Reverse Dal!

Growing up I noticed my mother cooking Dal this way; wash the lentils, soak for a little time, boil with a few cut vegetables (often tomatoes, onions and/or potatoes) in the pressure cooker, end with garnishing and seasoning. Years later I learnt a method with an opposite sequence!

In Baghmara, Meghalaya, I saw a Garo cook washing the lentils and then frying them in some oil. I wondered what snack he was preparing. Next went in finely cut onions followed by chopped vegetables which were dry-fried in the pan with the dal too. After about twenty minutes, water was added to this mix and boiled for about thirty minutes followed by the last step, seasoning with spices. This dal tasted like a completely different dish from what I had been eating all my life, and frankly was tastier! Lo and behold was born the 'Reverse dal' recipe!

Then on I have cooked reverse dal this way with diverse vegetables: brinjal, pumpkin, tomatoes, ridge gourd and others. Everything tasted way better. Once at home I was coming dal this way and my mom had the same puzzled expression I had when I saw this reverse process although later she approved of the taste! She advised that this 'reverse dal' would work only with the dals that cook easily such as masoor (red lentil) and moong (mung bean), and not tuwar (pigeon pea) and chana dal (chickpea). I have used this recipe now for more than two decades and shared it with some friends. My friend Ben from South Africa cooks it a few times every month and his family eats it with rice and Boerewors. In my opinion, the reverse dal is tastier, although many may not agree with me! No way to find out other than making this Dal yourself!