Gujarati Dal Recipe Gujarati Toovar Dal Recipe

Gujarati Dal Recipe Gujarati Toovar Dal Recipe

I have always called myself a cocktail of East and West. My mother is from Gujarat, while my late father was from Assam.

Most of my childhood vacations were spent going to my dadi or nani’s place; hence, the love-affair with these cuisines is everlasting.

Today, I’ll share a Gujarati Dal Recipe with you all that has a sweet and sour taste. Gujarati dal uses traditional ingredients and spices that reflect the culture of Gujarat.

Although Gujarati toovar dal is an everyday dal, it takes on a festive taste during the holiday season. Ingredients like peanuts and yam are added to this toor dal (though I like mine with the peanuts and minus the yam).

To get the best flavor, Gujarati tuvar dal is boiled for at least three whistles and then blended before cooking it.

How To Make Gujarati Dal Recipe

A perfect balance of sweet and sour levels is an art that can be perfected with practice for this Gujarati dal recipe. For more accessible alternatives, refer to the recipe notes below.

Gujarati Dal Recipe Gujarati Toovar Dal Recipe
Gujarati Dal Recipe Gujarati Toovar Dal Recipe

Prep Time: 15 mins
Cooking Time: 30 mins
Total Time: 45 M

Cuisine: Indian/Gujarati
Servings: 4
Author: Ranjeeta Nath Ghai

Ingredients For Gujarati Dal

  • 1 cup toovar (arhar) dal
  • 2 tbsp raw peanuts
  • ½ tsp Athana masala
  • ½ tsp ginger-green chilli paste
  • ¼ cup finely chopped tomatoes
  • ¼ tsp turmeric powder
  • 1 tsp coriander-cumin seeds-cloves powder or Homemade Gujarati Dal Spice Mix
  • 4 to 5 kokum/tamarind soaked or juice of 1 lemon
  • 4 tbsp grated jaggery grated
  • 2 tbsp chopped coriander (for garnish
  • salt to taste

Tempering

  • 1 tbsp ghee
  • ¼ tsp mustard seeds
  • ¼ tsp jeera
  • ¼ tsp fenugreek (methi) seeds
  • 6 to 7 curry leaves
  • 2 cloves
  • 2 sticks cinnamon
  • 2 small round red chillies (boriya mirch)
  • 2 slit green chillies
  • ¼ tsp asafoetida
  • ¼ tsp chilli powder

Method

  1. Into a pressure cooker, add the soaked toor/arhar dal, a little salt, haldi, and peanuts. Now pessure cook the toor dal for 3 whistles. Make sure the steam has escaped before opening the lid.
  2. Don’t forget to refer to the recipe notes for more accessible alternatives to making this dal.
  3. Mix well and cool slightly, add ½ cup of water and blend using a madhani or a hand blender to a smooth mixture. Keep aside.
  4. For tempering heat the ghee/peanut oil in a deep pan or kadai and add the mustard seeds and cumin seeds.
  5. When the seeds start to crackle, add cloves, cinnamon, 4-5 fenugreek seeds and the curry leaves.
  6. Add chilies, Athana masala, green chilies-ginger, paste and asafoetida on a medium flame for a few seconds (be quick in this stem and add 3 tsp water at this point to avoid burning the spices).
  7. Add the tomatoes, chilli powder, turmeric powder, coriander-cumin seeds powder and mix well and sauté on a medium flame for 2-3 minutes till pulpy.
  8. Add the dal. Mix well and cook the dal on a medium flame for approximately 5 minutes, while stirring occasionally.
  9. Add the jaggery, kokum, mix well and let it simmer on low heat for 5 minutes, while stirring occasionally. Add ½ cup of water if you want thinner consistency.
  10. Add the coriander and 1 tsp ghee to the top mix, and serve the Gujarati dal hot, garnished with coriander.

Recipe Notes on Gujarati Dal Recipe

Recipe Notes on Gujarati Dal Recipe
Recipe Notes on Gujarati Dal Recipe
  1. To thin the dal, add water as needed.
  2. If you have less toor dal, then you can use a portion of moong or pink masoor dal with
  3. If you have thinned the dal more than required, then you can add a spoonful of besan after making a paste with a little water.
  4. If anyone in the family has joint pains or you do not have email/tamarind, you can also use lemon juice or kokum as an alternative.
  5. Crush the peanuts or add them whole when you boil the dal.
  6. If you are unable to prepare the spice mix yourself, you can use the CRISTA KhatMeeth Gujarati Dal Masala Blend, which is available on Amazon.

You Might Want To Try Some More Gujarati Recipes

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9 Comments

  1. It is a delicious and authentic Gujarati dal recipe! The perfect balance of sweet, tangy, and spicy flavors makes it a comforting dish. A must-try for anyone who loves traditional Gujarati cuisine!

    1. Ranjeeta Nath Ghai says:

      Thank you so much for the feedback.

  2. Your Gujrati Dal recipe is just amazing it made me crave for it. Very well explained. will definitely try. Thanks

    1. Ranjeeta Nath Ghai says:

      Thank you so much for the feedback.

  3. This Gujarati Dal recipe brings back such comforting memories! I love how it balances the tangy and savory flavors. It’s a perfect dish for a cozy family meal. Definitely adding this to my rotation!

    1. Ranjeeta Nath Ghai says:

      Thank you so much for the feedback.

  4. This is pretty new to me.. Being a south Indian, most of our dal recipes are unique and distinct. Dal with peanut crush and Yam is something out of syllabus to me. Let me try this recipe and share you my feedback.. Thanks for sharing…!!!

    1. Ranjeeta Nath Ghai says:

      Thank you so much for the feedback.

  5. Love a Gujrati Toovar dal! The balance of sweet, tangy and spicy flavors is amazing. I’d love to try this with a tadka of mustard seeds and curry leaves.

    1. Ranjeeta Nath Ghai says:

      Thank you so much for the feedback.

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