Daal Makhani and Naan
- Prashansa Ranjan
- Jul 5, 2020
- 3 min read
This is one of the rare dishes where a combination of lentils with bread becomes a lavish indulgence. It comes directly from my Mom's kitchen- can be said that I grew up eating a lot of it, usually once every month. This is made in various parts of India by different names and savored with wheat chapattis or even with rice. It depends on you, what you choose to eat this Daal with. I have at times cherished with Daal without any accompaniment and it was tasty, filling and sheer indulgence of butter, perfectly ground spices with cream and milk. So read on to know more!
Ingredients:
For the Daal:
Overnight mixed soaked lentils: Black Split Lentils (Urad Daal), Kidney Beans (Rajma), Split Chickpeas (Chana Daal) in the ratio of 1 cup: 1/2 cup: 1/4th cup. (For measurement sake, I have taken 1 cup of black lentils, 1/2 cup of kidney beans and 1/4th cup of chickpeas).
A cup of onion paste.
A cup of tomato paste.
1/2 cup of ginger, garlic and green chilies paste.
2-3 Cloves.
3-4 Bay leaves.
A cup of cold milk.
A cup of heavy cream.
2 Tablespoon of Edible Oil.
A lemon and 1/2 cup of chopped coriander leaves.
Condiments and Spices: 2 Tablespoons each of salt, turmeric powder, coriander powder, sugar, rock salt, and cumin seeds.
For the Naan:
A cup of All-Purpose flour (Maida).
A cup of warm milk.
A Tablespoon of sugar.
A Teaspoon of salt.
A Teaspoon of black cumin seeds.
A Cup of Ghee/ Butter.
How to prepare:
First, wash the overnight soaked lentils under running water. Put all of it in the pressure cooker. Pour enough water to dip the lentils. 4-5 cups of water shall do. Put the bay leaves and cloves in it. Put a teaspoon of salt and turmeric powder in it. Bring all of this to boil by giving at least 15-20 whistles. This mix of lentils shall require good boiling. Once 10-15 whistles come in, open the cooker, churn the lentils, pour some water, and keep it for boiling again. Repeat this for 4-5 times. This shall give you a good boiled and churned Daal. Keep this aside once done.
Take the all-purpose flour, sieve it in a bowl. Put sugar, salt, baking soda, and black cumin seeds in it. Prepare the dough using warm milk. Don't use water. Once, done, knead well and drip some oil. Cover it with a wet cloth and keep aside for 2-3 hours.
Take a saucepan, put some oil in it. Let it warm up. Pour cumin seeds in it. Let it flutter. In it, first, put the ginger garlic chili paste. Stir it till it turns brown. Once done, put the onion paste in it. Stir it till this too shall turn brown. Put the tomato paste in it. Keep stirring it. This will give you a cooked brown-colored paste.
Once all of this is ready, lets first prepare the Daal. To make it ready for serving, simply put 2 tablespoons of paste in a fresh saucepan. Pour 2 cups of boiled Daal in it. Mix well and keep on medium flame. Let it come to boil. Then add 1 teaspoon of sugar and rock salt in it. Mix all well.
To give a creamy texture and taste, add half cup heavy cream to it and half a cup of cold milk to it. Keep this on low flame and let it sit for 15-20 minutes. The trick with this Daal is to keep it simmering at low flame for a good amount of time. This helps to give a creamy texture and good taste to your Daal.
To prepare the Naan, uncover the dough and cut it into small balls. Roll it into small naan sized chapattis. Put it on a heated griddle and wait till it fluffs up and turns brown. Turn it and cook from both sides.
For preparing the serving, pour the freshly boiled Daal in a cup, topple it over with some butter or heavy cream. Squeeze in some lemon and chopped coriander leaves on it. On the side, keep the warmly baked Naan and give a generous dollop of ghee/ butter on it. Serve it along with some salad.
This is one of the recipes that I always wish to savor after a long week of work. Cooking it needs some patience especially for boiling the Daal and baking the Naan. But once done, its a delight to have. You can serve this along with a portion of steamed white rice or Jeera rice.
Do try this and let me know!
Happy Daal Makhani-ing!!
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