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* Dried Beans, Lentils, and Peas |
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Dried beans; lentils; and peas (the legumes collectively called dal) are always major part of the Indian meal. They are nutritious, filling, and so versatile--there are literally thousands of ways to prepare them. To Indians, they are integral to our very existence and delicious--they are our staples and our comfort foods. They are served year-round and some families even cook them twice a day. Varying in size from a few millimeters to that of a dime, dals are life-giving powerhouses of dietary fiber, carbohydrates, protein, minerals, and vitamins, and are quite low in fat. However, their protein lacks some of the essential amino acids. For a complete protein, they must be combined or served alongside other protein-rich whole grains, meats, eggs, breads, nuts, yogurt or other milk products--a fact that Indians discovered centuries ago because in India, dals are always served with some form of flatbread, such as chapatis (whole-wheat griddle breads), paranthas (griddle-fried breads), or poories (puffed deep-fried breads), or with rice. Dal dishes come in many forms-thin and soupy, like the everyday sambar (Basic South Indian Soupy Split Pigeon Peas), thick and creamy like Punjabi Black Urad Beans, or dry-cooked like rice pilafs such as Sindhi Dry-Cooked Yellow Mung Beans. Dals can be hearty, rich, and complex centerpiece entrées, or just comforting, humble affairs, meant to keep body and soul together until the next meal. Indian home cooks generally begin making a meal with dal and everything else simply follows. The importance of dals and whole beans in the cuisine, however, also stems from the mind-boggling variety of them found in India. All dried beans, lentils, and peas fall under the dal umbrella in India, but classification depends on the size: all the smaller varieties of whole legumes are called dal; larger legume varieties generally go by their individual Indian names, such as kidney beans, chickpeas, or dried peas. When the larger ones are milled and split into smaller pieces, they then also classify as a dal--for example split chickpea dal and split pea dal. Different parts of the country favor some over others--the north favoring mung beans (mung dal), black urad beans (urad dal) and chickpeas (channa dal), and the south, pigeon peas (toor dal) and red lentils (masoor dal). As even Indian cooks do these days, I use a pressure cooker to speed preparing these dishes, as you'll see in the recipes. This makes it easy to incorporate dals into everyday meals. Organize your recipes and simplify meal planning...Download the Cook'n Recipe Organizer for FREE!
MUNG BEANS (Mung Dal) Yellow Mung Beans with Sautéed Onion and Ginger Garlicky Yellow Mung Beans with Zucchini Wheels Yellow Mung Beans with Fresh Curry Leaves Roasted Yellow Mung Beans and Potatoes Punjabi Dry-Cooked Yellow Mung Beans Sindhi Dry-Cooked Yellow Mung Beans Spicy Dry-Cooked Split Green Mung Beans Gujarati Green Mung Beans with Green Masala Paste Punjabi Green Mung Beans with Sizzling Ginger LENTILS (Maseer Dal) Dry-Cooked Red Lentils with Cumin Seeds Red Lentils with Bengali 5-Spices Green Lentils with Sautéed Onion Roasted Green Lentils with Tomatoes SPLIT PIGEON PEAS (Toor Dal) Punjabi-Style Split Pigeon Peas Falguni's Gujarati Split Pigeon Peas Crispy Split Pigeon Pea Cake Basic South Indian Soupy Split Pigeon Peas Hazram's Soupy Pigeon Peas Madras-Style Pigeon Peas with Vegetables Split Pigeon Peas with Coconut and Vegetables Soupy Split Pigeon Peas with Jaggery URAD BEANS (Urad Dal) White Urad Beans with Fresh Lemon Juice White Urad Beans with Roasted Fenugreek Leaves Spicy Split Black Urad Beans with Split Chickpeas Stir-Fried Black Urad Beans Kashmiri Fennel-Flavored Black Urad Beans with Yogurt Punjabi Black Urad Beans Smoked Black Urad Beans Black Urad Beans in a Slow Cooker SPLIT CHICKPEAS AND SPLIT PEAS (Channa Dal and Muttar Dal) Yellow Split Chickpeas with Spinach Yellow Split Chickpeas with Opo Squash Dry-Cooked Green Split Peas Garlicky Dried Green Peas Curry Spicy Dried Yellow Peas MIXED BEANS AND LENTILS Spicy Mixed 5 Beans and Lentils Rajasthani Mixed 5 Beans and Lentils Parsi Mixed Lentils, Beans, and Vegetables Split Urad Beans and Yellow Split Chickpeas with Spinach WHOLE DRIED BEAN DISHES Spicy Adzuki Beans Mustard-Roasted Adzuki Beans Classic No-Onion Kidney Bean Curry Classic Kidney Bean Curry with Onions Kashmiri Small Red Beans Punjabi Red Beans with Mango Pickle Masala Black Beans in Traditional Curry Sauce Curried Black-Eyed Peas Black-Eyed Peas in Yogurt Curry Small White Beans with Indian Spices Spicy Soybeans in Yogurt Sauce WHOLE CHICKPEA DISHES Chickpeas with Ginger, Garlic, and Chaat Masala Spicy Chickpeas with Pomegranate Seeds Pickle-Flavored Chickpeas Chickpeas with Spinach and Potato Wedges Chickpeas in Traditional Curry Sauce Chutney Chickpeas with Tamarind Canister Chickpeas (or Dried Yellow Peas) Fresh Green Chickpeas with Lentil Nuggets Black Chickpeas with Sizzling Ginger and Cumin Seeds Black Chickpeas with Chickpea Masala From "1,000 Indian Recipes." Copyright 2002 by Neelam Batra. Used with permission of the publisher, Wiley Publishing, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Sign up for our free monthly newsletter, with recipes, cooking tips and more! |
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