3-Bean Thick Dal Makhani is a tweaked version of authentic Dal Makhani. This is rich, classic, creamy, flavorful and spicy curry. The more you cook this dal on simmer, the more exotic flavours you will get in this dal. The key of making most flavorful makhani is slow cooking.
It’s Friday and it’s raining cats and dogs here.
So how about we celebrate this pouring Friday with some spicy and creamy beans curry? For me it sounds pretty awesome, and I hope you will love it too! 🙂
So that’s why I decided to share this ‘3-Bean Thick Dal Makhani’ today.
You now know that it’s so dark and cold here. And whenever it’s dark and cold, I start craving for a warm curry. It’s just so comfy. In such cold days I miss Mom’s food a lot.
Seriously, if someone would give me a nice curry and rice, it would make me so happy that I could even be ready to be adopted by him/her!
😉 I know, I am a grown-up for this adoption thing now, but one thing is sure, I would be the happiest person if someone provides me the food I love.
Now, let me tell you something very interesting, which comes out of nowhere. You wanna know what that is? Alright, alright! Abhishek made his very first dish yesterday, other than his famous pastas. YAYY! 🙂
You want to know what was the dish? It was Indian Halwa. 😀
Yesterday evening when Little-A returned home from daycare, she said, “Mamma I want halwa.”
Me: Really? Now?
Little-A: Yes.
Me: Okay! I will make it for the evening dessert, but only if you finish your dinner.
Little-A: Yes Mamma. Let’s cook Halwa.
Daddy dear was listening to the conversation closely, and all of a sudden he said, “Can I make Halwa?”
I was like, “WOW! You know how to make halwa? But why haven’t you made that in all these years? That’s not fair.”
Abhishek: “Wait, wait! I don’t know how to make halwa. It’s just that I want to make it for Little-A. And I wonder if you could teach me today? Anyways, today is the festival of Ganesh Chaturthi, so it’s a good day to start and learn something new. Isn’t it?”
Me: “Yeah! Why not? A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. And who knows one day you come to me and ask about learning curry and other food too. And once you’ll cook them for me, I would be ready to be adopted by you, you know.” 😉
Abhishek: “Hahaha! I hope that day won’t be that far away.” 🙂
Well, let’s come out of this conversation now and talk more about today’s recipe. Let’s start with a simple question that you might have been wanting to ask.
What is Dal Makhani?
Dal makhani is a quite popular Punjabi dish. The basic ingredients in this dal makhani are (whole black lentils) and rajma (red kidney beans), butter and cream. It has very creamy, rich, smooth and silky texture.
Traditional Dal makhani is very rich and creamy because of a lot of butter and cream, and that’s why it’s not a dish to be eaten daily. It’s something reserved for the special occasions. However, the not so creamy version can be eaten more often. Your choice.
Traditionally, whole black lentils and kidney beans are soaked in water overnight and then boiled and simmered in spices and cream. And that’s why this dal has a very addictive flavor.
Okay, but what is this 3-Bean Thick Dal Makhani?
‘3-Bean Thick Dal Makhani’ is my twisted version of regular dal makhani. I added one more bean to this curry, and that is mung bean. Yes, so this version has 3 beans. Red kidney beans + whole black lentils + mung bean.
And I have also added some yogurt to the curry, which adds a slight tang. And this curry is also thicker than the authentic dal makhani.
I could have used margarine instead of butter, but that dal wouldn’t be called ‘Dal Makhani’. Makhani literally means buttery. And that’s why a lot of butter and cream are essential while making this dal. So you can’t avoid butter in this dish.
If you want the right texture and creamy-rich taste, you will have to add butter to it.
But you know about me that I always tweak my recipes. I have to admit that just I can’t help it. I am a recipe-hacker. 😉
But I will be sharing the authentic version of ‘dal makhani’ soon. You can mark my words, because I have already clicked pictures of ‘Authentic Dal Makhani’, so I will share that recipe sometime very soon!
Alright, so what did I do to make this version of ‘3 Bean Thich Dal Makhani’ a bit healthier?
In this version of ‘3-Bean Thick Dal Makhani’ I did some twisting. And in this twisted version I have replaced butter with butter + oil in 1:1 ratio.
So it’s a win-win. It has butter but not a lot. And it’s healthier too. Yeah!
That means this is still dal makhani with an authentic taste, but a bit healthier version of it. 🙂
The more you cook this dal on simmer, the more exotic flavours you will get in this dal. The key of making most flavorful makhani is slow cooking. I used a pressure cooker for making this dal, but you can also make this in a slow cooker because the slower cooking is the better for this dal. You can click over here to know more about the best slow cookers. The marriage of spices and butter+cream makes this outstanding. I’d advise at least 30 minutes simmering is a MUST for this dal.
This is what I do when I make Dal Makhani: I soak beans in water overnight, and sometimes I also add milk to the water.
Then I pressure cook them for about 30 minutes. And finally after adding spices, I let them cook slowly on low heat for about 30-40 minutes.
This Punjabi mixed lentil curry is made with butter and cream. And you know what, this curry tastes even much much better the next day. I think the marination of spices and cream makes them more aromatic.
