Dhaba Style Dal Tadka Recipe, How To Make Perfect Restaurant Style Indian Dal Tadka At Home Using Toor Dal

Easy and delicious restaurant style (dhaba style) dal tadka recipe using simple ingredient available at home. If you have guests and if you wish to make an Indian style dal, try this delicious dal tadka which is sure to please anyone who loves Indian style dal.

Course Side Dish

Cuisine Indian

Keyword dal tadka dhaba style, dal tadka recipe, dhaba style dal tadka, restaurant style dal tadka, toor dal tadka

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 35

Total Time 50

Servings

Calories 242kcal

Author Recipe Garden

Ingredients

To cook the dal

1 cup toor dal or yellow split pigeon peas
3 cups water to cook the dal
salt as needed
1 teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon turmeric powder optional
1 teaspoon oil

To prepare the base for the gravy

1 large onions
1 medium sized tomato
2 tablespoons oil may use ghee instead
1 inch ginger piece
3 cloves garlic
3 green chilies
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
2 small cinnamon sticks
3 cloves
2 cups water
salt as needed
2 tablespoons heavy cream optional
1 tablespoon extra ghee or butter optional

Spice Powders

½ teaspoon turmeric powder
½ teaspoon red chili powder
1 teaspoon coriander powder
½ teaspoon garam masala powder
¼ teaspoon kasoori methi (fenugreek leaves dried)
½ teaspoon cumin seeds powder

For seasoning

1 tablespoon oil
4 red chilies dried broken
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 string curry leaves (make sure there is no water in leaves)

For garnishing

1 tablespoon chopped cilantro leaves (add little more if you like)

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Cooking the dal

Wash the dal and transfer it to a pressure cooker.
Add enough salt, garlic powder, oil, turmeric powder and water also to the pressure cooker, mix everything well.
Close the pressure cooker with lid and safety valve in place and cook for 1 to 2 whistles or about 8 to 10 minutes in medium heat. Wait for the pressure cooker to cool down which will take a few minutes.
Once the pressure cooker is cooled, open the cooker and see if the dal is cooked well. Using a ladle or spoon, lightly mash the dal. Keep the cooked dal aside.

Preparing the dish

Wash and peel the onion, chop the onion finely. Keep the chopped onions aside (you can do this step and the below step while the dal is getting cooked in the pressure cooker to save time).
Peel the garlic cloves and peel the ginger, and crush the fresh ginger and garlic, keep them aside. I used a garlic press to crush the garlic and ginger easily (you may also use ginger garlic paste instead of using ginger and garlic separately. Using garlic powder and ginger powder is also an easy option).
Now heat the 2 tablespoons of oil in a pan and add the cumin seeds.
When the cumin seeds is lightly fried, add the cinnamon sticks and cloves, lightly fry everything.
Add the chopped onions, enough salt and also the crushed ginger and garlic, mix well and saute until the onions are lightly fried which will take about 10 to 12 minutes of time.
Meanwhile chop the tomato finely and keep this also aside.
Once the onions are lightly fried and started to brown, add green chilies and chopped tomatoes also, and stir fry the contents for another 3 to 4 minutes until the tomatoes are lightly stir fried.
Add the cooked dal to the pan and mix everything well. Lightly fry the dal for another 3 to 4 minutes until the raw smell goes away. Keep stirring as needed to avoid the dal burning at the bottom of the pan and you can add the extra tablespoon of ghee or oil if using. Adding ghee or butter while frying the dal imparts much flavor to the dish. If you have time, you can keep the heat very low and fry the dal mixture for a longer time (stirring occasionally) which will add more flavor.
Once the dal is lightly fried, add the spice powders - turmeric powder, red chili powder, coriander powder, cumin seeds powder, kasoori methi and garam masala powder to the pan and mix everything well.
Also add the water and mix everything well, once the mixture is about to boil, cover and cook in low heat for another 3 to 4 minutes.
Open the pan, mix everything well and see if there is enough salt. If the salt is less, you may add as needed and mix well with the dish. Now we can prepare the seasoning for the dish (if you do not wish to prepare the seasoning separately, make sure to add the ghee and broken dried red chilies while you saute the onions). In case needed, you may add a little more water and mix well for more liquid like consistency.
Finally add the heavy cream, mix in very well and keep the pan away from heat.

To prepare the seasoning for dal fry

In a small pan, heat the ghee and add the mustard seeds.
When the mustard seeds splutter, add the broken dry red chilies and curry leaves (make sure there is no water content) and fry for a few seconds until they are lightly fried . Now the simple and easy seasoning is ready!
Pour the prepared seasoning over the dal and gently mix in.
For garnishing, add the chopped cilantro leaves, gently mix in and the delicious Indian style dal tadka is ready to be served! You can serve the dal tadaka hot with rice, chapathi or poori as you wish for lunch or dinner!

Nutrition