Shahi Daal Indian Recipes Video

Finish with a crackly tempering of ghee-sizzled garlic and chillies for a crescendo of flavour. The blend of lentils in this dish create a luxurious texture that’s both creamy and peppered with plenty of tender grains of daal. It’s a fantastic balance which makes it perfect for dunking roti, naan or paratha, or simply scooping up with rice.

4 types of lentils you’ll need for making Shahi Daal

What is Tadka?

If we were talking about wrestling and not daal, Tadka would be the ultimate finishing move. A tempering of hot ghee, cumin, garlic and chillies go into this simple version. However, the world of tadka is vast and diverse depending on the dish you are cooking and from what region it comes.

Watch the full video tutorial: Shahi Daal

How to make Tadka for Daal

Tadka can be as simple as a few spices and aromatics, or it can call for 15 different ingredients ranging from seeds and nuts, to aromatics and fresh herbs. For example, Karnataka’s famous daal and rice pot, Bisi bele bhath typically calls for an elaborate tadka or even two separate tadkas done at different stages of the cooking process. Shahi Daal is a north Indian-inspired preparation so my tadka calls for ghee, cumin, garlic, dried red chillies and fresh green chillies. I finish the dish with crispy fried onions and fresh coriander. These are just a few basics I like to add, but you can choose to add more things to your tadka if you like.

How to make Shahi Daal in an Instant Pot

For speed and ease, I like to use either an Instant Pot or pressure cooker to make daal. This all-in-one method is quite simple and the high pressure cooks the lentils quickly and evenly.

The secret to making creamy Daal

I don’t know if I should be telling you this… but I will. My top tip for making any sort of tadka daal with a creamy, liquid gold consistency is to beat the cooked daal with a balloon whisk for a minute or so. The lentils must be tender and yielding in order to break down inside the whisk-induced tornado you create. I call it the Daal-nado technique! Take care, piping hot daal can be bubbly and volcanic. After whisking, your daal will thicken slightly and take on a velvety texture. Indeed, the addition of urad daal also gives this daal an addictive butteriness.

Is this recipe vegan?

My recipe for Shahi Daal puts copious amounts of ghee to good use so therefore it is not a vegan recipe. However, you can replace the ghee with any plant-based oil or vegan butter. Cold-pressed rapeseed oil works particularly well because of its’ mustardy edge.

What to serve with Shahi Daal

Serve this daal piping hot with rice and roti, naan or paratha. It’s the perfect consistency for both dunking and spooning.

Ingredients for Shahi Daal

Channa daal Red masoor daal Toor daal Urad daal Ghee Ginger Onion Tomato Hot water Baking soda Chilli powder Turmeric Black pepper Garam masala Salt Cumin seeds Dried red chillies Green chillies Garlic Crispy fried onions Coriander leaves