As a typical south Indian, nothing satisfies me during lunch like lentils and rice. Whenever I used to return back home during my hostel days, I would ask my mom to make lentils. As they say “The journey home is never too long, Your heart arrives before the train.” Lentils and rice is what I used to crave the most. This is a simple everyday lentil Dal Fry recipe. The addition of coconut gives it such a nice flavor and aroma. Just try it once. I am sure you will be hooked. This recipe is usually done using toor dal. It can also be done with moong dal or masoor dal. I have used masoor dal for today’s recipe.
I have already shared the recipe for Thanjavur Dal Fry.
Here is how to do South Indian Style Dal Fry recipe.
Boil half cup of lentils in water in a pressure cooker till mushy. You can read here to know how to cook lentils to the right consistency. You can use Toor Dal , Moong Dal or Masoor Dal for this recipe.
Heat a teaspoon of coconut oil in a pan until hot. The little coconut oil gives a really nice flavour to the dal. Add in the finely chopped garlic, finely chopped onions, finely chopped curry leaves and finely chopped green chillies. Use more chopped green chillies if you want a spicy dal fry. Fry till the onions are soft. Add in the salt and turmeric. Fry for a minute.
Add in the cooked dal. Take quarter cup of coconut and grind it in a blender with half a cup of water to a smooth paste. Add it to the pan. Let the mixture come to a boil. Switch off the flame and remove the pan from heat.
Now lets do the tempering. Heat ghee in a pan and add in some red chillies and cumin seeds. Let it splutter. Add it to the dal.
Serve hot with rice.
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Dal Fry Recipe / Easy Tamilnadu Style Dal Fry
This DAL FRY recipe is usually done using toor dal. I also do it with moong dal or masoor dal. South Indian Style dal fry with step by step pictures.
- Total Time: 40 mins
- Yield: 3 1x
Ingredients
For the Curry
- 1/2 cup Dal (Toor Dal / Masoor Dal / Moong Dal)
- 1 teaspoon Coconut Oil
- 5 cloves Garlic, finely chopped (optional)
- 2 sprigs Curry leaves, finely chopped
- 1 Onion, finely chopped
- 2 Green Chillies, finely chopped
- 3/4 teaspoon Salt
- 1/2 teaspoon Turmeric
- 1/4 cup fresh Coconut
For Tempering
- 1 1/2 teaspoon Ghee
- 1/2 teaspoon Cumin Seeds
- 3 dried red chillies
Instructions
- Boil half cup of lentils till mushy. Set aside.
- Heat a teaspoon of coconut oil in a pan until hot. Add in the finely chopped garlic, finely chopped onions, finely chopped curry leaves and finely chopped green chillies. Fry till the onions are soft. Add in the salt and turmeric. Fry for a minute.
- Add in the cooked dal.
- Take quarter cup of coconut and grind it in a blender with half a cup of water to a smooth paste. Add it to the pan. Let the mixture come to a boil. Switch off the flame and remove the pan from heat.
- Heat ghee in a pan and add in some red chillies and cumin seeds. Let it splutter. Add it to the dal.
- Prep Time: 20 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
- Category: Side Dish
- Cuisine: Tamilnadu, South Indian
Great addition to my dal rotation, it was creamy and the coconut taste was subtle, thank you for sharing!
Thank you!
Why do we need to add coconut to this dal preparation??
I made this just now.Quick to make and yummy.My daughter is a big fan of this one.Thanks a lot for your service.