| 1 | "daal" refers to a variety of lentils, peas and beans that are used to make soups and stews also known as "daal". |
| 2 | This recipe calls for "toor daal", split yellow pigeon peas, but you can substitute mung beans or red lentils. |
| 3 | Vaghar, the method used here to saute spices in oil is a basic gujarati cooking technique used in making most dishes. |
| 4 | Directions: =========== cover daal with water and soak 30 minutes. |
| 5 | If using a pressure cooker, reduce soaking time to 10 minutes. |
| 6 | Discard soaking water in a large saucepan or pressure cooker. |
| 7 | Cook 50 minutes by conventional method or 15 minutes in a pressure cooker. |
| 8 | If using red lentils, cook 30 minutes by conventional method or 10 minutes in pressure cooker. |
| 9 | For a souplike consistency, add ?to ?cup more water if needed. |
| 10 | Puree daal with a handheld electric blender or in a food processor. |
| 11 | Heat oil in a small skillet over medium heat. |
| 12 | Add cumin seeds and asafetida. |
| 13 | Cook until cumin seeds turn golden brown, about 1 minute. |
| 14 | Add to the daal and bring to a boil. |
| 15 | Stir in chilies, salt, sugar, turmeric and tomatoes. |
| 16 | Lower heat and simmer uncovered 5 minutes. |
| 17 | Remove daal from heat. |
| 18 | Stir in cilantro and yogurt or lemon juice and serve immediately. |
| 19 | Makes 3 to 4 servings calories per serving: 116 grams of fat: 2 % fat calories: 16 cholesterol: 0 mg grams of fiber: 2.5 |
