In November, I wrote about my love for Karachi and its food for TASTE and shared the recipe of my aunt's masoor moong daal.
I grew up in Islamabad, and went to college in Lahore. It's only recently that I began to visit Karachi for work, and became infatuated with its chaos and grit. My quick affection for Karachi however, did not really come as a surprise. I have always had a special place in my heart for its residents. Their easy confidence, cosmopolitanism, work ethic, and no-fuss attitude have always served as an important counterweight to the provincialism I found in my hometown. I have frequently looked to my Karachi friends and family for inspiration for the blog. See gujarati aloo (potatoes), baghara baingan, and gawar sabzi. More coming!
My young aunt from Karachi showed me how to prepare this mixed masoor moong daal that she learned from her Gujarati friends. The daal that I grew up eating was either green lentils (kaali daal) or simple red lentils (masoor daal) boiled with some turmeric and red chili powder. This mixed daal has more texture and flavor, thanks to the addition of tomatoes, ginger, garlic, and onion; and generous amount of kadi pata (curry leaves).
Read the full story about Karachi's diverse kitchens here, and see recipe below.
Masoor Moong Daal
Ingredients
- ¾ cup of masoor daal red lentils
- ¼ cup of moong daal mung bean, found in specialty Indian/Pakistani grocery stores
- 1½ teaspoon crushed ginger
- 1½ teaspoon crushed garlic
- 8 kadi pata curry leaves found in specialty Indian/Pakistani grocery stores
- 1 small red onion thinly sliced in half rings
- 1 roma tomato roughly chopped
- Salt to taste
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
- 1 teaspoon red chili powder or to taste preferably Kashmiri red chili powder
- 2 green chilies diced
- 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
- 2 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 6 round whole red chiles found in specialty Indian/Pakistani grocery stores
Instructions
- Wash the masoor daal and moong daal till the water runs clear. If using whole moong daal, soak overnight. I prefer to use split moong daal, which cooks faster.
- Add lentils to a stockpot and add 5 cups of water. Bring to a simmer.
- Add crushed ginger and garlic, kadi pata, chopped onion, tomato, turmeric, and red chili powder, and green chili.
- Bring heat to low and cover. Let daal cook for 45 minutes to 1 hour.
- Once the daal is ready, begin to get the tadka ready. Heat 1 to 2 tbsp. of oil in a saucepan and add mustard seeds. Once the mustard seeds begin to pop, add cumin seeds. Once the oil becomes aromatic, add whole red chilies.
- After they have changed color slightly, pour the tempered oil on top of the dal. Serve.
Fatima Cooks
I love Karachi. I am originally from there, but have rarely visited since I no longer have any family there. My chachi, also from Karachi, lived in a Gujerati community and often makes Gujerati inspired dishes including a daal very similar to this. I must try this
pakistaneats
Thanks so much Fatima! Hope you like it x
Holly
Hi there! I have a question. Are the round whole red chiles dried or fresh? Thanks!
pakistaneats
Hi! Thanks for checking. These are dried chiles, they can be found in either South Asian or Central American grocery stores.
Asiya Qureshi
I think i forgot to add the salt to step number 3
Anita
I just discovered your blog and can't wait to try your recipes. But you should know that it is very hard to read due to an advertising video that pops up every time I open a page, and then repeatedly every few moments. I understand this is probably a way to generate revenue and on most sites it can be ignored, but on your site it literally covers half the recipe that I am trying to read. Makes it very frustrating.
pakistaneats
Hi Anita - thanks so much for the feedback, and sorry to hear that it's so tough to navigate the page with the video ad. I'll see what I can do to improve the user experience.
Amy Hahn
Mariam, your Masoor Moong dal recipe is off the charts. I served this as a main dish, lining each bowl with spinach leaves and offering plain yogurt (mostly because I had a person who was nervous about the spice level). Thank you also for sharing thoughts about your homeland and the cultural notes. Makes the whole dish even more delightful.