Dal Tadka
Recipe by Savin Kumar Kapoor
Published · updated
5.0 out of 53 ratings since October 2026
Only people who bought from us can rate. Customers tell us themselves which recipe they cooked. We read every rating before it appears; critical ones appear just like good ones.
Toor dal, simmered until soft and whisked creamy, finished with a tadka of ghee, cumin seeds and hing. An everyday dish from North India.
Main course · North Indian · Vegetarian · Dal
- Prep40 min
- Cook40 min
- Servings4
- DifficultyEasy
- Ingredients14
What it should be like
Dal Tadka is creamy, not soupy: it flows off the spoon and still sits on the rice. The colour is deep yellow, with the ghee and the dark cumin seeds glistening on top. It smells of toasted cumin, hing and garlic. The taste is mild and earthy; the heat sits behind it and comes through only after a few spoonfuls. It should not taste bitter – that would come from cumin toasted too hot.
Ingredients
Serves 4.
Shopping for this recipe
7 of 7 ingredients selected
€40.93
All prices incl. VAT, plus shipping €4.90, free from €49.00 order value.
In our range
TRS Split Pigeon Peas (Toor Dal)Split pigeon peas are toor dal: split and hulled pigeon peas, also called arhar dal in Hindi.
€3.99 · 500 g · €7.98 per kg
Recipe: 200 g · Pack: 500 g
Enough for this recipe twice, based on 200 g for 4 servings.
In our range
TRS Turmeric Powder (Haldi)Haldi is the Hindi word for turmeric. The tin holds ground turmeric, which is what this recipe needs.
€6.49 · 400 g · €16.23 per kg
Recipe: ½ tsp · Pack: 400 g
In our range
Vandevi Asafoetida Powder (Hing)The tin says asafoetida; hing is its Hindi name. The powder is cut with rice flour and wheat starch, so it may contain gluten.
€2.99 · 50 g · €59.80 per kg
Recipe: 1 pinch · Pack: 50 g
In our range
GRB Clarified Butter (Ghee)The label reads „pure oil“; what is inside is ghee, clarified butter made from cow's milk.
€13.99 · 1 l · €13.99 per l
Recipe: 2 tbsp · Pack: 1 l
In our range
TRS Cumin Seeds (Jeera)Jeera is the Hindi name for cumin seeds. Ground cumin will not do here.
€3.49 · 100 g · €34.90 per kg
Recipe: 1 tsp · Pack: 100 g
- ½ tspChilli powder, hot
In our range
TRS Chilli Powder, HotGround red chilli, the chilli powder in this recipe. Whole Kashmiri chillies are not a substitute.
€2.99 · 100 g · €29.90 per kg
Recipe: ½ tsp · Pack: 100 g
In our range
TRS Finishing Spice Blend (Garam Masala)The TRS blend contains no chilli; all the heat in this recipe comes from the chilli powder.
€6.99 · 400 g · €17.48 per kg
Recipe: ½ tsp · Pack: 400 g
- 1 lWater
- 1 tspSalt
- 1Onion
- 2 cmGinger, fresh
- 3 clovesGarlic
- 1Tomato
- 1 handfulCoriander leaves
Preparation
Wash and soak the toor dal
Wash the toor dal in a sieve until the water stays clear. Then soak it in cold water for 30 minutes and drain.
It is going right when: The water runs off milky at first; after three or four rounds it stays clear. After soaking, the lentils are pale yellow and slightly swollen.
Simmer the dal until soft
Bring the dal to the boil with 1 l of water, the turmeric and the salt and simmer for 30 to 40 minutes until the lentils fall apart. Skim off the foam and top up with hot water if needed.
It is going right when: The lentils fall apart when you press one against the side of the pot with a spoon. The liquid turns thick and deep yellow.
Whisk the dal smooth
Whisk the dal until no whole lentils are left.
It is going right when: It runs off the spoon in a ribbon, not in separate drops.
Toast the cumin in ghee
Now the tadka: spices drawn out in hot fat. Heat the ghee in a small pan. Drop in a single cumin seed: if it sizzles at once, the heat is right. Then add the rest of the cumin and toast for about 30 seconds.
It is going right when: The seeds crackle, turn a shade darker and smell nutty. That takes about 30 seconds.
Toast the hing briefly
Add the hing and toast it for a few seconds.
It is going right when: After a few seconds the pan smells of garlic and onion, although neither is in it yet.
Fry onion, ginger and garlic
Add the onion and fry for 5 minutes until golden brown. Fry the ginger with it for 1 minute, then the garlic for 1 minute.
It is going right when: The onion is golden brown and translucent at the edges, not dark brown.
Fry the tomato and stir in the chilli powder
Add the tomato and the garam masala and fry for 3 minutes until the tomato breaks down. Then take the pan off the heat and stir in the chilli powder.
It is going right when: The tomato breaks down and the ghee separates out at the edge as a clear layer. The chilli powder turns the ghee red without smoking.
Fold in the tadka and serve
Pour the tadka over the dal, fold it in briefly and scatter with coriander leaves. Serve with rice or chapati.
It is going right when: It sizzles when the hot tadka goes into the dal. Do not stir it smooth – some of the ghee should sit yellow on top.
Nutrition
Per serving, a quarter of the recipe.
| Energy | 1,061 kJ / 253 kcal |
|---|---|
| Fat | 9.5 g |
| of which saturates | 5.5 g |
| Carbohydrate | 33 g |
| of which sugars | 4.2 g |
| Protein | 11 g |
| Salt | 1.3 g |
Calculated from the ingredient amounts, converted to one serving and rounded following the European Commission guidance on tolerances for nutrition labelling.
Values from: the nutrition labels on the packs of the products in our shop; the Bundeslebensmittelschlüssel (BLS 4.0, the German nutrient database of the Max Rubner-Institut, licence CC BY 4.0); USDA FoodData Central.
Garnishes, optional ingredients and flour for rolling out are not counted. Not counted here: Coriander leaves.