Dhal Makhani

Dhal Makhani is a creamy, buttery gravy made with whole black gram. Originally, it is made with a generous amount of butter and cream. But for everyday cooking, the butter is substituted with olive oil, and the cream is substituted with some milk. Despite the substitutions, it makes for a homey, hardy side-dish. It's nice to experiment with different pulses and grams and not be stuck with yellow lentils all the time. 

At one of the restaurants here, I tasted kidney beans (rajma) in dhal makhani and really liked the combination. So I've added some rajma with this version.

Ingredients (serves 6)

1. 1 cup  de-husked whole black gram - whole black urad dhal
2. 1/2 cup kidney beans - rajma beans
3. 1 big onion, chopped
4. 1/2 cup tomato paste or 1.5 cups tomato puree
5. 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
6. 1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
7. 1.5 tablespoons ginger-garlic paste (better if it's freshly prepared with 4 cloves of garlic and a 1 inch block of ginger)
8. 1 bay leaf
9. 1 cinnamon stick
10. 3 whole cloves
11. 1 teaspoon cumin powder
12. 1.5 teaspoons coriander powder
13. 1 teaspoon garam masala
14. 1 teaspoon chilli powder (optional)
15. 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
16. 1 teaspoon cardamom powder
17. 1 tablespoon dried fenugreek leaves - kasuri methi
18. 2 tablespoons olive oil
19. 1 cup milk (fat free, 2%) or half-and-half
20. Salt as needed 
21. A few sprigs of cilantro
22. a squeeze of lemon juice

Preparation

1. Soak the black gram and kidney beans for 8-10 hours with enough water to cover the beans. Do not cover the soaking beans with a lid.
2. When the gram has soaked and plumped, rinse them and cook them well with as much water as needed until they are mushy. It takes at least 45 minutes to cook the gram without the aid of a pressure cooker. Do not worry about overcooking the gram... the more cooked, the better. When the gram is cooked, mash them with a ladle to make them mushy and soft. 
3. Meanwhile, as the gram cooks, heat oil (and a little bit of butter, if you prefer) in a separate pan. Add bay leaf, cinnamon, cloves, cumin seeds, and fennel seeds to the oil. 
4. When the cumin seeds begin to sizzle, add the chopped onion and saute on medium heat until the onions turn translucent and begin to fry. 
5. Add the ginger-garlic paste and fry for a minute. 
6. Add turmeric powder, cumin powder, coriander powder, garam masala, and chilli powder (optional) and saute for a minute. 
7. Add the tomato paste (or puree) and mix it into the spices and onion-ginger-garlic mixture. If using tomato paste, add 1/4 - 1/2 cup of water to dilute the paste. Add salt, cover the pan and let the tomato paste incorporate with the spices.
8. After 5-10 minutes of periodic checking and stirring, notice if the tomato gravy is well incorporated with the spices. There should be no raw tomato smell, that's the most important cue. 
9. Add the gravy to the cooked & mashed gram. Add more water if required, check for seasonings (salt, chilli), make adjustments, and let the whole thing simmer for 20 minutes. Periodically check if the gravy needs more water, and stir to make to sure the gram doesn't stick to the bottom of the pan. 
10. Finally, add the kasuri methi (dried methi leaves) and cardamom powder. Stir well. Top it off with a cup of milk (or cream, if you want to be indulgent). Stir well. 
11. After a couple of minutes, remove from heat and granish with cilantro. Before serving, squeeze a little bit of lemon juice to unify all the flavors. 
12. Serve with rice or roti. 

Dhal Makhani gets better with time. Black gram is quite bland, so the more they simmer and settle with the spices, the better they taste.