Restaurant Style Easy Dal Makhani Recipe

Restaurant Style Dal Makhani Recipe

It’s safe to say that Dal Makhani is more loved than butter chicken in India. We just have to order dal makhani at a Mughlai or North Indian restaurant, it is our staple comfort food which we feel can only be made properly at the restaurants. The secret ingredient to dal makhani is ‘patience’, if you see the ingredients they are actually very simple. After my gluten problem, i decided to recreate the recipe in my kitchen, i made some good batches but i was still not very happy as i wanted that ‘restaurant’ like flavour. So i experimented a bit more and i now now i am very close to that flavour. Follow my recipe, make it at home, and you won’t be disappointed. So, shall we begin?

Servings: 4

Time: Soak overnight (8 hours)

Cooking Time: 1 hour

Ingredients:

1. Whole black lentil/ Urad daal black: 1 cup
2. Rajma /Red kidney beans: 1/3 cup
3. Onion: 1  grated
4. Ginger garlic paste: 2 tsp
5. Tomato: 2 large or 3 medium ( Blended in a blender)
6. Cream: 1/4 cup (If you are using any heavy cream, plz use 2-3 tbsp)
7. Butter: 3 tbsp
8. Vegetable oil: 1/2 tbsp
9. Cloves: 4
10. Cumin: 1/2 tsp
11. Cumin powder: 1/2 tbsp
12. Cinnamon stick: 1 inch
13. Green Cardamom: 2-3
14. Black Cardamom: 1 (Optional)
15. Ground Nutmeg: 1 pinch (Optional)
16. Black Peppercorns: 5-6
17. Bay Leaf: 2
18. Star anise: 1/4 of 1 flower
19. Garam Masala powder: 1/2 tbsp
20. Coriander Powder: 1/2 tbsp
21. Salt to taste

For Restaurant-style flavour you need: (Optional. If you do not want the restaurant-style daal, then forget about this step).

• 1 small piece of charcoal
• ½ teaspoon ghee or any vegetable oil

Method:

1. Soak urad daal and rajma in plenty of water overnight. The next day discard the water and wash 3-4 times under running water.
2. Transfer them to a pressure cooker and add 1/2 tbsp salt. You need to pressure cook with enough water (water level should be 2″ high from daal), check after 7-8 whistles. You need to cook the daal with the grains still intact and mushy at the same time. Don’t worry this will happen on its own. Just make sure you don’t over-pressure cook them. After the pressure cooker has released the pressure on its own, open the lid and check the grains. (the toughest part is done, phew!)
3. Now take a pan, add the butter and  1/2 any neutral vegetable oil. Now add the whole spices when the oil + butter heat up (cloves, cumin, black cardamom, green cardamom, bay leaf, peppercorns, nutmeg, star anise). Let them all turn light brown.
4. Now add the grated onion. Fry it, till it turns golden brown.
5. Add the ginger-garlic paste and cook for 1 to 2 minutes until the raw smell goes away.
   Add the tomato puree, cover the pan and let it cook. Cook for about a few minutes until you see the oil separating from the sides.
6. Now add the powdered spices: coriander powder, cumin powder (Garam masala will be added later). Mix well.
7. Time to add the boiled daal to this mixture.
8. If there is a lot of water in the pressure cooker, then you gotta just scoop out the daal part.
9. After adding daal to the pan, add some water from the pressure cooker. If there is not enough water left then add 1/2 cup warm water.
10. Mix well, cover, and cook on low heat for atleast 30 minutes (I cook for close to 45 minutes). This slow cooking is very important to bring out the real taste of Dal Makhani.
11. Keep stirring in between, and adjust water if you think that the daal is thickening too much.
12. After 40 minutes add the cream. Mix well. (Dal makhani is neither too thick or too thin).
13. Add garam masala powder, mix very well and turn off the stove.
14. Your Daal Makhani is ready. Enjoy with pulao or chapati.
15. Serving tip: add a dollop of softened butter on top of daal. YUM YUM YUM!

