Finally, it feels like spring and we are enjoying the lockdown period with more outdoor time in the patio and evening walks. Not that it is not cold, but at least sunny and dry (no grey skies). During the day when it is sunny I would love to spend time with my toddler in our back yard and thankfully instant pot makes cooking lunch effortless and zero monitoring.
Well, today I am going to share a delicious dal recipe cooked in the Instant pot.
Who doesn’t love dal, the comforting food of all. All these years I have been making stove top version but in IP it comes out together rather quickly. It tastes great with rice or can be served with roti.
This dal is different from regular ones and the lentil used is Mung Bean. Dal can be made with different types of dry lentils and usually paired with some tomatoes and greens. However, mung bean is our family favorite and can easily become staple in your home too. It doesn’t need soaking and tastes great paired with beet greens.
So, next time, don’t throw away the nutritious greens that top the beets ( both red and yellow). They can be easily replaced with methi or spinach or kale and can be cooked with any kind of lentils.
When using beet greens wash thoroughly and trim the thick stems. Fold/lay it flat and cut the thicker veins of the leaf and chop them finely.
So let’s get to the recipe and see what you need :
Mung beans – 1/2 cup
Beet Greens – 1 cup
Tomato – 1
Oil/ghee – 2 tbs
Onions (Chopped) – 1/4 cup
Green chillies – 2
Cilantro – 12 sprigs
Ginger garlic paste – 1 tsp
Turmeric/Garam masala/Chilli powder – 1 tsp
Salt – per taste
Water – 2.5 cups
Method
Wash and rinse the mung bean. Set aside. Turn on the Instant pot on saute mode. Add oil and once hot add tadka and when done, add hing, chopped chillies and ginger garlic paste, saute for a min.
Add chopped onions and saute until they turn translucent.
Then, add chopped beet greens and tomato and mix it. Add the spices and let it cook for 3-4 minutes. Add the rinsed mung beans.
Add water, salt and chopped cilantro and mix thoroughly. Cancel saute mode and close the lid. Select pressure cook (normal) for 12 minutes and let the pressure release naturally.
Once the pin drops, open and mix it well. At this point adjust the salt/spice levels. I added less spices because it is my toddlers fav too and also we like it soupy. So, if you think the water is more turn on saute and let it cook for couple of mins or reduce the water to 2-21/4 cups.
Top it with some fresh cilantro and serve with hot rice or rotis.
Hope you love it and enjoy all the goodness and flavors of this wonderful dal.
Also, a great way to use different type of lentils for dal during these times.
See you all soon in my next post!!
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