Wed_Mar_13_04:01:18_PDT_2019

The daily bread for me (like for many Indians) is actually daily rice and dal
I was so excited when Suma announced the Delicious Dals of India event. Adding a few new dal recipes into the dinner rotation can only be a good thing.

Growing up, the everyday dal was the simplest ever- varan. On other days, there was amti. In fact quite often, leftover varan would be converted to amti. Other types of dals were made off and on. This was one of them- masoor (whole lentils) cooked with mild spices and peanuts.

This mild dal gets most of its flavor from cumin and coriander. As is quite typical with the Brahmani variety of Maharashtrian cooking, it has some sweetness from jaggery and some tangy from dried kokum fruit. You can substitute tamarind for the latter.

I like using tiny brown lentils from the Indian store in this recipe (for some reason, it is labeled "masoor matki"), but any lentils will do.

Masoor Shengdana Amti

{Lentil stew with Peanuts}

1. Cook in the pressure cooker-

• 1 cup brown lentils (whole masoor)
• ¹￢ﾁﾄ₃ cup raw peanuts

2. In another pot, do the tempering-

• 2 tsp. oil
• 1 tsp. mustard seeds

3. Add 1 medium chopped onion and saute until translucent.

4. Add spices and stir for a few seconds-

• ¹￢ﾁﾄ₂ tsp. turmeric