10 May, 2019

DAL MAKHNI sans dairy cream/milk/butter recipe

Yes it is creamy even after not using all those stuff ! One can not easily make out that this recipe does not contain any of the dairy products like cream or thick milk or butter in it till you disclose it. I’m glad that I could come up with this particular kind of dal makhni recipe.

What makes it creamy ?

The answer is Almond paste or ground almond – yes ! And one more important addition (totally my imagination) is… at the end I have added a small amount of dry roasted black gram powder and it enhanced the aroma and texture of the curry for sure. I have used only tomato but not onion, actually it tastes best without onion (we feel so). I have put home made dal makhni powder, so the aroma of that freshness can be felt while cooking and eating as well. As we are adding almond paste, it easily gets that creamy texture, so no need to keep on boiling it for more time, that really saves our time and energy. Actually it can also be done without soaking the lentil and beans (I do not soak) But If you want you can soak them for 4 to 5 hours or may be only for an hour or so in hot water. So in a way this a quick and easy recipe comparatively. let’s look at the recipe now

Ingredients : measuring cup used – 250 ml, servings 6

Whole black gram/Kari uddina kalu/sabut urad dal – 1/2 cup + 1 tbsp
Kidney beans/rajma – 2 tbsp
Water – 5 to 6 cups
Tomato – 1 big
Almond – 1/4 cup
Ghee – 1 tbsp + 1 tsp (adjust, I have put this much)
Cumin seeds – 1/2 tbsp
Green chili – 1 big
Ginger – 1/2 tbsp
Dal makhni masala powder – 1 to 1&1/2 tbsp
Salt – to taste (I have put 3/4 tbsp)
Coriander leaves – for garnishing

PROCEDURE :

To begin with soak the almonds in boiled water for about 15 to 20 minutes
Gather together 4 cups of water, well rinsed lentil and beans in a pressure cooker, bring it to boil, once it starts boiling rapidly, cover the lid and cook until 5 whistles (5 whistles are enough in my cooker, you can do as per your requirement)

Dry roast 1 tbsp of sabut urad dal and grind into a fine powder

Chop the tomato and roughly cut the green chili
Heat 1/2 tbsp ghee in a pan, put cumin seeds, cut green chili, ginger and tomato, saute well until soft, ie.. for up to 2 minutes on high heat, remove from the heat and let it cool and then grind into a smooth paste

Meanwhile peel the almonds and grind into a really smooth paste by adding water which is slightly hot, little at a time (by adding slightly hot water, you can get that creamy buttery almond paste)

Now heat the remaining 1/2 tbsp of ghee in the same pan, add in ground tomato paste and the almond paste/butter by reserving 2 tbsp of almond butter for garnishing later, stir well while combining everything on high heat

Now gently mash the cooked lentil-beans mixture using the masher (please do not skip this step, as it adds to get that creamy texture) and add it to pan and combine well on high heat

Reduce the heat and add in dal makhni masala powder and salt, stir well, cover, increase the heat and allow it to boil further while stirring in between (Check for the consistency, add more water if needed to get the desired consistency)