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Lauki chana dal
Lauki chana dal (लौकी चना दाल): bottle gourd and split chickpeas with tomato and a cumin tempering
In Punjabi and Haryanvi homes lauki chana dal is a weekday staple, and it travels in the dabba's lidded steel bowl beside rotis or rice. Chana dal holds its shape while the bottle gourd melts into it, so the dal is thick enough not to slosh about. The mistake is adding the lauki at the start with the dal: it collapses into strings and turns the dal watery. Add it once the dal is half cooked. Chef's tip: choose a young, pale-green lauki that your nail dents easily; an old one is bitter and seedy, so taste a small piece raw and discard it if it is bitter.
- Total time
- 50 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
- 5 ½ oz chana dalwashed and soaked 1 hour
- 14 oz bottle gourd (lauki)peeled, seeds removed if large, cut into 2 cm cubes
- 3 ¼ cups water
- ½ tsp ground turmeric
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tbsp sunflower oil
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 1 onionfinely chopped
- 1 tbsp fresh gingergrated
- 3 cloves garlicgrated
- 1 green chillislit
- 2 tomatoeschopped
- 1 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder
- ½ tsp garam masala
- 2 tbsp fresh corianderchopped
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Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Put drained 5 ½ oz chana dal, 3 ¼ cups water, ½ tsp ground turmeric and 1 tsp salt in a pan. Bring to the boil, skim the froth, then simmer half-covered for 20 minutes until the dal is half soft (it breaks under pressure but has a firm centre).
20 minStep 2: Add 14 oz bottle gourd (lauki) and simmer for 12–15 minutes more until the gourd is translucent and the dal is soft but still whole.
14 minStep 3: Meanwhile heat 2 tbsp sunflower oil in a small pan over a medium heat. Add 1 tsp cumin seeds and let it darken, then fry 1 onion for 6 minutes until golden. Add 1 tbsp fresh ginger, 3 cloves garlic and 1 green chilli and stir for 1 minute.
7 minStep 4: Add 2 tomatoes and 1 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder and cook for 5 minutes until the tomatoes are soft and the oil starts to show at the edges.
5 minStep 5: Tip the masala into the dal with ½ tsp garam masala, simmer for 3 minutes and adjust the thickness: for a dabba it should coat a spoon thickly. Stir in 2 tbsp fresh coriander.
3 minStep 6: Cool quickly, chill if made ahead, and reheat until piping hot or pack in an insulated container.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 240 kcal
- Protein
- 12 g
- Carbs
- 32 g
- Fat
- 7 g
- Fibre
- 9 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does lauki chana dal take?
- About 50 minutes in total: 15 minutes to prepare and 35 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of ground turmeric?
- Leave it out (it mostly adds colour).
- What can I use instead of cumin seeds?
- Ground cumin, three quarters of the amount (add it with the other ground spices, not to hot oil first).
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