Meat Loaf

Each and every cook in the US has his/her own meatloaf recipe. Mine came from a very cook friend (thanks Jonathan). Of course you tweak it as you go along and tailor it to your taste. But Jonathan taught me how to make meatloaf! It was a mystery to me till then :)

I make mine using a combination of pork and turkey. Feel free to use whichever meat you prefer. I have used the 'measurement' of 1 tray/package- since that's how you buy it in the grocery store.

And remember- you can never make "a small meatloaf"! Its always a lot, so be prepared to freeze some of it. Meatloaf sandwiches are always a welcome lunch.


1 tray/package ground pork
1 tray/package ground turkey

1 cup finely chopped onion
2 TBS crushed garlic
1 TBS red chili flakes
1 TBS Worcestershire sauce
2 eggs
1 small can Campbells mushroom soup
1 & 1/4 TBS salt
1 TBS pepper
1 TBS dried herbs (Italian blend works very well)
3 cups bread crumbs (more if required)
tomato ketchup

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 regular loaf pans with foil.

Mix all the ingredients from pork to herbs in a large mixing bowl till well mixed. Add the bread crumbs one cup at a time and work them in. You will need 3 cups for sure. Sometimes, depending on many factors you may need more- just have some extra on hand. You should be able to form a 'loaf' with the meat mixture and it should not flop down. That's when you know you have enough bread crumbs in there.

Divide the mixture between the 2 loaf pans and top with tomato ketchup. Yes, tomato ketchup. Somehow it makes the meatloaf taste better this way. Cover the loaf pans with foil and place in the oven. Cook for 55-60 minutes. Then remove the top foil and let cook for another 20-25 minutes.
Insert a knife in the centre and check. If the knife comes out clean, the meatloaf is cooked.

Remove from the oven and cover with foil. Let the meatloaf rest for 10-15 minutes before you take it out of the pan and slice it.

Serve this with any or all of the following:
Mashed potatoes, roasted potatoes, french fries
Steamed Caulifower
Steamed vegetables
Buttered corn

Pork Stir Fry - Quick Fix dinners

We all need some simple recipes that we can whip up for a weekday dinner. This one will give you your protein and your veggies- it's easy and it's fast! Just add a side of rice and voila! you have dinner. You can substitute sliced chicken breast for the pork and use whatever vegetables you have on hand.


300 gms of sliced pork (usually loin)
1/2 cup onion - sliced
7-8 stalks of asparagus
1/2 red pepper - sliced
1/2 yellow pepper - sliced
1/2 cup mushrooms - sliced
1/2 tsp red chili flakes
2-3 cloves of garlic finely chopped or passed through the garlic press
2/3 tsp salt
1 TBS white wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar
2 TBS olive oil

Heat a saute pan, add oil and fry the garlic very lightly. Add the pork and saute till just done. Takes about 3-4 minutes. Add the vegetables, salt and chili flakes and saute for 2-3 minutes more. You do not want to overcook the vegetables. Finally add the vinegar and let it cook down.

Serve with some rice or pasta for a complete meal. i sometimes cook the rice in chicken stock just for a change.

Palak Paneer - Spinach and Cottage Cheese

This is the ubiquitous Saag-Paneer that is present in all Indian buffet's By the time you get to the dish - the paneer is all gone or it's crumbled into the saag- leaving a trail of white dust!

This is actually an extremely tasty dish if done right- and my teacher was a master at this dish. I hope I come close to her teachings.

I use baby spinach - it cooks faster and blends smoother and the colour is a bright green when cooked. I add fenugreek leaves - if you can't find fresh ones, feel free to use the frozen ones. They work just as well.


1 package baby Spinach (usually about 5 cups)
1 cup fenugreek (methi) leaves or 1/2 package frozen methi leaves
4-5 green chillies
1 cup yellow onion diced
1 cup tomato diced
1 TBS garlic paste
1 TBS ginger paste
1/2 tsp coriander-cumin powder
1 tsp salt (to taste)
4 TBS oil
1 block of Paneer - cut into cubes and sauteed till light brown.You can increase the amount of paneer used as per your liking.


