Shahi Dal

The name suggests a very involved recipe. But it is one of the laziest recipes I have ever known. I learnt it from my father, another cooking enthusiast like me. It combines the goodness of spinach (palak) and whole  pulses (dal) and avoids using oil. Ideal for the health watchers.

Ingredients:
* Green moong dal - 1/2 cup
* Black masoor dal - 1/4th cup
* Washed and finely chopped spinach (palak) - 1 cup
* water - 1 cup

* Finely chopped onion - 1

* Finely chopped ginger, garlic, green chilies - 2 tea spoon

* Finely chopped tomatoes - 2

* Turmeric powder: 1/4th tea spoon

* Salt to taste

* Butter (optional) - 1 tbsp

Procedure:

1. Bring water and salt to boil in a pressure cooker

2. Add the chopped ginger, garlic, green chilies and continue boiling for 1 min

3. Add the onion and continue boiling for 1 min

4. Add the Dal and continue boiling for 1 min

5. Add the spinach and continue boiling for 1 min

6. Add tomatoes and continue boiling for 1 min

7. Close the cooker lid and wait till the first whistle.

8. Lower (sim) the gas

9. Cook in the cooker for 10 min with low heat

10. Turn of the cooker

11. After the pressure is released, open the lid and serve hot with rice or whole wheat bread.

12. Topped with a spoon of butter, this tastes rich. But adding butter is not mandatory to get the naturally awesome taste of this dal.

Wheat-a-Meal

On a cold and lazy evening, this serves as a fast, tasty and wholesome dinner. This makes a ideal meal for fussy kids as well as the weight watchers.

Ingredients:
* Wheat Dalia (broken wheat) - 1/2 cup, lightly roasted and kept aside (you can also buy roasted Dalia)
* Moong dal - 1/2 cup
* Chopped chunky vegetables (carrot, potato, beans, capsicum, peas, cauliflower, zuchini) - 1 cup
* Chopped onion - 1
* Finely chopped ginger, garlic, green chilies - 2 tea spoon
* Finely chopped tomatoes - 2
* Turmeric powder: 1/4th tea spoon
* Salt to taste
* Water - 1.5 cups
* Ghee (optional) - 1 tbsp

Procedure:
1. Bring water and salt to boil in a pressure cooker
2. Add the chopped ginger, garlic, green chilies and continue boiling for 1 min
3. Add the onion and continue boiling for 1 min
4. Add the Dal and continue boiling for 1 min
5. Add the Dalia and continue boiling for 1 min
6. Add tomatoes and continue boiling for 1 min
7. Close the cooker lid and wait till the first whistle.
8. Lower (sim) the gas
9. Cook in the cooker for 10 min with low heat
10. Turn of the cooker
11. After the pressure is released, open the lid and serve hot with yoghurt and roasted papad.
12. I also serve this with hot mango pickles.