Methi Chana Dahl - Fenugreek leaves
Comfort in a bowl
It’s been a little chilly here in the tropics today, which made leaving my bed a bit of a struggle, but the call of the grower’s market won out in time. The Saturday markets here are not for those who like to slumber away the morning, as the good produce gets snapped up by the first waves of locals soon after dawn. Today was just a regular market day for me, just gathering what appealed for the coming week, with no urgency to score produce for a cooking class, so was happy to just saunter. I know these growers and their produce quite well after many years living in this region, but this morning I was surprised by what I heard from Phill the flower man’s off sider. It made me recoil, then question if I heard that right. As it turned out I had heard right when he asked if I’d turned my dog into soup.
I’m not much of a talker in the mornings before coffee, but I made an exception for this man. His glib remark hit me like a stone in the temple, so the morning changed in that moment. I walked Bodhi in the park on the way home, as he was still a dog and not soup, but I could feel my emotional response to this man burning within. So, I arrived home feeling the need to nurture my body and soul with something soothing and sattvic to “calm the farm”, a turn of phrase often heard in these parts by men responding to a woman’s scorn.
So, a quick chana dahl with fresh methi was called for urgently. I would not normally use a pressure cooker to make dahl, preferring the gently simmer process for developing flavours, but this called for a quick cook. So out came the pressure cooker, which comes with its own dilemma, as my dear Bodhi is terribly afraid of all that hissing, and he does his best to protect everyone from the impending doom.
Ayurveda considers chana dahl to be balancing for the fire dosha Pitta, and methi or fenugreek is soothing for Vata and Kapha, which made this dish perfect for how I was feeling upon return from the market. I kept the spicing low so as not to fire me up any further, and it worked. So, if you have a morning or moment like I had, give this dish a try, and see if it helps you to feel better.
Methi Chana Dahl
2-3 serves
Ingredients
1 Cup Chana Dahl
½ Tsp Turmeric
¼ Tsp Cumin seeds
1/4 Tsp Black mustard seeds
¼ Tsp Fenugreek seeds
2 Stalks curry leaves
3 pieces of Pandanus leaf – 4 cm length
1 carrot cut into small cubes
1 potato cut into small cubes
For after the dahl is cooked
1 cup Fresh Methi leaves
2-3 Tbs coconut cream
Salt to taste
Temper
1 Tbs Ghee or coconut oil
¼ Onion – finely diced
6 Garlic cloves finely sliced
¼ Tsp Cumin seeds
¼ Tsp Black mustard seeds
¼ Tsp Fenugreek seeds
1 Curry leaf stem – leaves finely shredded
Method
Wash chana dahl well with running water, then soak in fresh water for an 30-60 mins or longer. If using a pressure cooker, add all of the ingredients for the dahl (except temper ingredients, coconut cream and methi leaves) in the pressure cooker and enough water to cover the chana dahl by 2 cm.
Place of the stove top and cook for 8 whistles of the pressure cooker, then remove from the heat and release the pressure valve when safe to do so.
Whilst the dahl cooks, make the temper by adding the ghee to a small pan on a medium heat, and fry off the onion and garlic until it is turning golden, then add the spices and sauté for another minute taking care not to burn the spices. Remove from the heat and reserve for finishing the dish.
Check that the chana dahl is soft, if not return to the stove top and cook for a bit longer.
Add the coconut cream and some salt to taste, and the fresh methi leaves. Return to the stove top and cook on low for a few minutes until the methi is wilted and the dahl is a nice smooth consistency.
Sprinkle the temper on top of the dahl in the serving dish and a sprig of curry leaves.
Serve with rice and feel the calm flow through you.
Note – If not using a pressure cooker, just cook on a stove top on a low heat for approximately 20-30 minutes (cooking time varies with soaking time), until the chana dahl if soft, then follow the method above for the rest of the recipe.
I forgot to add the carrot and potato to the PDF recipe, so you know what to do.
It is indeed remarkable how our equilibrium can be disturbed by an unkind gesture or comment. And the imbalance can last for hours or days if not properly addressed. The Flower Sellers 'side-kick' (or should I say (drop-kick) is clearly not a dog lover and hopefully not a dog owner, just an idiot selling flowers! Bravo in restoring an inner calm via your beautiful ayuvadic Dahl dish. I look forward to the day when Substack can transport smells along with photos. Please give yourself and Bodhi and extra (((hug))) tonight from me to help 'sooth the soul'. 🙏😊❤️