In a large pot add the spinach leaves, methi leaves and green chillies. Add about a cup of water, cover and simmer. The leaves will be cooked in about 15 minutes. Take off the heat and let it cool a bit.
Blend the onions to a smooth paste using as little water as possible. Heat oil in a heavy bottomed pan and add the onions. Saute on medium heat till light brown in colour.
Blend the tomatoes, ginger paste and garlic paste till smooth. Add this paste to the browned onion paste and saute. The raw garlic smell has to disappear and you should see oil separating from the paste.
The better you cook this base - the better your final Saag will taste. So spend some time and effort on this step. This should be done on medium heat and frequent stirring is recommended.
Blend the cooked spinach and methi and add that to the onion - tomato base. Mix well. Add salt and coriander-cumin powder.
Bring to a boil and lower heat to a simmer. Add the fried paneer pieces and let simmer for a few minutes.

Garnish with a little fresh cream just before serving if desired.

Aluchi Patal Bhaji - Colocasia Leaves

Oh this vegetable can be made in so many ways. Some people (like my family) blend it all in, some like to see the leaves in the curry, some add whole peanuts and some add them crushed....But every part of Maharashtra has it's own version.
There are 2 types of colocasia leaves, the thick leaves with the dark stems which are used to make aLuwadi or patra and the thinner leaves, lighter in colour and with green stems are used to make the vegetable. Simple reason is that the thinner leaves cook down faster and the thicker variety is able to hold up to the steaming and frying for the patra.
You can add peanuts, cashew nuts, chana daal, fresh coconut pieces or even radish pieces to this vegetable. 


Here is my version.



2 bunches of the lighter green variety of leaves. Cut off the thick part of the stems and wash thoroughly. Chop coarsely.

4 cups of the chopped leaves
1 TBS tamarind pulp
2-3 green chillies
2 TBS besan (chick pea flour)
1 TBS jaggery
1 tsp salt
3/4 cup skinned raw peanuts (soaked overnight)

Put the leaves in a deep pot with 2 cups of water and the chopped green chillies. Cover and cook till tender. Depending on the tenderness of the leaves it take anything from 20 minutes to an hour. A better way is to cook them in the pressure cooker, 2 whistles and 10-12 minutes of steaming.
 Add the tamarind pulp, jaggery, salt and besan to the cooked vegetable. Run the hand blender to blend everything together till smooth.
Adjust the water and seasoning, the consistency should be like a thick daal...Bring to a boil, add the soaked peanuts and simmer for 10 minutes.

We usually serve this with 'phodnicha tel' which basically means tempered oil. The oil is flavoured with garlic.

3 TBS oil
6-7 cloves of garlic, peeled and smashed
pinch of asafoetida (hing)
1/4 tsp jeera (cumin)

Add the garlic and the oil to a pan and set on low heat. the oil should heat slowly and cook the garlic. If you add the garlic to hot oil, it browns quickly on the outside and the inside stays raw. If you try to cook it at temperature, the garlic burns. There is no worse taste than burnt garlic.
Let the garlic brown nicely on low heat, add the cumin and hing and remove from heat.

You can either add the entire oil to the curry or each person can add it to their own bowl as per taste.

Enjoy this taste of Maharashtra.

Indian Staples - Sarson Ka Saag Aur Makke Ki Roti - Mustard Greens and Corn bread

Sarson Ka Saag and Makke Ki Roti is a Punjabi specialty. Growing up in Mumbai, we had Punjabi neighbours who introduced us to this awesome preparation.
This preparation is made from the tender leaves of the mustard plant - the leaves have the characteristic 'bite' of mustard. They are cooked together with spinach and fenugreek leaves.

You can find mustard greens in our grocery stores in Canada and US - under the name Rapini. Make sure you pick the tender ones. We use maize flour to thicken this dish. Maize is basically a different name for corn but please do not use corn flour. You get maize/corn flour which will be yellow in colour and coarser than cornflour in the Indian grocery store. Ask for Makke ka Atta.

For the Sarson Ka Saag

2 bunches mustard greens - pick the leaves and discard the thick stems if any and wash thoroughly

3 cups chopped mustard greens
2 cups of chopped baby spinach
1 cup chopped fenugreek (methi) leaves
1 cup chopped tomatoes
1 cup chopped yellow onion
1 TBS ginger paste
1 TBS garlic paste

3 TBS maize flour 
4-5 green chillies
1/2 tsp whole cumin
1/2 tsp asafoetida
salt
4-5 TBS ghee

Cook the greens (mustard, spinach and fenugreek) with 2-3 green chillies in a pressure cooker with 2 cups of water. Alternately you can slow cook them on the stove top - but this does take a lot of time and the vegetables lose nutrients and the lovely green colour.
In a separate pan, heat the ghee and temper with cumin seeds and asafoetida (hing).
Add the onions and saute till translucent. Add the chopped tomatoes, ginger paste and garlic paste and fry till the ghee separates.
Add 2-3 chopped green chillies and the cooked greens. Add salt to taste. Saute for a few minutes till the onion/tomato is totally mixed with the greens. Simmer on a low flame for about 10 minutes. Add the maize flour and cook for another 20 minutes or so. The maize will thicken the sauce.

