South Indian Restaurant style Moong Dal Fry. Recipe for Tamilnadu Thanjavur Thalicha Paruppu.Dal Fry, South Indian Moong Dal Fry, Thalicha Paruppu.
I had this Dal Fry at a restaurant in Thanjavur during our temple trip last week. The dal was so warm and comforting with rice after a long sunny day at the temple. Thanjavur is known for its vegetarian fare called ilai saapadu. Its the thaali feast served for lunch on a banana leaf. This recipe is inspired from the dal we ate in Thanjavur.
Thanjavur brihadeshwara temple is my most favorite temple. The temple just completed its 1000 years. There are so many other temples that are big and grand. But this one is the best as its made entirely of Granite. No soap stone, No lime stone – just 100% Granite. In an age of soft iron and no modern tools, the intricacy of the structure in granite is awe inspiring. Its truly the big temple.
Raja Raja Chola is my favorite hero. They say that this might be the only recorded painting of him with his guru Karuvurar. Karuvurar means a person with no rebirth. Hinduism believes in rebirth.
There were so many things that kept me looking curiously for hours. Some of them were the paintings. These paintings are 1000 years old. If you look at the paintings, you can see a hand bag, ladies in cut shoes, and Raja Rajas court wives (in transparent clothes) praying at Chidambaram. And all this was 1000 years ago.
There is an edifice which has a man with a hat at the Thanjavur temple. It might be a proof that the Cholas traded with the Europeans as they say that the hat resembles the dutch hat. Another theory is that this guy is a Chinese Buddhist monk as Buddhism was wide spread in India during that time. Whatever it was, a man with a hat at a temple – unique!
We saw so many sculptures with intricate work at the Lord Subrahmanya tower. We had so much fun. Soooo much fun! No school, no rules, no timings, no alarm clocks. Thats the nice thing about vacation.
Now back to the recipe. This is a very simple dal. The dal is tempered two times.
Cook the Dal:
Boil half a cup of split moong dal with 2 cups of water in a pressure cooker for 4 whistles. Switch off the flame and allow the pressure to release naturally. Set aside.
First Tempering:
Heat sesame oil in a pan and add in the cumin seeds. Let it splutter. Then add in the chopped shallots (small onions) and the garlic. Pound the garlic with the skin 2-3 times and add it whole to the pan. It gives a nice aroma. Let it cook for a couple of minutes.
Now add in the finely chopped tomatoes, one cup of water and a teaspoon of salt. Let it cook for 5 minutes in medium flame until the tomatoes are nicely cooked and mashed up.
Now add the cooked dal and half a cup of water. If the consistency of the dal is too thick, add a little more water. The dal should not be too thick like mashed potato. We are looking at a pouring consistency. Let the dal come to a boil. Add in the coriander leaves and switch off the flame.
Now lets do the second tempering.
Here are the tempering ingredients.
Heat two teaspoon of ghee in a small kadai and add in the cumin seeds, curry leaves and the dried red chillies. Let it splutter. Once the spluttering sound has subsided, switch off the flame and add in the turmeric powder, asafoetida (hing) and red chilli powder. Mix well to roast the powders. Add it to the dal and serve hot with rice.
Thanjavur Thalicha Paruppu – South Indian Thanjavur Moong Dal Fry
South Indian Restaurant style Moong Dal Fry. Recipe for Tamilnadu Thanjavur Thalicha Paruppu.
- Total Time: 40 mins
- Yield: 3 1x
Ingredients
For Cooking Dal
- 1/2 cup Split Moong Dal
- 2 Cups Water
First Tempering
- 2 teaspoon Sesame Oil
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 4 cloves garlic
- 10 shallots (small onions), sliced
- 1 Tomato, finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup water
- 2–3 sprigs coriander leaves, chopped
For second Tempering
- 2 teaspoon Ghee
- 1/2 teaspoon Cumin seeds
- 2 sprigs Curry leaves
- 2 dried Red chillies
- 1/8 teaspoon Asafoetida (hing)
- 1/4 teaspoon Turmeric Powder
- 1/2 teaspoon Red chilli powder
Instructions
For Cooking Dal
- Boil half a cup of split moong dal with 2 cups of water in a pressure cooker for 4 whistles. Switch off the flame and allow the pressure to release naturally. Set aside.
First Tempering
- Heat sesame oil in a pan and add in the cumin seeds. Let it splutter. Then add in the chopped shallots (small onions) and the garlic. Pound the garlic with the skin 2-3 times and add it whole to the pan. It gives a nice aroma. Let it cook for a couple of minutes.
- Now add in the finely chopped tomatoes, one cup of water and a teaspoon of salt. Let it cook for 5 minutes in medium flame until the tomatoes are nicely cooked and mashed up.Now add the cooked dal and half a cup of water. If the consistency of the dal is too thick, add a little more water. The dal should not be too thick like mashed potato. We are looking at a pouring consistency. Let the dal come to a boil. Add in the coriander leaves and switch off the flame.
For second Tempering
- Heat two teaspoon of ghee in a small kadai and add in the cumin seeds, curry leaves and the dried red chillies. Let it splutter. Once the spluttering sound has subsided, switch off the flame and add in the turmeric powder, asafoetida (hing) and red chilli powder. Mix well to roast the powders. Add it to the dal and serve hot with rice.
- Prep Time: 20 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
- Category: Side Dishes, Lentils, Dal
- Cuisine: South Indian, Tamilnadu
ரொம்ப நல்ல recipe அம்மா! Simple and perfect, என்னால எளிதில புரிந்து முடியும். கண்டிப்பா நான் அடிக்கடி உங்க recipes படிப்பேன். எழுத நன்றிகள்!
Thank you so much.
Yum! I tried the first tempering and it was delicious and full of flavor. The second tempering added even more with a beautiful heat. I used avocado oil instead of ghee to keep it vegan. I can’t wait to share this with my friends who like flavorful food. Thank you.
Thank you so much!
Visited Thanjavur so many times. Never noticed many of the things you have pointed out. The write up is as enchanting as the recipe!!! I am making this today!!!
Dear Suguna aka Kannamma, Whenever I start to cook in the absence of my mom, I used to refer your recipes.Besides, so many sites are there on a google, I prefer your’s. After 2 years, today I have seen this recipe, I am typing while on the middle of the cooking of above recipe. I have truly inspired on your works, especially you have explained the importance of the place, BTW I am from Thanjavur!, but I really don’t know some of the info you quoted about thanjavur, it’s really nice.Your recipes gives bond between the place and food! Keep up your good work.
Thanks and regards,
Mr. Gorgi Durairaju
Thank you so much!
Hi,
Found your website to be one of the most useful sites among others. I will be trying this recipe tomorrow, wanted to know, how to make it more spicy. Can we add few green chilies during first tampering?
Thanks
Revathi
Hi Revathi, yes you can add chillies according to your taste. Thanks!
Hi kannama. It’s such a pleasure to see these recipes featuring in your site. This dish is immensely nostalgic and reminds me of all the tantrum I used to put up as a child to get this particular paruppu whenever we visited Thanjavur. Tried it today and it came out superb. Thanks a ton. Keep it going.
Thank You so much Noreen.
nice
Hi K.C,
I want to try this recipie this week.My mom likes dhal so i can try your THANJAVUR THALICHA PARUPPU recipie thanks.
Thanks Thahira