DAL MAKHANI IS HANDS DOWN ONE OF MY MOST REQUESTED RECIPES.
'Dal with makhan (butter) is a more decadent version of Indian black dal (urad dal) that has become a standard, go-to dish on Indian restaurant menus, likely because it's at once hearty and comforting. The addition of fenugreek (seed and herb) adds a gourmet quality to this homestyle dish.' This Instant Pot recipe is from my fourth book, Instant Pot Indian (more on this book below). If you have my book (and of course you do!), turn to page 56 for this particular recipe.
In it, as with all other recipes, I give you color-coded ingredient lists for 3-quart, 6-quart, and 8-quart sizes of the Instant Pot. For me, that's the beauty of my book and my gift to all of you - I made it effortless to scale recipes up and/or down. I upped the cook time to 40 minutes. Urad is a very tough legume and it takes a lot of water and time to cook up properly, why the extra cook time will get it to the creamy consistency you want. This recipe will also work perfectly fine in a larger-sized Instant Pot.
Desi Corner: Makhan in Hindi means butter. Use ghee or plant-based alternatives. No matter. Both are delicious. Make an effort to find URAD dal. I call it dal and not lentils because it is technically a bean. It's black, and so the right term for it would be 'black bean,' but this would confuse folks, especially in the West where we think of Mexican black beans. So, I stick with the term dal. Why do I make cardamom optional? It's just based on preference - my family does not prefer it in our dal, but it does add a gourmand touch. If you want to try it out, just add a touch to a small bowl of your cooked dal to test your family's take on it. Need a review on legumes, dal, beans, peas, and lentils? Click here.
Pressure Cooker Size: 3 quart or larger
Warm Up: 18 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Cool Down: 10 minutes natural release + manual release time
Total: 1 hour 8 minutes plus manual release time
Makes: 8 cups
My fourth book, Instant Pot Indian, converts all of my Indian Slow Cooker recipes to the electric pressure cooker, or Instant Pot. This book is different than most Instant Pot books out there because I give you a chart for each recipe that lists ingredients for three sizes of IP (3-quart, 6-quart, and 8-quart). I also showcase family-style recipes that are full-flavored Indian (most books only test for 1 cup of product at a time leaving you to guess if you want to scale them up or down).
If you already have the book...
You have always been the Village I can count on the most and for that, I just want to say humbly - thank you! xoxo Anupy.
Curry Prep: Watch this video to see how to grind your onion, ginger, and garlic. In this recipe I prefer to grind the onion separately so that when I cook it the water evaporates a bit and it browns better.
Indian Ingredient Corner: Kasoori Methi
In the video below, I show you what dried fenugreek looks like. It can be a slight challenge to find, but it's well worth the effort. You can successfully make the above recipe without it, but once you do use it you'll see why we love it so much - especially in Punjabi cooking. It adds a delicious slightly bitter taste profile that plays well with your legumes.
You'll notice that I also use ** fenugreek seeds. These are more easily found in mainstream markets and lend a similar taste profile. Please never substitute seeds for leaves in recipes - they work very differently when cooked. For more videos, subscribe to my YouTube channel.
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Anupy
February 06, 2024
Thank you SO much! I am so glad you agree. This recipe really does rock and every single spice added does indeed deepen the flavor and add to the complexity. You are getting with it a restaurant-quality dish made without all the unnecessary oil and butter. I am so glad you enjoyed it! I hope you will try more recipes! xoxo Anupy