For the Makke Ki Roti

2 cups of maize flour
1/4 tsp salt
water
ghee

Mix the flour, salt and water to make a dough. Take a ball of dough and flatten it to a round roti with your hands. Lift the roti and place topside down on a hot griddle. Cook on both sides till done.
Serve hot with ghee on top

Tadka for the Saag - This is completely optional

3-4 TBS ghee
1 tsp red chili powder

Melt the ghee in a shallow pan, add the chili powder. Let it heat up to smoking point, and then pour the ghee into the prepared Sarson Ka Saag.

Serve the Sarson Ka Saag with the Makke ki Roti and sliced onions.

Tomato Basil Pasta Sauce

This is my go-to sauce for pasta...I don't know if it's the 'red' sauce that everyone talks about or if it is marinara sauce. For my family it's just our regular meat sauce.


1 lb ground meat (turkey/chicken/pork/beef - any one will do)
1 tsp garlic powder
1 large can crushed tomatoes
1 TBS tomato paste
3/4 cup yellow onion chopped fine
4 garlic cloves (pass them through a garlic press)
1/2 tsp red chili flakes
1/4 tsp fennel seeds (crush coarsely in a mortar pestle if you have it)
3 star anise
2 bay leafs
1 cup good red wine
1/2 tsp crushed dried basil
1/2 tsp crushed dried oregano
1/2 tsp ground pepper
1 TBS salt
4 TBS olive oil
2 TBS fresh basil leaves chopped


Heat the olive oil in a sauce pan and add the garlic and onions. Fry till they are translucent. Add the meat and the garlic powder and saute for about 5 minutes till the meat changes colour. Add the tomatoes and the tomato paste and saute to mix the tomatoes and meat. You may have to crush the tomatoes a bit more with a spatula. Add the chili flakes, salt, pepper, fennel seeds, bay leaves and star anise. Bring to a boil. Add the wine, basil and oregano and mix well. You may need to add a bit to adjust the consistency. Simmer on a low flame for about 20 minutes to let the flavours meld.

Just before serving add the fresh basil leaves.

Boil your pasta (al dente) based on the directions on the box. drain and coat with some good olive oil. Ladle the sauce on the pasta and top with shavings of parmesan or romano.
All you need is a salad to go with it. yum yum.

Vegetarian variation:

Just omit the meat, you can add chopped mushrooms and peppers to give the sauce some body. Everything else stays the same.

Pumpkin Pasta Sauce

Makes a nice change from the usual tomato based pasta sauce. This is nice to make in the fall when you get fresh pumpkins. I use sage in it - again a fall herb...reminds you of thanksgiving!


3 cups of pumpkin pulp. You can find the method in my pumpkin soup recipe.
1 lb hot Italian sausage
10 fresh sage leaves
3/4 cup yellow onion chopped
2 garlic cloves - put them through the garlic press or mince very fine.
1/2 tsp red chili flakes
salt
1 cup dry white wine
3 TBs olive oil

In a heavy bottom pan heat the olive oil, add the chopped onions and garlic and saute till translucent. Add the sausage and chili flakes and saute till the sausage is done - about 5-6 minutes.
Add the pumpkin pulp, salt, wine and the chopped sage leaves. Stir till thoroughly mixed and there are no big pumpkin lumps. Add salt to taste. If the sauce needs to be thinned, add some chicken stock. Bring to a boil.

Serve with spaghetti or angel hair pasta.

Learn the Basics - Vegetable Stock

This is the base for soups, stews and some sauces. Very easy- and does not take very long. Once you develop a taste for dishes made with home made stock you will not look at the store bought stock .


