Dhansak is
of Parsi origin and is a healthy sweet, sour and hot stew. The name comes from dhan meaning grain and sak, a Gujarati word for stewed
vegetables.
Dhansak has
elements of Persian and Indian cuisine. The sweetness is obtained from some
kind of pumpkin, gourd or squash, and tomatoes. The sourness can come from lime, lemon or tamarind.
Traditionally this would be quite a hot dish but I prefer this one about
medium. It’s a flavorful, healthy and delicious curry contributed by the Parsi community.
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| PARSI DHANSAK DAL |
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| *PARSI MUTTON DHANSAK DAL |
There are
hundreds of recipes for Dhansak and they are all different, every time I make
it I do it slightly differently. It has
quite a list of ingredients and does take a little while to make - it is a
traditional Sunday dish in many Parsi homes - but it is totally worth it !
This is the
vegetarian version of the Dhansak recipe. I have included the non-vegetarian (MUTTON) recipe as well. (**The recipe for the Dhansak Masala is given below.**)
**Lamb or mutton is the traditional meat
for Dhansak and other meat is rarely used, but this dish is nothing if not
versatile and you can use chicken or even no meat to make a vegetarian dish.**
Ingredients:
Lentils :
1 cup
Arhar/tur dal/ yellow pigeon peas
½ cup chana
dal
½ cup orange
Masoor dal
¼ cup urad
dal
1/4 cup Val dal
Mutton Dhansak Dal:
1 kg mutton
Salt to
taste
To pressure cook with the lentils:
1 medium sized brinjal –
chopped
250 gms Pumpkin
2 tbsp
Kasuri Methi
Handful of fresh
Mint Leaves
Salt to
taste
To fry Separately :
2 tbsp ghee
1 tsp cumin
seeds
3 large
potatoes – cut into wedges
2 big onions
– chopped
1.5 inch
ginger
3 green
chillies
1 pod of
garlic
1 tomato
1 tsp
turmeric powder
¼ tsp chilli
powder
1 tsp
coriander powder
3 tbsp
Dhansak Masala (recipe given below)
Additions in the Dhansak:
1 lime
1 tsp sugar
Crispy caramelized
onion slivers for garnishing
Simple Caramelized Basmati Rice:
3 cups
Basmati Rice
1 large
onion
3 tbsp sugar
Salt to
taste
Method:
Soak all the
lentils together for at least 3 hours prior to cooking. This is very important
as part of the cooking process.
Drain them
and wash in cold water. In a pressure cooker, put the chopped brinjal, chopped
fresh mint leaves, salt to taste and kasuri methi along with the lentils. Put
double the quantity of water in the pressure cooker.
Pressure cook
it for 10-12 minutes on medium flame. Keep aside.
Par- boil
the potato wedges. Keep aside.
**For Mutton Dhansak Dal: **
Heat oil and
cook the mutton in a thick bottomed kadai. Saute on high heat for around 10-12 minutes.
After the mutton is browned, cook till the water evaporates. Add a cup water
and cook the mutton on medium heat for 30-40 mins. I use a pressure cooker and
cook the mutton for about 30 minutes after the first whistle. After 30 minutes,
switch off the stove and let the pressure drop on it's own.
Keep Aside.
In a frying
pan, heat 2 tbsp ghee. Fry the cumin
seeds, ginger, garlic and green chillies on low flame.
Add the
onions and fry till they are translucent and lose their colour and brown
well.
Now add the
dry spices. Add the chilli powder, coriander powder, turmeric powder and the Dhansak
masala. Fry well till the ghee separates.
At this
stage, add the tomatoes. Mix well and let fry till the tomatoes soften.
Add the
par-boiled potato wedges to this mixture. Mix well and let it cook covered for
5 minutes on a medium-low flame.
Now, open up
the pressure cooker. The lentils and the veggies would have softened by now.
Mash them well to ensure that there are no lumps.
Now, add the
contents of the frying pan into the cooker. Gently mix well.
Squeeze the
juice of 1 lemon into the mashed lentils.
Add 1 tsp of sugar.
**For Mutton Dhansak Dal: **
Add the
cooked mutton pieces into the lentils and masala mixture. Mix well.
At this
stage, adjust the consistency of the Dhansak Dal. The final consistency
of Parsi Dhansak Dal is like thick ‘Daal’ with a rich chocolate brown color.
Let the
Dhansak Dal simmer on low heat for 5-7 minutes
Garnish with
the Crispy caramelized onion slivers.
Simple Caramelized Basmati Rice:
To cook
rice, heat the pan, add sugar to it and let the sugar caramelize.
Add the Ghee
and fry the onions for a few minutes till they brown and then add the rice.
Pour water
in the pan and cook rice till done.
To serve Dhansak, arrange the caramelized
rice on the plate and serve with the cooked dal along with Tomato, cucumber
onion Salad and a slice of lemon.
**Dhansak Masala Powder**
Ingredients:
1 Kg. Coriander seeds (Dhanya seeds)
200 grms Cumin (Jeera Seeds)
100 grms Black Pepper (Kali Mirchi)
100 grms Fenugreek seeds (Methi seeds)
100 grms Black Mustard seeds (Rai)
300 grms Red Chilies
200 grms Haldi (Turmeric powder)
50 grms Tej Patta (Tamal Patta)
20 grms Badyan (Black Flower shaped anise pods)
20 grms Lavang (Cloves)
20 grms Dalchini (Cinnamon sticks)
20 grms Dry Soonth (Ginger powder)
20 grms Elaichi (Cardamom powder)
Method:
1. Check and clean all ingredients for debris and keep in
sunlight for 1 day.
2. Roast on Tava taking care to prevent scorching.
3. Cool. Then grind into a powder.
4. Let the Masala cool. Sieve and fill in airtight containers.
5. Keep this masala refrigerated if you want to store it for a longer duration.
