Tavyarchi Val Dal

In my home most Sundays the menu was fixed. It was Birda (sprouted field beans) or Tavyarchi Val Dal for lunch and Masale bhat for dinner.

Sunday mornings for my brothers were meant for swimming . We were blessed with a swimming pool that was built for the Asiad and the colony still benefits from it. H, S & S all loved their swim. They were not allowed to eat before swimming so when they came home they were served a yummy lunch. Especially Somu loved Birda so those who were at home would sit around a pot of Val sprouts to peel them after a sumptious Sunday breakfast. When that was not possible my aunts pulled out the Val dal. This is made by skinning and peeling the dried Val.

Since this Dal is made on the tava/ girdle, it needs soaking in water to rehydrate it to make it cook easily. A couple of hours should be good.

Ingredients

1/4 cup Val Dal
2 onions
2 green chilies
1 teaspoon Koli masala OR
1/2 teaspoon garam masala+1/2 teaspoon red chili powder
1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
2 teaspoon oil
salt to taste

Heat a tava, add oil. Fry the onions in it till pink. Add the spice powders. Now add the rehydrated Val dal, cover with enough water to let it cook properly. This dal take about 25-30 mins to cook. Add more water if it is drying up. To check if dal is cooked pick a grain and press between thumb and forefinger. Make sure it is done well. The sign of a well cooked dal is if you see it is begining to crumble. Do not stir much while cooking it else the dal will disintegrate completely and the result will be a paste. It should be al dente. The onions should meld into the bhaaji and give the dal a lovely coat.

This dal has a fragrance that should get the fire started in you. This time I served with chapati but at our home when we were kids we prefered the Chavlachi Roti. Here I have garnished with green chilies but you can do it with chopped cilantro too.