Parippu Curry

By Masterchef Sanjeev Kapoor

From Sanjeev Kapoor's Kitchen

Prep: 3-4 hours

Cook: 25-30 minutes

Method: Moderate

Course:

Type: Indian Kerala

Key Ingredients:

Parippu curry, also known as dal curry, is a beloved and staple dish in South Indian and Sri Lankan cuisine. This comforting vegetarian dish is primarily made from yellow split peas, although other lentils like red lentils can also be used. The split peas are cooked until they become soft and creamy.

Top ways to prepare: To prepare parippu curry, the cooked lentils are typically tempered with a mixture of spices and aromatics like mustard seeds, cumin seeds, curry leaves, dried red chilies, and sometimes, garlic and onions.This tempering process infuses the lentils with a rich and aromatic flavor..

Cooking Tips: 1. You can make this curry with tur dal or pigeon pea lentils also, if you don’t have moong dal. The time taken to cook the lentils in the pressure cooker will depend on the quality of the lentils. 2. If you have regular onions or even shallots in hand at home, you can use either of these in place of pearl onions. To make coconut paste, use 2 tablespoons chopped onions or shallots. For tempering, use ¼ cup thinly sliced onions or sliced shallots. If you want a spicier curry, add 2 green chilies. 3. If you do not have fresh coconut, use desiccated coconut instead. You can also use frozen coconut instead. 4. For a traditional flavor, use coconut oil. If you do not have it, then use ghee. If you don’t have either, then use any other neutral flavored oil. 5. To make no onion version of this curry, skip adding the onions. 6. While cooking the curry, keep stirring at intervals so that it does not stick to the bottom of the cooker. Typically, this dish is slightly thick. So, do not add too much water. 7. Double or triple the recipe without any hassle, to make for a greater number of people..

Serving Suggestion : While serving, you can drizzle a bit of ghee on the lentil curry..

Ingredients

Masoor dal ½ cup
Moong dal 1 cup
Toor dal 2 cup
Green chillies 3-4
Grated ginger 1 tbsp
Turmeric ½ tsp
Coconut oil (For Tadka)
Cumin seeds ½ tsp
Mustard seeds ½ tsp
Urad dal 1 tsp
Garlic cloves 2-3
Curry leaves 6-8
Dried Kashmiri red chillies 1-2
Small chopped onion 1
Fresh coconut slices ½ tsps
Salt to taste

Methods

In a bowl, take ½ cup Masoor dal, 1 cup moong dal and 2 cups toor dal. Rinse the dal a couple of times and soak it in water for 3-4 hours.
Take a pan, and add water and the soaked dal, next add 2-3 slit green chillies, 1 tbsp grated ginger and ½ tsp turmeric.
Cover the pan and let it boil for 25-30 minutes or till the dal is mashy. Alternatively, you can also pressure cook the dal on medium heat for 2-3 whistles.
Heat 2 tablespoons coconut oil in a pan.
Add ½ tsp cumin seeds ½ tsp mustard seeds
Give it a stir and add 1 tsp urad dal
Add 2-3 roughly chopped garlic cloves, 1-2 slit green chillies, 6-8 curry leaves, 1-2 dried red chillies
Add a little more oil and add 1 small chopped onion and ½ tbsps fresh coconut slices.
Add the boiled dal and give it a stir.
Add salt to taste, give it a nice mix and serve the curry. While serving, you can drizzle a bit of ghee on the lentil curry.