Here is a really healthy, one pot meal recipe. If you have a pressure cooker, it makes it really easy to cook. You could also use a crock pot for this dish. The combination of the lentils with the lauki makes for a really wholesome dish.
Lentils with Bottle Gourd (Lauki/ Doodhi Daal)
Serves 6-8
Ingredients:
2 cups channa daal (yellow split peas)
2 tsp garlic and ginger, chopped
2 small onions, chopped
4 tomatoes, chopped
½ bottle gourd (lauki/ ghiya), peeled and cubed
2 black cardamom pods ( moti elaichi)
1 cinnamon stick (dalchini)
3-4 cloves (laung)
2 tsp turmeric (haldi)
1 tsp cumin seeds ( jeera)
½ tsp asafetida (hing)
1 tsp. coriander powder
Red chili powder to taste
1 bunch cilantro, chopped
Salt to taste
METHOD:
• In a pressure cooker or open pot add the daal with 6 cups of water.
• Add the chopped lauki, cardamom pods, cinnamon, cloves, 1 tsp turmeric powder and salt to taste.
• Cook this until the lentils are soft ( about ½ hour) and set aside.
• In a wok or kadai, heat 2 tbs oil.
• Add the asafetida and jeera.
• Add chopped onions and stir for 5 minutes.
• Add 1 tsp coriander powder, 1 tsp turmeric, chili powder and salt.
• Cook for about a 2 minutes.
• Add the tomatoes and cook for 10 minutes.
• Add this mixture to the cooked lentils.
• Bring the lentils to a boil and slowly simmer for about 10 – 15 minutes.
• Remove from heat, garnish with cilantro and serve hot.
