I come from South India and our every day food consists of “Annam, Pappu and Kura” i.e. Rice, Dal, and Curry. Sometimes instead of curry, we eat with pickle, egg, papads etc. This Rice and Dal combination is so good that even my American born nephews, and my son, eat it without complaining, my Son however being my son asks for chips and chicken with it 🙂
Dal is cooked in different ways across India, some cook the Dal first and then add the “Tadka”(seasoning/tempering) later, some make the Tadka first and then add the Dal and cook it. I like the latter better because it takes lesser number of dishes,quicker, and in my opinion,tastier. This recipe will be using the second method to cook Dal because Instant Pot cooking is all about convenience and ease of cooking, kinda reminds me of a Indian ad for Hero Honda, with the tag line “Fill it, Shut it, forget it!”, you do the same with the Instapot, put the ingredients, set the desired setting, shut it and forget about it and go back to your work!
Here is the recipe:
Ingredients:
Toor Dal- 1 cup(washed)
Garlic- 3 Cloves(Chopped)
Onion- 1 half(medium sized diced)
Tomato(optional)-1 half(medium sized diced)
Vegetables(optional)- 1 or 2(Eggplant or spinach or okra or carrot)
Mustard seed-1/2 tsp
Cumin/Jeera-1/2 tsp
Urad dal-1/2 tsp
Green Chilies-2 whole
Red Chili powder-1/2 tsp (adjust according to spice level)
Corriander/Dhania Powder-1/2 tsp
Salt or to taste-1/2 tsp
Turmeric-1/2 tsp
Oil-3 tbsp (I use vegetable oil)
Coriander – to garnish
Instructions:
1.Pour oil in the Instant Pot inner pot. Set to Saute on HI for about 5 minutes.
2.When Oil gets hot add garlic, mustard seeds,cumin,urad dal,green chilies, tomato,vegetables, and onion.
3.Add the washed dal, chilli powder, turmeric, dhania powder and salt.Add three cups of water. Mix thoroughly.
4.Set the Instapot to Pressure cook on HI for 12 min.
5.Once the Instapot shows the “END” message. Wait for the Instapot to depressurize. The delicious Dal Thadka should be ready. Garnish with chopped coriander.
6.Enjoy!
Note: There are different varieties of dal available I used Toor dal. You can add tamarind water if you like a the “khatta”(sour) taste.
Disclaimer: Please follow all the safety precautions listed by Instant Pot, follow the recipe at your own risk!