1 whole head of celery stalk - separate the stalks and chop into large pieces
2 large yellow onions - quartered
1 whole head of garlic - chopped crosswise
4-5 carrots - chopped into large pieces
2 large leeks - outer leaves removed and washed and cut lengthwise and then into half. (leeks can be optional)
1 TBS whole peppercorns
1 Bay leaf
4-5 cloves
1 TBS salt
sprig of thyme
sprig of rosemary

Coat the celery, onions, garlic, carrots and leeks with olive oil and roast on a sheet pan for about 45 minutes in a 375 degree oven.
In a stock pot, add the roasted vegetables, the herbs and spices and about 12-13 cups of water. Bring to a rolling boil and then simmer till you have about 2/3 of liquid left. Strain the stock. Throw away all the solids and freeze the stock if not using right away.

Soups and Stews - Butternut Squash Soup

This is not just a fall favourite - you can get good butternut squash all year round. If you are a Trader Joe's fan like me then you can get the pre-cut butternut squash pieces to make your life easier.


1 butternut squash

Split it lengthwise- remove the seed, coat with olive oil and sprinkle some salt and roast in a 350 degree oven for about 60 minutes till soft. Peel off the skin and it's ready to use.

Again, you can steam the squash or just microwave it and scoop out the pulp. Works just fine.

In this soup you can just peel the squash, and chop it up and add the pieces to the soup pot and then blend it all. 

3 cups of butternut squash pulp  OR 1 whole squash peeled and chopped
3 TBS shallots finely chopped
3-4 garlic cloves finely chopped
1/2 cup chopped carrot
3 TBS olive oil
1 TBS butter
1/2 tsp ground pepper
6 -7 cups stock** (vegetable or chicken depending on your preference)
salt
1/4 cup half and half (you can use just milk or 5% as per your taste)

In a pot heat the 3 TBS olive oil, add the butter, shallots, carrots and garlic and saute till translucent.
Add the squash pulp and pepper, saute to coat the pulp. Add the stock and salt.
Blend with a hand blender and add the cream. Bring to a rolling boil and let simmer for 5-6 minutes.

If you are adding uncooked squash pieces, add the stock and cover and cook for about 50 minutes till the squash is soft. Then blend with a hand blender or pass through a food mill. You may need to add more liquid at this point.
Bring to a boil and add the cream.

Serve with a slice of fresh bread and a splash of cream if you like.

Soups and Stews - Pumpkin Soup

Fall favourites - Pumpkin or butternut squash soup.

Pumpkin soup first.

I usually make this with fresh pumpkin - I do not use canned pumpkin pulp. Just because I like the taste and the texture of the fresh pumpkin.

To extract pumpkin pulp -
Make sure you don't buy a sugar pumpkin - that's for pies...

Cut the pumpkin into quarters and remove the seeds and the fibres. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Place the pumpkin pieces on a baking sheet. Drizzle olive oil and sprinkle same salt and let cook for 60-75 minutes till soft.
Then just peel off the skin and use the pulp.

There are many ways of extracting the pulp, you can steam the pumpkin, zap it in the microwave, peel it and cut it and just cook the pieces in the soup. I leave it to you - pick the method you prefer. I use the roasting method, I just feel it gives a concentrated pumpkin flavour.

4 cups of fresh pumpkin pulp
1/2 cup chopped shallots
5 garlic cloves chopped
1/2 tsp chili flakes
2 tsp salt
1/2 cup cream (just regular half and half)
3 litres of chicken stock **(or vegetable stock for a vegetarian soup)
4 TBS olive oil


In a large pot heat heat 4 TBS olive oil, add the shallots and garlic and fry till translucent. Add the pumpkin pulp, chili flakes and salt. Stir till the shallots and garlic are mixed in well with the pulp.
Add the chicken stock and mix. Add the salt (please make sure to check if the chicken stock has added salt).
Use a hand blender to get the right consistency.
Add the cream and bring the soup to a boil.

To serve you can top it with a few drops of extra virgin olive oil (use the really good one- the one used for dipping your bread), a few drops of balsamic vinegar and maybe a shaving of parmesan cheese.

** Recipe for Chicken Stock and Vegetable Stock in my Learn the Basics section.

Learn the Basics - Chicken Stock

Of course you can use store bought chicken stock - but once you taste the difference you might prefer the home made one! It does not take a lot of effort, just a bit of motivation.

