Daal Makhani

Punjabi daal makhni served with jeera rice

This simple punjabi favorite is easy to make. The only thing one needs to be careful about is soaking the daal. I used whole urad (black lentil) for the daal. Usually if I have the time and a plan I soak the lentils a day before. This never really does work out as my cooking decisions are impulsive. So I end up using the pressure cooker. One cup of daal and 3 to 4 cups of water in a pressure cooker for 10 sitis (pressure release whistles) usually does it for me. This process takes about 45 minutes so start the lentil pressure cooking process before prepping. I do have a big enough cooker. So, maybe use the same proportion (1:4 :: daal:water) whenever cooking in a smaller cooker with appropriate amounts of lentils. I avoid filling my pressure cooker more than 2/3 of the way.

Ingredients:

Whole black lentil (urad)	1 cup
Onions	1 large, chopped finely
Tomatoes	2 large
Green chillies	1 or 2 as per taste or tolerance :)
Ginger	1/2 inch stick, julienned
Garlic	2 cloves, finely chopped
Coriander	half bunch (depends on your taste - i usually go overboard)
Butter	2 tbsp
Spices
Whole jeera (cumin)	1 tsp
Jeera powder (cumin)	1 tbsp
Dhaniya powder     (coriander)	1 tbsp
Turmeric	a pinch
Garam masala	1/2 tsp

Prep:
Chop and keep the onions and tomatoes.
Make sure the dhaniya (fresh coriander) leaves are picked and chopped.

Cooking:
Heat 3 tbsp of oil in a pan. After the oil heats up, add the whole jeera, chillies, garlic, and ginger. Fry for a bit. You'll see the garlic taking on a brown shade. This should be your cue to add the onions.

Once you've added the onions, fry them until they are nice and brown. The oil will begin to separate.

Add the tomatoes. Fry for a bit, tossing, moving the contents of the pan around, and pressing the mixture with your spatula, spoon, whatever, for a slightly homogenous sort of paste.

Add the dry powders - jeera, dhaniya, tumeric, and red chilli powder if you're feeling adventurous.

Mix very very well and repeatedly. You really want the masala mass to cook. So take time to cook the tomatoes and the masala and everything. The oil should begin to separate once this is done.

So once you've noticed that the oil is separating and you're convinced that the tomatoes, the onions, and the masala is cooked, add the cooked lentils. If you've reached this point without having the deal ready, reduce the flame to a minimal, let the masala cook, and wait for the lentils to ready. Add the lentils once they're cooked. Add water according to your preference - if you want to make nice thick daal add less water. You can also add some heavy whipping cream (maybe 1/4 cup for rich daal). Let the daal simmer with the masala so that all the spices diffuse into the contents - I usually give 10 minutes to simmer.

Stir in 2 tbsp of butter towards the end. Top with coriander leaves and serve with jeera rice.