Lauki dal
This Lauki Dal is a wholesome, protein-rich stew that combines mild bottle gourd with yellow lentils. It’s a quintessential Indian comfort meal—light on the stomach, subtly spiced, and naturally cooling, making it a staple for balanced weekday lunches. Tender cubes of bottle gourd are pressure-cooked with toor dal, moong dal and masoor dal until they reach a creamy, melt-in-the-mouth consistency. A simple tempering of cumin seeds, asafetida and curry leaves in ghee or oil adds a bright, savory depth without overpowering the delicate flavor of the gourd. A splash of tamarind extract and chopped tomatoes provide a necessary zing to balance the earthy lentils. The soft, translucent pieces of lauki provide a lovely contrast to the smooth, thickened dal.
Equipment
- 1 deep pot
- 1 large spoon
- 1 chopping board
- 1 knife
- 1 peeler
- 1 colander
- 1 pressure cooker
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup toor dal or split pigeon peas
- 1/3 cup moong dal or split moong beans
- 1/3 cup masoor dal or red lentils
- 1 cup water for pressure cooking + 2 cups
- 1 baby lauki (dudhi / bottle gourd)
- 1 cup tamarind extract
- 1 onion finely chopped
- 1 tomato finely chopped
- handful of coriander or hara dhania finely chopped
- 1 tsp ginger garlic paste
- 1 tsp Kashmiri lal mirch or kashmiri chilli powder
- 1/4 tsp haldi or turmeric powder
- 1 tsp coriander or dhania powder
For the tempering
- 1 tbsp oil or ghee
- 1 tsp jeera
- 1/4 tsp hing
- 5-6 crushed garlic cloves
- 2 red chillies broken into two
- 5-6 kadi patta or curry leaves
Instructions
- Wash and soak the dals for 1 hour. Then drain the soaking water and add fresh water up to 1 inch above the dals and cook them in the pressure cooker for 6 whistles until the dals are soft and mushy.
- Wash, peel, deseed and chop the lauki or bottle gourd and keep aside.
- Similarly chop the onion and tomato and keep aside.
- Remove tamarind extract with a lemon size ball of tamarind and 1 cup hot water and keep aside. I have detailed the process of removing tamarind extract in many recipes before, so I'm not writing it here again . You can check this post for the same.
- Now in a deep pot add 1 tbsp ghee or oil (I prefer ghee but feel free to use oil). Once it becomes hot add in the crushed garlic cloves and saute for 2 mins until the garlic becomes golden and fragrant.
- Now add in jeera, hing, kadi patta and 2 broken red chillies and saute for 5 seconds. Take care not to burn the jeera.
- Now add in the onions and saute till they become translucent.
- Add 1 tsp ginger garlic paste and saute till raw smell goes away.
- Now add in the tomatoes and add salt to taste. The salt will cause the tomatoes to release their juices and cook down sooner. Cover and cook for 2-3 mins until the onions and tomatoes are soft and mushy.
- After 2 mins add in the masalas, kashmiri chilli powder, turmeric powder and coriander powder and saute. If the masala is becoming too dry, add 2 tbsps of water to incorporate moisture.
- Cover and cook for 2-3 mins until the oil separates and comes up.
- At this stage add in the tamarind extract and 1 cup water and bring it all to a boil.
- Once the water starts boiling, lower the flame and add in the chopped lauki. Cover and cook for 10 mins until the lauki is 95% done.
- After 10 mins, add in the mashed dal and mix well. Add another cup of water to thin it down a bit and and cook the dal with the masalas for another 2-3 mins on high flame. Adjust the consistency further if required.
- Check for salt again and adjust if required.
- Finally garnish with chopped coriander. Its done!
- Your lauki dal is ready. Enjoy with steaming hot rice or rotis.