Dal Fry or Dal Tadka is an everyday Indian Creamy Lentils recipe. This Instant Pot Dal is low-calorie, vegetarian dish full of cozy comforting vibes. Paired with rice, it makes a wholesome and protein rich weeknight meal in under 30 minutes.
To make this Indian soul food recipe, one tempers yellow dal in warm oil with cumin, curry leaves, and spices. Similar to Rajma Curry , Chana Masala or Punjabi Kadhi Pakora, it is our family favorite Indian dinner recipe.
Restaurant style Dal Tadka is easy to make at home in just under 30 minutes. This satisfying yellow dal is budget friendly and inexpensive to make. Dal is India’s favorite comfort food. It also is vegan, dairy free and gluten free.
You often see it spelled Dhal, daal or dal. People commonly use the term 'dal' to refer to all dried and split pulses. Most popular pulses are mung dal, masoor dal and toor dal or arhar dal. With variety of seasoning options, you can make several different meals.
Instant Pot Dal Fry Recipe Highlights
- It is easy, budget friendly and wholesome meal.
- It is vegan, gluten free, soy free recipe.
- You can use this recipe for weeknight meals and lunch preps.
- It is nutritious meal full of plant protein and fiber.
Ingredients
The recipe card below lists the exact measurements. Here's what goes into this scrumptious curry.
- Dal: I use combination of Toor dal and Moong dal. Use half a cup of each dal. Rinse them well in cold water and drain water in colander. For cooking, use 1:2 ratio for dal to water.
- Additional ingredients: Cooking oil, chopped onions and tomatoes, minced garlic and ginger, fresh curry leaves (optional), cilantro finely chopped
- Herbs and spices: cumin seeds, mustard seeds, asafetida (optional) Turmeric Powder, red pepper powder, Garam Masala. You can use fresh curry leaves or bay leaf as well.
- For optional oil tempering on top as shown in the picture: cooking oil, couple of whole dry red chili, red chili powder. You can also add chopped garlic.
Additional : If you want to make rice along with lentils, in a separate bowl, combine 1 cup Basmati Rice with 1½ of water. Cook in stackable container in the Instant Pot.
How to make Instant Pot Dal ?
Wash , rinse and drain water from both the dals.
Start the Instant Pot on Sauté Mode. Once heated, add oil in main pot . Once oil feels hot, add cumin and mustard seeds. Add asafetida, curry leaves, ginger and garlic. Stir few times to mix all the seasoning.
Add chopped onions and tomatoes. Stir few times. Add rinsed dals. Add red chili powder, salt, turmeric powder, garam masala powder. Check the taste to adjust the seasoning. Add water (2 cups water:1 cup of dal) and stir well.
Put the tall trivet in the main pot. Add the water in rinsed rice container and put the rice container on the trivet. I try to use the Instatpot space to the max.
Cancel sauté function. Close the lid. Vent on Sealing position. Choose Rice mode. Let Instant Pot do the cooking and let it beep when done. Wait for 10 mins on the warm count and then do NPR.
Carefully remove the rice container and trivet. Stir the cooked dal well. If you feel it's too thick, add some water and check the seasoning. The dal should be like a thick consistency.
Fluff the cooked rice gently with fork . Enjoy warm. You can add side of pickle, cut onion or quick salad to make it complete square meal.
Helpful Hint : Heat the oil in a saucepan. Once heated, add the red chilies and chili powder. Let it sizzle for few seconds. You can also add chopped garlic. Pour the seasoning over dal. Garnish with chopped cilantro leaves. Dal fry and rice is ready. Enjoy warm!
Serving Suggestions
Serve this simple dal tadka with a side of plain white or brown basmati rice. Peas Pulao, Cilantro Lime Brown Rice or Jeera Rice also goes well with this dal.
You can also eat it with naan, roti or bread. I often a make a delightful Indian platter of dal, rice, roti with a side of Tomato chutney or Flaxseed Garlic Chutney, or pickles like Carrot Ginger Pickle or Sweet lemon pickle.
Pro Tips
- Rice and Dal is a classic dinner combination across Indian nation. Using Pot in Pot in pressure cooker, you can make this scrumptious meal in 30 mins. And as added bonus, most of these 30 mins are hands off as Instant Pot is doing it's job.
- Traditionally, people make this dish using the lentil or dal commonly known as Toor dal (Arhar Dal). In English, we refer to these lentils as split pigeon peas. You can also make this recipe using Masoor Dal ( Red Lentils)
- I prefer to use ½ cup of each of toor and moong dal to make Mixed Lentil Curry. These lentils cook easily so not much pre-soaking is required. Just rinse them well under cold water and drain excess water before cooking.
