Vegetarian Bengali mung dal

Ingredients

• 250 g of mung beans
• 2 tablespoons of mustard oil
• 1 teaspoon of salt
• 1 to 2 teaspoons of sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon of ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon of turmeric
• ½ teaspoon of ground cilantro
• 1 dried chili pepper
• 1 teaspoon of garam masala
• 2 to 4 green chili peppers
• 1 teaspoon of ground ginger
• 1 chopped tomato
• 2 to 3 tablespoons of ghee
• One bay leaf
• 2 small pieces of cinnamon
• 2 cardamom pods
• 2 cloves of cloves
• 1/4 cup of cumin seeds
• 2 tablespoons of fresh, shredded coconut
• 7 to 8 cashew nuts
• 7 to 8 grapes

Heat the dry mung dal in a frying pan over medium heat, without any oil, until it is lightly browned. Rinse it thoroughly, then cook it. When it is almost cooked, add the salt and let it finish cooking.

Heat the mustard oil in a frying pan. Add the cumin seeds, dried chili flakes, bay leaf, cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, and coconut, and briefly sauté.

Add the ginger, tomato, ground cumin, ground cilantro, and green chili peppers, one tablespoon at a time, to the pot. Sauté the spices until fragrant, then add the cooked dal.

Add some cashews, grapes, shredded coconut, and sugar, and let it simmer. Before removing from the heat, add the ghee and garam masala.

Serve the dal hot.