GIVE RESTAURANT-STYLE SMOKY FLAVOUR WITH THIS ADDITIONAL STEP:

• Heat a small piece of charcoal on flame till it becomes red hot.
• Transfer the charcoal to a small heat-proof bowl (A small steel bowl/Katori is the best choice).
• Pour ghee on the hot charcoal.
• Immediately place this bowl in the container that has daal makhani.
• Cover for a minute and allow the charcoal to infuse its smoke. Now stir well, and serve.

Get our yellow dal recipe here.

Restaurant Style Easy Dal Makhani Recipe

Recipe by KhushbooCuisine: Indian

Servings

4

servings

Prep time

8

hours 

Cooking time

1

hour 

Total time

9

hours 

Ingredients

• Whole black lentil/ Urad daal black: 1 cup

• Rajma /Red kidney beans: 1/3 cup

• Onion: 1  grated

• Ginger garlic paste: 2 tsp

• Tomato: 2 large or 3 medium ( Blended in a blender)

• Cream: 1/4 cup (If you are using any heavy cream, plz use 2-3 tbsp)

• Butter: 3 tbsp

• Vegetable oil: 1/2 tbsp

• Cloves: 4

• Cumin: 1/2 tsp

• Cumin powder: 1/2 tbsp

• Cinnamon stick: 1 inch

• Green Cardamom: 2-3

• Black Cardamom: 1 (Optional)

• Ground Nutmeg: 1 pinch (Optional)

• Black Peppercorns: 5-6

• Bay Leaf: 2

• Star anise: 1/4 of 1 flower

• Garam Masala powder: 1/2 tbsp

• Coriander Powder: 1/2 tbsp

• Salt to taste

• For Restaurant-style flavor you need: (Optional. If you do not want the restaurant-style daal, then forget about this step).

• 1 small piece of charcoal

• ½ teaspoon ghee or any vegetable oil

Directions

• Soak urad daal and rajma in plenty of water overnight. The next day discards the water and washes it 3-4 times under running water.
• Transfer them to a pressure cooker and add 1/2 tbsp salt. You need to pressure cook with enough water (water level should be 2″ high from daal), check after 7-8 whistles. You need to cook the daal with the grains still intact and mushy at the same time. Don’t worry this will happen on its own. Just make sure you don’t over-pressure cook them. After the pressure cooker has released the pressure on its own, open the lid and check the grains. (the toughest part is done, phew!)
• Now take a pan, add the butter and  1/2 any neutral vegetable oil. Now add the whole spices when the oil + butter heat up (cloves, cumin, black cardamom, green cardamom, bay leaf, peppercorns, nutmeg, star anise). Let them all turn light brown.
• Now add the grated onion. Fry it, till it turns golden brown.
• Add the ginger-garlic paste and cook for 1 to 2 minutes until the raw smell goes away.
• Add the tomato puree, cover the pan and let it cook. Cook for about a few minutes until you see the oil separating from the sides.
• Now add the powdered spices: coriander powder, cumin powder (Garam masala will be added later). Mix well.
• Time to add the boiled daal to this mixture.
• If there is a lot of water in the pressure cooker, then you gotta just scoop out the daal part.
• After adding daal to the pan, add some water from the pressure cooker. If there is not enough water left then add 1/2 cup warm water.
• Mix well, cover, and cook on low heat for at least 30 minutes (I cook for close to 45 minutes). This slow cooking is very important to bring out the real taste of Dal Makhani.
• Keep stirring in between, and adjust water if you think that the daal is thickening too much.
• After 40 minutes add the cream. Mix well. (Dal makhani is neither too thick or too thin).
• Add garam masala powder, mix very well and turn off the stove.
• Your Daal Makhani is ready. Enjoy with pulao or chapati.
• Serving tip: add a dollop of softened butter on top of daal. YUM YUM YUM!