Midnight Chef does poha and daal

1. tasty poha, 2. ginger, 3. lemon, 4. poha=rice flakes, 5. tomato, 6. rajasthani behan, 7. garlic, 8. moong daal, 9. curry leaf, 10. coconuts, 11. chillies and mustard seeds, 12. asafoetida, 13. blue flame, 14. condensation, 15. daal, 16. curry leaves and peanuts

Created with fd's Flickr Toys.

All photos taken in my brooklyn kitchen in the wee hours of 9-14-07 except for #10 which was taken in Kollam, Kerala, INDIA a few months back, at a small, family-owned coconut plantation.

Enjoy. Wish you could sample the finished products or at least scratch n' sniff the pix.

If you like Indian vittles, then you know all about the delectable flavor explosions that are daal and poha! And if you're unfamiliar, well, you need to try them... See below. Most of these ingredients can be found in your local grocery store, but even more likely at an Asian foods market.

Poha:
2 cups thick poha (flaked rice)
1 chopped medium-sized onion
1 tsp. chopped green chilies
1 pinch heeng (asafetida)
½ tsp. turmeric
½ tsp. mustard seeds
2-3 tsp. dry roasted peanuts
2 T. chopped cilantro
grated coconut for garnish
1-2 T. oil
salt to taste
juice of one lemon

Wash poha and drain water completely and leave aside for 5 minutes. To this poha, add the salt. Heat oil in a large frying pan and add mustard seeds, heeng, green chilies, turmeric, onion and cook for 5-minutes, then add peanuts and stir for a minute. Add poha, mix well and cover it for a minute.
Garnish with coriander, coconut and sprinkle lemon juice just before serving. Enjoy!

Daal:
2 C. of yellow lentils, called moong daal
2 white onions - finely chopped
2 tsp. salt
1.5 tsp. turmeric
2 tsp. garam masala
2 tsp. ground coriander
1.5 tsp. ground cumin
3 cloves garlic, crushed
2 inch piece of ginger, crushed
2 tsp. chopped hot chilli
2 chopped tomatoes
3 T. chopped cilantro

Wash the daal 2-3 times to remove any hulls or stones. Combine all ingredients in a large stockpot with 2-3 cups water. Bring to boil. Then, place cover on pot, but leave it only partway on. Turn down the temperature on the stove and let simmer for 1 and ½ hours, stirring frequently. More water may need to be added (and maybe even some more salt). The soup should be thin, but not too watery, and the lentils soft. After the daal is finished, it’s wonderful with steaming basmati rice or fresh rotis. Mmm, tasty.

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