Ingredients :
1. Brown Lentils 200g
2. Tomatoes 200g
3. Salt 1/2 tsp
4. Chilli Pepper 1 tsp
5. Turmeric 1/4 tsp
6. Coriander 1/2 tsp
7. Cumin (crushed or whole) 1/4 tsp
8. Ginger 1/2 tsp
9. Onions (100g)
Preparation time : 40 mins
Recipe:
A lot of purvanchal recipes do start with a fried onions. Given that onions were not known in India before the arrival of Portuguese, it is somewhat what onions form the basis of so many dishes in not just purvanchal but most of North India.
This onion base is easy to prepare - just take a tablespoon of vegetable oil, heat it up for 5 minutes at 150 C. If you're using ground cumin (and not whole cumin) add all of chopped garlic (1 tsp) at this point otherwise (if you're using whole cumin) just use half of the garlic. Let the mix brown (a few minutes) and add 100g onion. Fry the onions until it turns red. This is the point where you can add more spices depending on what you want to cook. Simple.
For Masoor dal, you can 1/4 tsp turmeric, 1/2 tsp chilli powder, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp ground or crushed ginger and 1/2 tsp coriander powder. If you prefer crushed cumin you can add them now, otherwise it's better to use the whole cumin seeds later (as part of tadka which is explained later on).
Leave the spices cooking for 6-8 minutes, at which point the spices should mix with the onion-base well enough that it moves with the oil in the pot. You can add the brown lentils (masoor dal) and one whole chopped tomato (100 g) now. Churn the mix, cover it with a lid and leave it cooking for another 5 minutes. At every minute make sure that there is liquid in the pot. Add a few spoons of water if the mix dries out (depending on how much water is in the tomatoes you've added).
You can turn the heat up now to 200 C and add 2.5 cups of water. If you're using a pressure cooker use 3 cups of water. Cover the mix and let it cook for 25 mins. If using a pressure cooker, only 1 whistle would be necessary.
If you have not used crushed cumin wait until the lentil soup is cooked. Fry the cumin in a little bit of fat. Add the half of garlic which you've kept aside. Add this mix hot-hot in the mix. This is called tadka - which is useful for many