And that’s why I always make this dal in a large batch, so that I can enjoy these for 3-4 meals.
All in all this ‘3-Bean Thick Dal Makhani’ is rich, classic, creamy, flavorful and spicy. This recipe starts with typical onion-tomato masala. And at the end of it, it does taste awesomely good. This version of dal makhani is indeed undeniably delicious.
Let’s learn to make 3 Bean Thick Dal Makhani.
Clean, wash and soak the whole black lentil, mung bean and kidney beans overnight. Next morning, wash beans and add 3 cups of water, chopped red onion, ginger slices and salt and pressure cook for 3-4 whistles.
Turn the heat to low and cook for 15 minutes or till the dals is cooked. Allow the steam to escape before opening the lid. Open the lid. Heat butter and oil in a pan.
Add cumin seeds. When they start to crackle, cloves, cardamom, and dried red chili. Sauté for few seconds. Add onion paste and ginger-garlic paste, and sauté till the onions turn golden brown in color. Add chopped tomatoes and green chili. Sauté for 2 minutes.
Add yogurt and cream to cooked dal, and Whisk slightly till the dal is almost mashed. Add turmeric powder, chili powder, garam masala powder, 1 tsp kasuri methi and cook over a medium heat till the mixture leaves oil. Now add cooked spiced sauce to dal and mix well.
Taste, and add salt if needed. Add tbsp of butter and mix well. Now add 2 tbsp of kasuri methi and mix well. Cook covered on low heat for 30-40 minutes. Garnished with sour cream, sliced ginger and coriander leaves. Serve hot with steamed rice or naan or any of your favorite bread.
Recipe Card
3 Bean Thick Dal Makhani - 3 Bean Curry [Recipe]
★★★★★
(Rating: 5 from 58 reviews)
| Prep time 🕐 | Cook time 🕐 | Total time 🕐 |
|---|---|---|
| 1 hours 10 mins | ||
| Category ☶ | Cuisine ♨ | Serves ☺ |
| Sides | Indian | 4 |
| Nutrition Info ⊛ | Serving size ⊚ | |
| 295 calories | 1 serving |
INGREDIENTS
How to Make 3 Bean Dal Makhani
- 1/2 cup whole black lentil (whole urad)
- 1/2 cup mung bean
- 1/2 cup red kidney beans
- salt to taste
- 2 tablespoons butter (see notes to make vegan)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 1 medium-sized red onion, roughly chopped
- 1 tablespoon ginger sliced
- 2 small-sized dried whole red chili
- 4 cloves
- 1 black cardamom
- 1/2 cup onion paste
- 2 tablespoons ginger-garlic paste
- 1 green chili, chopped
- 1 medium-sized tomato, chopped
- 1/2 cup natural yogurt (see notes to make vegan)
- 1/2 cup fresh cream (see notes to make vegan)
- 1 teaspoon red chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon garam masala powder
- 1/4teaspoon turmeric powder
- 2 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon kasuri methi (drien fenugreek leaves)
For serving
- Onion rings
- Fresh cilantro (coriander) leaves
- Ginger, sliced
- Sour cream or fresh cream (see notes to make vegan)
INSTRUCTIONS:
Step by step instructions below //
- Clean, wash and soak the whole black lentil, mung bean and kidney beans overnight.
- Next morning, wash beans and add 3 cups of water, chopped red onion, ginger slices and salt and pressure cook for 3-4 whistles. Turn the heat to low and cook for 15 minutes or till the dals is cooked.
- Allow the steam to escape before opening the lid. Open the lid.
- Heat butter and oil in a pan. Add cumin seeds.
- When they start to crackle, cloves, cardamom, and dried red chili. Sauté for few seconds.
- Add onion paste and ginger-garlic paste, and sauté till the onions turn golden brown in color.
- Add chopped tomatoes and green chili. Sauté for 2 minutes.
- Add turmeric powder, chili powder, garam masala powder, 1 tsp kasuri methi and cook over a medium heat till the mixture leaves oil.
- Add yogurt and cream to cooked dal, and Whisk slightly till the dal is almost mashed.
- Now add cooked spiced sauce to dal and mix well.
- Taste, and add salt if needed.
- Add tbsp of butter and mix well.
- Now add 2 tbsp of kasuri methi and mix well. Cook covered on low heat for 30-40 minutes.
- Garnished with sour cream, sliced ginger and coriander leaves.
- Serve hot with steamed rice or naan or any of your favorite bread.
NOTES:
- To make this curry vegan, replace butter with vegan butter, yogurt with vegan yogurt, and cream with vegan cream.
If this recipe helped you, then please spread the word by sharing and subscribing to us on YouTube to get more such Recipe Videos.
Your feedback is so helpful for me and other My Ginger Garlic Kitchen readers. So, for Facebook and Instagram, please mention @MyGingerGarlicKitchen or #mygingergarlickitchen. I would love to see your photos. :)
Author: Anupama
Recipe Source Link: https://www.mygingergarlickitchen.com/3-bean-thick-dal-makhani/