Our Popular Instant Pot Indian Recipes
- Dum Aloo -Baby Potato Curry
- Mushroom Masala - Spicy Mushroom Curry
- Aloo Matar- Potato and Pes Curry
- Coconut Rice Kheer
- Matar Chat - Yellow Peas Curry
- Gajar Halwa - Carrot Almond Pudding
- Black Eyed Peas and Coconut Curry
Lentil Recipes
Lentils are really popular in Indian cooking, used in both north and south India. You can make this Vegan Lentil Curry using any lentils that are easily available. Dal Makhani and Dal Palak or Spinach Dal are my other favorite lentil curries.
We also love Lentil Quinoa Soup , Lentil Salad with Curry Seasoning, Moroccan Lentil Stew as well as Vegan Lentil Chili.
Recipe FAQs
There is very slight difference in the way both these dishes are prepared. For Dal Tadka, you cook dal with other spices and masala and add tempered oil on top. Dal Fry is when you fry cooked dal along with spices.
Traditionally, Dal Tadka is made with toor dal. In many Indian states, moong dal is also used. Often times you can combine both these dals to make Mixed Dal Tadka.
In Indian cuisine, dal (also spelled daal or dhal) are dried, split pulses. The term dal can also be used to describe lentils, peas, and beans. Dal also refers to the prepared Indian Lentil curry cooked with pulses and spices.
Dal Tadka is Creamy Lentils Curry. Cooking split yellow lentils with popular Indian herbs and spices prepares it. To enhance the flavors, you temper creamy and smooth dal with warm oil and spices.
The term ' tadka or tarka ' simply means cooking in warm spiced oil. It is popular Indian Cooking technique of oil tempering. The tempered oil adds zestful of flavors to anything you add it to. No dish will ever be boring if you add sizzling tadka to it. There are several herbs and spices that go in making tempered oil . Most common ones are mustard seeds, cumin seeds, asafetida, curry leaves and turmeric powder.
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📖 Recipe
Instant Pot Dal - Dal Fry Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- ½ cup each : Toor dal and Moong dal rinsed and water drained ( or use 1 cup of any dal)
- 2 cups water
Seasoning:
- 1 Tablespoon cooking oil
- 2 medium size tomatoes chopped
- 1 small onion finely chopped
- ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
- ½ teaspoon mustard seeds
- ⅛ teaspoon asafetida
- ½ teaspoon Turmeric Powder
- ½ teaspoon red chili powder
- 4-5 curry leaves - optional
- 1 teaspoon garam masala
- 2 teaspoons ginger finely shredded about an inch piece
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 Tablespoons cilantro finely chopped for garnish
To make pot in pot rice
- 1 cup Basmati Rice And 1½ cup of water
For additional garnish of flavored oil as shown in the picture
- 1 Tablespoon oil
- 2 whole dry red chilis
- ⅛ teaspoon red chili powder
Instructions
- Wash, rinse and both the dals and drain excess water.
- Start the Instant Pot on Sauté Mode. Once heated, add oil. Add cumin and mustard seeds. Add asafetida, curry leaves, ginger and garlic. Stir few times to mix all the seasoning.
- Add chopped onions and tomatoes. Stir few times. Add rinsed dals. Add red chili powder, salt, turmeric powder, garam masala powder. Check the taste to adjust the seasoning. Add water (2 cups water:1 cup dal) and stir well.
- Put the tall trivet in the main pot. Add the water in rinsed rice container and put the rice container on the trivet. Cancel sauté function. Close the lid. Vent on Sealing position. Choose Rice mode.
- Once Instant Pot completes cooking, wait for 10 mins on the warm count and then release the pressure.
- Carefully remove the rice container and trivet. Stir the cooked dal well. If you feel it’s too thick, add some water and check the seasoning. The dal should have a thick soup like consistency. Fluff the cooked rice gently with fork .
Additional Oil Tempering on top : (Optional)
- Heat the oil/ ghee in a saucepan. Once heated, add the red chilies and chili powder . Let it sizzle for few seconds. ( you can add chopped garlic or green chilies too for extra flavoring) Pour the seasoning over prepared dal. Garnish with chopped cilantro leaves.
Notes
- I prefer to use ½ cup of each of toor and moong dal to make this Mixed Lentil Curry. These lentils cook easily so not much pre-soaking is required. Just rinse them well under cold water and drain excess water before cooking.
- For Pot In Pot Rice- Use 1 cup washed Basmati Rice with 1½ cup of water.
- Rice and Dal is a classic dinner combination across Indian nation. Using Pot in Pot in pressure cooker, you can make this scrumptious meal in 30 mins. And as added bonus, most of these 30 mins are hands off as Instant Pot is doing it's job.
- Traditionally, this dish is made using the lentil or dal most commonly known as Toor dal (Arhar Dal). In English, these lentils are known as split pigeon peas. You can also make this recipe using Masoor Dal ( Red Lentils)
Nutrition
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Holly
This recipe is delicious, but I want to confirm as the recipe isn't clear to me, do you mean a half a cup of each kind of dal, or a half total, mixture optional?
Prajakta Sukhatme
Mixture is optional. Half a cup of each dal is ideal but you can use 1 cup of just one dal as well.
Sandhya
Simple, healthy and delicious recipe. Thanks for sharing.