Dal Makhani is a North Indian dish, or more precisely a Punjabi delicacy, a rich accompaniment for rotis/Naan or rice! This is one rich , hearty dhal slow cooked for hours with loads of love in other words “Makhani/ butter” which just makes this dish thick, creamy and aromatic in every bite that you take! Though I have relished this dish at a couple of potlucks, I’ve never tried making at home. The other day, when one of my ardent reader “Yas”requested for this and I decided to give it a try. She wanted something similar to “Sachin ka Dabha style dal makhani”, I don’t know whether this recipe could match that taste but can assure that it wouldn’t disappoint. Here is my humble attempt in preparing this mouthwatering restaurant style Dal Makhani, serve it hot with naan!
Some gravy recipes to try…
| Ingredients | |
|---|---|
| Whole Black gram / Urad Dal / Muzhu Karuppu Ulundhu | 1/2 cup |
| Kidney Beans / Rajma | 15 count |
| Bengal gram / Kadhalai paruppu | 1 teaspoon |
| Water | 7 cups (for pressure cooking dal) |
| Bay leaf | 2 small |
| Cinnamon | 2 (small piece) |
| Cloves | 4 count |
| Cardamom | 2 count |
| Cumin seeds | 1/2 teaspoon |
| Kasuri methi leaves / Dry fenugreek leaves | 1 teaspoon |
| Butter | 3 tablespoons |
| Onion (finely minced) | 1 medium size |
| Tomato (crushed / puree) (ripe) | 1 cup |
| Ginger Garlic paste | 1 teaspoon |
| Green chili | 2 (slit open) |
| Turmeric powder | 1/4 teaspoon |
| Red Chili powder | 1 teaspoon |
| Coriander powder | 2 teaspoons |
| Cumin powder | 1/2 teaspoon |
| Salt | 1 + 1/2 teaspoon or as needed |
| Milk or Cream | 1/2 cup |
| Grated ginger (for garnish) | 1/2 teaspoon |
| Butter & Fresh cream (for garnish) | 1 teaspoon |
| Coriander leaves (for garnish) | 2 tablespoon (chopped) |
Lets see how to make Dal Makhani
Place lentils (Black gram , kidney beans and Bengal gram in a large bowl. Cover with plenty of water. Soak for at least 6 hours or overnight.
Drain all the water, rinse the soaked beans and then cook the lentils with water and 1 teaspoon of salt. (Traditionally its cooked on a low flame overnight and allowed to thicken which is very time consuming) Lets cook this lentil in a pressure cooker which helps to cook much faster. Pressure cook for upto 6-7 whistles.
Once the lentil is fully cooked, remove from heat and set aside. Drain and save the excess cooking water. Mash the cooked dhal/ lentil with a flat ladle. If you prefer chunky texture then skip the mashing)
Lets assemble the ingredients for gravy…..
Melt butter in a big sauce pan and temper with bay leaves, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, cumin seeds and fenugreek seeds.
Now add the finely minced onion, green chili, ginger garlic paste and saute over medium flame.
Keep frying till the onions mixture turns golden brown.
Now add the tomato puree along with turmeric powder, chili powder, coriander powder and cumin powder.
Cook this mixture until the the oil separates.
Now add the cooked lentil mixture along with the excess water from the cooked lentils. (Gently mash the dal before adding)
Cover with lid and simmer for 30 minutes over low flame.
Add fresh cream or milk to this cooked lentil to make it even creamier. Simmer for 5-10 minutes and switch off.
Garnish with coriander leaves, grated ginger and butter. Serve with naan with a dollop of fresh cream on top.
Notes
- The longer the mixture cooks, the better the taste ad creamier the texture.
- Restaurant version dal makhani is loaded with butter and fresh cream. Stirring in extra butte yields velvety consistency gravy.
- Mash the cooked dhal with a flat ladle or lightly pulse in a blender to yield creamier texture.
- Red Masoor lentil can be used too. It adds nice color and also makes it really yummy.
- This recipe yield about 5 cups of gravy, serve 5 adults.
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8 Comments
Hi Mullai,made the curry in the morning.Turned out super tasty ,just like the way in the restaurants.Infact ,I added 2% milk instead of cream and used half butter ,half oil.But still it tasted so good.Thanks again for the wondeful recipe and detailed explaination.Please do post Kadai paneer (your style) sometime
Thanks for the headsup Mullai.I have only those pink color ones.I will proceed with your exact recipe and will let you know
Mullai,fantastic recipe,picture and presentation.Going to try this tomorrow.If I am using Red Masoor dal,how much should I add?.In that case,do I have to replace the 1tsp Channa dal with Red Masoor.Pardon my ignorance.TIA
Thanks Shalini, actually you may omit both kidney beans and channa dal and make with just the Red masoor, make sure you use the whole masoor with skin on (about 3/4 cup should yield decent gravy) The color will be little dark, but will taste awesome. Try and then let me know, thanks.
I <3 Dal Makhani on any day. This looks fantastic
Thanks Radhi!
Cant thank enough for this wonderful recipe Mullai.. you are such a star and an inspiration to my passion for cooking.. I must say I learnt a lot from your website than my own mother 🙂 once again thank you for fulfilling this neiyar viruppam 😀
Just a small doubt.. I sodhapified this recipe many a times coz of store bought tomato purees. It spoiled the taste of the whole dish. Can u pls share how u made this puree ? It is from the raw tomatoes or boiled peeled and mashed ?
Thanks Yasmin, my plaeasure! Even I’m a beginner when it comes to certain recipes and when I try those new recipes, I’m learning too. This dal makhani is still not a match for Sachin ka dhaba, guessing that the fresh cream makes a huge difference, try and let me know. BTW, those are vine ripe tomatoes… even I don’t like the store bought puree. Those puree and pulp gives nice color, only problem is they have excess vinegar or citric acid which spoils the recipe making it too tangy. If you have no choice but to use store bought puree, then cook them with 1/4 tsp of sugar which will balance the tanginess. I usually go with ripe red tomatoes on vine, crush it with my hands, you can also use a potato masher…make it really mushy and then add. Do not put them in the blender, the skin is the culprit… either blanch, remove the skin and then blend or go with the above. For this particular recipe, we are cooking the dhal for a long time and that can easily cook the tomatoes…. and there is no need to boil/blanch. Hope this helps,give it a try and do share a pic!
Cheers,
Mullai.