Thursday, August 22, 2013

Combo meal : Spicy Masoor dal(red lentil) and Dry Potato-Brinjal Curry

Few days back, when I was blank what to make for dinner that night, I remembered a brinjal recipe which I bookmarked few months back in Hema's page Aromatic Cooking. I am big fan of her recipes as well as her awesome food clicks which makes me drool every time. Visit her page to believe me...
So I tried that day two recipes from her page to make a combo meal : Masoor dal and Potato-brinjal curry. Both tasted so yummy together. I have made no changes in her recipe but added 2 tblsp. of tomato ketchup lastly to the potato-brinjal curry, as I thought taste will be better and I was right, a must try side dish, very different. Try my version and her version too, here.

Let's get to the recipe of Potato-brinjal stir-fry :

You Need :
Baby brinjals(long ones)/eggplant : 2 cups, diced
Potatoes : 3, medium(boiled, peeled and diced)
Onion : 1, medium, sliced
Mustard seed : 1 tsp.
Cumin seed : 1/2 tsp.
Asofoetida/hing : a pinch
Turmeric powder : 1 tsp.
Fresh coriander powder to garnish
Salt to taste
Oil : 2-3 tblsp.
Tomato ketchup : 2 tblsp.

Spiced to grind into powder:
coriander seed : 1 tblsp.
Cumin seed : 1/2 tblsp.
White poppy seed : 1 tsp.
Dry red chillies : 1 or 2 (according to your taste)
Fenugreek Seed : 1/4 tsp.( I didn't use this, but original recipe asks for it)

How to :

Dice eggplant/brinjals in bigger chunks. Apply a little salt on them and set aside.
Heat oil in a pan, temper with hing, mustard and cumin seed, when it starts sputtering, add chopped onions and saute till onions turn pink in color. Now add brinjal pieces and mix. Add turmeric and a little salt. Cover and cook till brinjal are done.
Now add potato pieces, mix, add the grounded powder and mix well. Keep sauteing for another 5-6 minutes or till potatoes/ brinjals are cooked thru. Check the seasoning, at this moment add 2 tblsp of tomato ketchup and mix well. Keep sauteing for another 2-3 minutes, finally add chopped coriander leaves. Remove from fire.
Serve hot with rice and dal combo or with some rotis too.

Spicy Masoor Dal(Red lentil)
I followed the original recipe as it is and it is an awesome tasty dish. Goes well with anything.
You need :

Red lenti/masoor dal : 1 cup

Onion : 1, chopped

Garlic : big 4 cloves, chopped

Ginger : 1", grated

Tomato : 1, big, chopped

turmeric Powder : 1 tsp.

Red Chilli Powder : 1-2 tsp.

Coriander Powder : 1 tsp.

Garam Masala Powder :1 tsp.

Cumin seed : 1 tblsp.

Dry red chilli : 1

Cloves : 2-3

Salt to taste

Oil : 2 tblsp.

How To :

Pressure cook the masoor dal until done. This dal cooks very fast.
Heat oil in a pan, temper with dry red chilli first, then cloves and cumin seeds. Then add chopped onions, garlic and grated ginger. stir continuously till onions turn soft. Add chopped tomatoes, turmeric, chilli and coriander powder, mix everything well.
Saute till tomatoes softens and spices are cooked well, add drop of water time to time, if you see spices are sticking to the pan.
Then add cooked dal, 1 cup water, garam masala powder and salt to taste. In low flame, let it boil for about 5 minutes. Remove and serve hot from pan with rice and some sabji.