Gujarati Dal Recipe - Khatti Meethi Dal - Authentic Mild Sweet & Sour Tuvar Daal

Gujarati Dal

Gujarati Dal, also popular as “Khatti Meethi Daal” is a healthy dish prepared from tuvar dal (toor dal/arhar dal/pigeon pea lentils) and many Indian spices. In Gujarati cuisine, it is a part of the everyday meal and its taste is mild sweet and sour compared to any other Indian dals. Learn how to make authentic Gujarati style daal for lunch with this easy step by step photo recipe.

Ingredients:

1/3 cup Tuvar Dal (toor dal/arhar dal/pigeon pea lentils)

1/4 teaspoon Fenugreek Seeds

1/2 teaspoon Mustard Seeds

1/2 teaspoon Cumin Seeds

2-inch piece of Cinnamon Stick, optional

2-3 Cloves, optional

1 Star Anise, optional (chakra phool/badiya)

1 pinch of Asafoetida (Hing)

1 Dry Red Chilli, halved, optional

1 teaspoon Ginger, grated

1 Green Chilli, finely chopped

1/2 medium Tomato, finely chopped

5-6 Curry Leaves

1/4 teaspoon Turmeric Powder (Haldi)

1/2 teaspoon Red Chilli Powder (Lal Mirch)

2 teaspoons Lemon Juice

2½ teaspoons Sugar

Salt to taste

1 tablespoon Oil

2 tablespoons finely chopped Coriander Leaves

Directions:

Wash tuvar dal 2-3 times in hot water. Drain it and transfer to a 3-litre capacity steel or aluminum pressure cooker.
Add 1 cup water and salt and pressure cook on low to medium flame for 3-4 whistles. Turn off the flame. Let the pressure releases naturally. Open the lid and check he dal. It should become smooth and soft after pressure cooking.
Let it cool down for a few minutes. Blend it using a hand held blender until smooth puree. Add 1 cup water in puree and blend again.
Heat oil in a pan or kadai over medium flame. Add 1/4 teaspoon fenugreek seeds and 1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds. When seeds begin to crackle, add 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds, 2-3 cloves, 2-inch piece of cinnamon, 1 star anise and a pinch of hing (asafoetida).
When cloves begin to crackle, add 1 dry red chilli, 1 teaspoon grated ginger, 1 chopped green chilli, 1/2 chopped tomato and 5-6 curry leaves. Let them cook for few seconds.
Add pureed dal.
Add 2½ teaspoons sugar, 2 teaspoons lemon juice, 1/2 teaspoon red chilli powder and 1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder, mix and bring it to a boil. When it starts boiling, reduce flame to low and let it cook for 7-8 minutes. Taste the dal and if required, add more sugar, lemon juice or salt to get the khatta meetha taste as per your preference.
Turn off the flame. Transfer it to a serving bowl and garnish with chopped coriander leaves. Serve with steamed rice and papad in lunch or dinner.

Tips and Variations:

Add less water to make it thick and more water to make it diluted.
Add sugar and lime juice according to your taste to make it more tangy.
Add some raw groundnuts while boiling to make it more tasty.
Soak dal for 20 minutes in hot water before cooking to cook faster.
You can use less oil (only 1 teaspoon oil) for tempering.

Taste: Sour, mild sweet and mild spicy

Serving Ideas: Serve Gujarati tuvar dal (khatti meethi dal) with steamed rice, dum aloo potato curry, phulka roti, buttermilk, boondi raita and papad in lunch.