an Indian recipe

One of my goals for this trip is to expand (read: create) my repetoire of Indian recipes. My co-workers, Tanvi and Priyanka, gave me a couple to try and now I am on my way. To date I have prepared aloo kisabzi (potato and spices), tehri rice (rice with spices), curried bringal (eggplant in a tomato curry sauce), and bhoondi rhaita (curd with balls of grain). Feeling good about what I already have under my belt, I was ready to tackle my favorite dish, dal makhani (black lentils in a creamy spiced sauce). The problem is that Tanvi and Priyanka have never made it so they could not share a recipe. So I went to the internet. I found a slew of recipes and chose the one that was the 'healthiest'...the creamy sauce usually comes from ghee, butter, milk and oil; this recipe only calls for the latter two. After making it I slightly altered the recipe I found online and here it is! Please let me know if you make it (ahem, Sara J and Lisa C) and how it turns out.

Dal Makhani
1/2 cup whole whole black lentils (urad)
1 tablespoon kidney beans (rajma)
1 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds (jeera)
1/2 cup finely chopped onions
3 cloves of garlic grated
1 small piece of ginger grated
1 teaspoon red chili powder (lal mirch)
1/4 teaspoon turmeric (haldi)
2 teaspoons coriander powder (dhania)
3 chopped tomatoes
1 teaspoon oil
1 teaspoon salt

1. Wash and soak the lentils and kidney beans overnight
   
2. Combine lentils and kidney beans and 1/2 teaspoon of salt with 2 cups water and cook in pressure cooker on medium for two whistles.
3. Add the milk and 1 cup water and let simmer for 10 minutes while stirring occasionally
4. Heat oil in a pan and add cumin seeds. When the seeds crackle, add the onions, ginger, and garlic and saute until onions are golden brown
5. Add the chili powder, turmeric powder, coriander powder, rest of the salt and tomatoes with 1/4 cup of water and saute for 5 to 7 minutes
6. Add dal mixture and simmer for 1o minutes until it is thick and creamy
7. Serve hot garnished with coriander

Notes:
I took this picture from the internet.
If you don't have a pressure cooker, a pot will do. Try simmering the lentils and kidney beans for 20 minutes, or until soft.

I am off to Varanasi for the week to conduct interviews in the field for my project. I am most excited to celebrate International Women's Day with the girls tomorrow! A blog post and pictures will follow!