Rajasthani Mogar Dal Yellow Lentil Marwari Style

Ingredients

• 1 cup moong dal (split yellow moong without skin)
• 3 cups water, 1/2 tsp turmeric
• For the tempering:
• 2 tbsp ghee (mandatory in the Marwari version — ghee not oil)
• 1 tsp cumin seeds, 2 dried red chilli
• 1/4 tsp asafoetida
• 1/4 tsp red chilli powder
• a pinch of sugar, salt to taste
• coriander leaves

Method

1. Wash and pressure cook the moong dal: Wash 1 cup split yellow moong dal. Pressure cook with 3 cups water and 1/2 tsp turmeric for 2 whistles. Open and mash smooth.
2. Season: Add salt and a pinch of sugar. Stir.
3. Heat ghee: Heat 2 tbsp ghee in a small pan. Ghee is mandatory in the Marwari dal — the community uses ghee generously as a marker of their cooking tradition.
4. Add cumin seeds: Add cumin seeds. Wait for them to crackle and turn darker golden.
5. Add dried red chilli: Add dried red chilli. Let them darken in the hot ghee for 10 to 15 seconds.
6. Add asafoetida: Add asafoetida. Stir 5 seconds.
7. Add red chilli powder: Turn to the lowest heat. Add red chilli powder. Stir 10 seconds on low.
8. Pour tempering into dal: Pour the entire hot ghee tempering into the mashed moong dal. The ghee will pool on the surface initially — stir through.
9. Simmer 3 minutes together.
10. Serve: Scatter coriander leaves. Serve with bajra roti, wheat roti or paratha. The dal should be flowing, slightly sweet from the moong and fragrant from the ghee tempering.
11. Note: Mogar Dal (mogar = husked moong in Marwari dialect) is the everyday dal of Marwari households — the Marwari community, originally from Marwar (the Jodhpur region of Rajasthan), have spread across India as a trading community. Their food traditions follow strict Jain and Vaishnav principles — no onion, no garlic, very simple spicing and generous ghee. This dal eaten with bajra roti is the most fundamental meal of the traditional Marwari household.