1 large roasting chicken (about 4 5 lbs)
4 stalks of celery
3 large carrots - cut
1 large yellow onion - cut into quarters
1 whole head of garlic - cut crosswise
1 TBS whole pepper corns
4-5 sprigs of fresh thyme
4-5 springs of fresh rosemary

In a large stock pot add all the ingredients listed above and add 6-7 litres of cold water.
Bring to a rolling boil.  Simmer uncovered for about 4 hours. Strain the liquid after 4 hours and discard all the solids. (Seriously, there is no flavour left in the chicken after being boiled for 4 hours).
Chill the stock in the refrigerator overnight. Skim off the fat that will be on the top. Store the stock in the freezer.

If you notice I have not added salt to the stock. You certainly can if you want to, but I prefer not to. Just because I sometimes forget about the salt already in the stock and add salt to the dish I am cooking without taking into that salt into account.
If you can remember- no problem, go ahead and add 2 TBS salt to the initial ingredient list.


As far as herbs go, if you cannot get fresh herbs, don't panic. You can throw in whatever herbs you have on hand, parsley, dill, rosemary....Dried herbs work too, just add less.

Street Food Mumbai - Vegetable Sandwich

Oh yes the ubiquitous vegetable sandwich. I am sure all Bombayites (aka Mumbaiites) have had this at some time or another in Mumbai. There is no escape :). Everyone had a favourite sandwich - wala... a sandwich vendor. He knew just how you liked your sandwich and that's how he made itfor you...spice level, crusts off/on, fillings...it was all perfect!

Well there are no sandwich carts here - not in California or in Toronto - so I just make my own and yes I set up my stall just like my sandwich vendor outside Ruia college in Matunga ....


Sliced White bread- YES white bread- but please do not get Wonder Bread- it falls apart. Actually sourdough works very well.

Softened butter
salt
'chaat' masala (optional)
pepper

For the chutney
2 cups of coriander leaves cleaned and washed.
3 cups of baby spinach leaves. (yes- this is not a mistake)
10-12 green chillies (depending on your spice tolerance level)
3-4 garlic cloves
1/2 tsp jeera (cumin) powder
salt
1/2 tsp sugar
lemon juice

Blend the chutney very fine- using very little water or no water if you are using a Magic Bullet.
Taste for salt level and add lemon juice.

For the Filling- everything should be cut into thin slices

English cucumber
beefsteak tomatoes
yukon gold or white potatoes - boiled and peeled
red onion
Beets - boiled and peeled

What vegetables you use in the sandwich are totally dependent on your taste- some people even like raw beetroot instead of boiled. Some (like me) do not like raw onion in this sandwich. But - you can customize it as per taste.

To Assemble

Liberally butter 2 slices of bread (Crust on/off if your choice)
Spread the chutney on both sides - more for a higher spice level and less for the weaker palate(!)
layer up your fillings- cucumber slices, tomato slices- potato slices. ....
Sprinkle salt and pepper on the veggies- chaat masala if you like.

Some Nescafe or Masala Chai - and you are back in Bombay :)

Dips and Chips - Hummus

Hummus is now available everywhere and in multiple flavours. But I saw it for a first time when we were in Saudi. We all loved it - and it has no cooking required- so of course it's great!
My neighbour was from Syria - she taught me this way to make hummus and I have stuck to the recipe for 20 years now.


One can of Garbanzo beans.
4-5 garlic cloves
salt
1 1/2 TBS tahini (seasame paste)
Juice of 2 lemons
Olive oil
1 TBS curly parsley chopped fine


Wash and drain the beans. Add the beans, garlic cloves and tahini to a blender. Add the juice of one and half of the lemons and blend. If needed add in really little water. Blend to a smooth puree.

Taste it for salt (remember the beans have salt- that's why we wait to add the salt)
Taste it for tang- you should get a bite of the lemon juice- add more if needed.

To serve - put the hummus in a shallow bowl- run your spoon on top to make depressions on the surface and pour some really good olive oil on top. Sprinkle chopped parsley. Serve with warm pita bread.


