‘Gaon’ in Hindi means Village. This recipe is inspired by the delicious, flavorful food you get in villages in India. It is simple to make with the most common Indian ingredients. It is also super healthy, we usually have this at least once a week. It does not need so much soaking so you can just throw this together and have it ready really quick. It is also an excellent way to get children to get their nutrients. The dal can be made with any legumes you have at home and has this delicious earthy flavor. It stores well and is great while meal planning.

I made this in an Instant pot but it can be made with a pressure cooker or saucepan.

Happy Cooking!

Servings:  4-6 servings

Prep Time: 1 hour

Cooking Time: 30 mins

Total Time: 1 hour 30 mins

Ingredients: 

• 1/2 cup toor dal

• 1/3 cup chana dal

• 1/4 cup each of 3 kinds of legumes- I used chickpeas, black eye peas and kidney beans (small)

• 1/2 cup finely chopped onions

• 1 medium tomato grated

• 2-4 medium cloves finely chopped garlic

• 1/2 inch fine chopped ginger

• 1 green chilli

• 1 bay leaf

• 1 tsp cumin seeds

• 1/2 tsp coriander seeds

• 1 dried red chilli

• 3-4 curry leaves

• 1 small cinnamon stick

• 1 tsp turmeric

• 1 tsp red chilli powder

• 1/2 tsp hing

• 1/2 tsp cumin powder

• 1/2 tsp coriander powder

• Salt to taste

• Handful Cilantro leaves

• 4-5 drops of lemon juice

• Ghee and mustard oil for cooking

Directions: 

1. Soak all grains and lentils in warm water for at least 30 mins-1 hour. Add a pinch of sodium bicarbonate & salt while soaking. Check notes for cooking times if you soak it for longer/shorter.

2. Put Instant pot in sauté mode for 10-12 mins. Add 2 tsp of ghee and 1 tbsp of mustard oil.

3. Add all dry spices- Bay leaf, curry leaves, cumin seeds, coriander seeds, cardamon, cinnamon stick and dried red chilli and mix it in.

4. Add finely chopped onions and mix it in. Let it cook till translucent stirring frequently.

5. Add chopped ginger, garlic and green chilli and cook till fragrant.

6. Add all the spice powders- hing, red chilli, coriander, cumin and turmeric and salt.

7. Mix it in and cook for a min.

8. It should be all well good, especially the onions.

9. Add the grated tomatoes and mix it in. This helps deglaze the pot too.

10. Add the soaked grains and lentils and mix it together for 1 minute.

11. Add about 2-2.5 cups of water and mix. The lentils and grains should be well submerged in water.

12. Cover the Instant pot and put on bean & grain mode for 20 mins. Let it release naturally. See notes for cooking time.

13. Remove lid when released. Add chopped cilantro and lemon juice.

14. Mix it in and serve.

15. Pairs well with rice and papad.

Notes/Tips:

• You can use any variety of legumes you like apart from ones i used- kala chana, any kind of grams, white peas, etc.

• Chop the onions, garlic and ginger finely.

• Cooking in the combination of ghee and mustard oil gives it a great taste. If you do not have mustard oil, cook in ghee and vegetable oil.

• If you use a big stick of cinnamon, remove the stick before pressure cooking. If you do not like the flavor of cardamon remove that as well before pressure cooking.

• You can increase the amount of water if you like your dal more liquid or reduce if you like it thicker. Make sure you put enough water though (cover the grains & lentils completely).

• Cooking time- If you soak the grains for more than 3-4 hours, you can reduce the pressure cooking time in the instant pot by about 3-5 minutes. If you soak it for less time or do not soak it at all you would need to cook it for an additional 3-5 mins.

• If you are going to do manual release, increase the time by a couple of minutes.

• Without IP- You can make this without an Instant pot as well. Just boil the lentils & legumes and add it to the cooked onion and tomato gravy. Cook the legumes and lentils with the sautéd mixture for a 5 minutes together on low flame to marinate in the flavors.

• You can keep this in an airtight container in the fridge for 5-6 days and freeze it for 2-3 months.