Granny’s Dal

Granny’s Dal uses whole urad dal and a separately cooked onion vagar, producing a substantial, earthy dish with a clear contrast between the soft lentils and caramelized topping.

The urad dal is soaked before simmering with salt, sliced ginger, oil, water, and an optional whole green chili. The source allows extra water during cooking if the pot begins to dry.

The vagar is deliberately simple: onion, ginger, chili, oil, and salt cooked until deeply caramelized. It is spooned over the finished dal just before serving, with optional cilantro on top.

Ingredients

• 2 cups dried whole urad dal
• 6 cups water, for soaking
• 6 cups water, for cooking
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1-inch piece fresh ginger, sliced
• 1 teaspoon good oil
• 5 cups water
• 1 fresh green chili, slit at the end, optional
• 2 teaspoons good oil, for the vagar
• 3/4 cup onions, sliced
• 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, minced
• 1/2–2 fresh green chilies, minced
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves, chopped, optional

Method

Soak the urad dal for at least 4 hours or overnight, then drain. Combine the soaked dal with the cooking water, salt, sliced ginger, oil, and optional whole chili in a large pot. Bring to a boil, reduce to medium-low, and simmer until done, about 1 hour, adding water if needed. For the vagar, heat the oil in a frying pan over medium-low heat and sauté the onions, minced ginger, chilies, and salt until the onions are caramelized, about 8–10 minutes. Remove the ginger slices and whole chili from the dal, spoon the vagar over the top, garnish with cilantro, and serve. Makes 6–8 servings.