PS If you do not have tahini - just add white sesame seeds ( tahini is simple sesame paste)

Street Food Mumbai - Batata Vada - Fried Potato dumplings

Deep fried heaven on the streets of Mumbai- This is also a staple of the people of Bombay (Mumbai). Seriously- I doubt there is even one person in Mumbai who has not succumbed to the guilty pleasure of a hot spicy batata wada or the vada pav - which is basically a fresh batata vada served between a split pav (kinda like a sourdough dinner roll) with a spicy garlic chatney.
Every time I go back to India- I head to my favourite batata vada stalls. One is in Chembur- right at the end of the lane where we lived- Nandu's vada pav. The other is Shrikrishna vada pav in Dadar BB opposite Chabilldas school - for some reason we called the place Manju che vade. The third is Joshi vadewale in Pune. I am sure there are plenty more places which make awesome vadas- but these 3 are my personal favourites.
This is a pure Maharashtrian recipe - many others have tried to adapt it- I once had the MISfortune of eating a 'Banaras' style or North Indian style batata vada which had basically some form of aloo-mutter stuffed inside and the batter was so thick that ....well you can imagine. They better not attempt to bastardise this pure Marathi dish.
Now that I have lived in US/Canada for the past 15+ years I have made many attempts to recreate that bit of culinary heaven in my kitchen. But when I go back to India I head straight to my favourite haunts- nothing compares.
But here goes -

For the filling:

250 Gms Potatoes
3 green chillies
2 springs of curry leaves
1 tsp shredded ginger (not paste)
1 tsp finely chopped garlic (again - not paste)
2 TBs chopped coriander leaves - no stalks
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp asafoetida (hing)
Salt
1/4 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp udad dal
1/2 tsp lime juice
2 TBs oil (for the tempering)

Boil, peel and mash the potatoes. Add the salt. chopped chillies and coriander leaves. Heat oil in a frying pan, add the mustard seeds, when they splutter, add the hing, udad dal, turmeric, ginger, garlic and curry leaves. Fry on a low flame till the ginger and garlic lightly cooked. Do not burn the garlic. Add this tempering to the mashed potatoes. Mix well and shape into balls about and 1.5 inches in diameter.

150 gms besan (chick pea flour)
water
salt
1/4 tsp turmeric
1/4 tsp red chili powder
pinch of baking soda
Oil for deep frying

Make a thick batter - adding water a little at a time. It should be a bit thinner than pancake batter.

Heat oil in a deep fryer or a small wok (kadhai). It should not be smoking hot.

Dip the potato balls one by one in the batter and fry them in the hot oil till a lovely golden colour. Drain on paper towels.

These have to be served hot with garlic chutney and with or without the pav.

Garlic Chutney

There are again so many variations of this chutney. The dry version is a Marathi staple again. It has always been served with Batata vada or bhajias. A great side dish with dal - rice. And awesome when eaten with bhakri (rotis made with jowar or bajra flour). But more on that later. For now the basic lasun (garlic) chutney recipe.

1/2 cup peeled garlic cloves
1/2 cup desiccated dry coconut (UNsweetened)
10-12 dry red chillies or 2 tsp red chili powder
salt
pinch of sugar
1 tsp oil

In a non-stick frying pan, roast the garlic cloves with oil till golden brown. Be very careful, you do not want burnt garlic. Then roast the coconut till brown. Let everything cool. Then add all the ingredients from garlic to sugar to a food processor and blend till coarse. You can adjust the spice level by increasing or decreasing the red chilies or chili powder.

Serve this chutney with the batata vadas and close your eyes and imagine yourself in the bylanes of Mumbai. yummmm.

Indian Staples - Dal Fry

A simple dal fry and rice is a favourite meal in our house. Add some pickles and papads - and you are set!

Amruta specifically asked for this recipe - so here goes...

1 cup dal (any dal will do - masoor, toor or moong)
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/4 tsp hing
1 tsp chopped ginger

Boil till dal is cooked. Don't add too much water. Start with 2 cups and bring to a boil. Then simmer till done. You can always add more water if needed.I usually cook the dal in a pressure cooker. But you can also adapt this recipe for a slow cooker. 

Add the dal, turmeric, hing and chopped ginger  to the slow cooker with 2 cups of water. Cook for 4-5 hours if using toor dal. Cook only for 2-3 hours for moong/masoor dal.

For the tempering:-

3 tbs ghee
1/4 tsp jeera
1/4 tsp hing
1/2 tsp finely chopped ginger

7-8 curry leaves
2-3 garlic cloves crushed or chopped
Green or red chilies as per taste. If using whole red chillies use 3
Chopped tomato

Fry this till it smells nice. ;) on medium heat
Add the cooked dal and fry till the masala has coated the dal.
Adjust thickness.
Add salt and sugar. 1 tbs sugar.
Garnish with chopped coriander leaves.