urad dal just to try this.

ushaprashanth said...

Hi!
daal looks very delicious! pics are very nice! very nice entry for the event!

swapna susarla said...

Lovely presentation of dal!What is answer for guessing game???????Am i missed anywhere?

USHA said...

hmmm ...healthy contribution for the event....sounds good .Thanks for sharing the pictures.

Manasi said...

ooooohhh!! i went on friday night for the Harry Potter book!!!
and NICE pic of the daal... very appetizing!

Roopa (KitchenAromas) said...

amazing looking dal! lovely presentation too

Sharmi said...

hey Richa is it masoor dal? looks so comforting.

Priyanka said...

kasuri methi cha veglach flavor astona.... i realised it when i made paneer kadhai using it for the RCI.... looks tempting.... will try it out..

SeeC said...

Thanks for visiting my blog Richa.
I have not tried this before. Looks very rich and inviting.

Dee said...

this looks cool, will surely try this

sra said...

Richa, the dal looks really nice and tasty. You didn't reveal the answer to your guessing game, did you? I couldn't find it anywhere in that post or this. Btw, I made your paneer + veg in creamy gravy, it was v tasty, I used milk, though!

Kajal said...

Shu vaat chhe Richa...Tari post to ek dum unique chhe....ane healthy pan....Mare tari ghare taste karva aavu chhe hu aavu ne?

Richa said...

thank you dear sweetie's for ur generous words about my dal, keep 'em coming :)

dear sia, swapna & sra, will post the results of the guess game soon, have been stretched doing a couple of things, please bear with me, hope to do it in a day! thanks for ur patience & interest ;)

Tee said...

tujhi 'Maa Choleyaan di Daal' try keli ani aamchya kade ekdum hit jhali! Loved the aroma and flavour of cinnamon & kassori methi in the dal...and so I stand by my previous comment-- I am still enamoured by your dal :)

Richa said...

thanks jai, yup that thot did cross my mind :)

thanks ushaprashanth, usha, manasi, swapna, sharmi, kitchenaroma, priyanka & dee!

do let me know if you try it dear dee & priyanka! tula taste avdel, priyanka!

Richa said...

thanks sra! I'm so happy to know you tried my paneer dish and liked it! it is one of my fav as well & i make it with milk often :) various combos of veg works well.
enjoy ur wknd!

Richa said...

thanks tee! I'm so glad you tried this dal and it was a hit at ur place :) this is one dish which can be savored guilt free ;)
have a fun wknd!

Shivapriya said...

I have never tried channa dal and urad dal together. This is something new to me. Yummy dal. I have everything in my pantry. Thanks for posting wonderul dish.

Suganya said...

Hi Richa....This is very nice recipe.....Lovely dal pic....
great recipe...

WokandSpoon said...

Hello there! That daal looks absolutely rich and scrumptious! I have to admit, I've never made daal, always been too lazy - I'll definitely have to try your recipe now ;-)

ps.
Thanks for dropping by my blog!

Anonymous said...

Nice entry. Love all kinds of dals.

Laavanya said...

The dhal looks really good Richa and I will definitely try this once I buy some Maa. I love the fact that this doesn't need cream etc. Thank you Richa for such a lovely recipe

Coffee said...

where r u my dear??? Bahu divas thi dekhaya nathi??!!

Pravs said...

Great looking dal..looks very simple and delish.Thank for sharing this recipe.

Linda said...

Hi Richa,

I am repeating myself here, but long time ago when I got into Indian cooking I bought all sorts of dals, just to try the home recipes. One is the split urad with skin, and now seeing this, how happy am I that I have a big jar! This is the sort of dal I crave -- not restaurant, but homemade delicious :) Thanks for sharing your treasured recipe!

FH said...

We used to go to that B and N midnight parties but this uear kids lost intrest and didn';t want to go.We pre ordered it in Amazon.
Maa daal looks fabulous,I make it often without the Chana dal.Wonderful entry.Can't wait for the round up!:))

Suma Gandlur said...

That's what maa ki dal is. I was believing that maa as in mother. LOL.
Lovely picture and thanks for sharing an authentic dish.

Roopa said...

wow thats an excellent dhall. i loved the dhall sure to try this:) i too am waiting for the guessing recipe:)

Padma said...

Punjab di shaan vaakay main shaan hain....liked the dal combinations. And those pics kept me drooling over.

HP crazy can be felt sitting at home watching your snaps

Anonymous said...

Hi there just tried your yummy dal recipe it is really good . thank you.
Nive

Richa said...

thanks for ur feedback, Nive, appreciate it.
I'm glad u enjoyed it, it's one of my fav dals as well :)