🫘 Dal · Level 1
Dal Hariyali
The green dal — yellow lentil base enriched with spinach, mint and coriander. Hariyali means green. The herbs are blended in, not stirred in. A dal that tastes like the colour it looks.
The green dal — yellow lentil base enriched with spinach, mint and coriander. Hariyali means green. The herbs are blended in, not stirred in. A dal that tastes like the colour it looks.
Dal hariyali is not dal with a herb garnish — the green herbs (spinach, mint, coriander) are blended into the cooked dal base, creating an integrated green colour throughout rather than a garnished surface. This integration technique produces a dal where every spoonful carries the herb flavour, not just the ones with a leaf on top. The blanching and ice-water shock of the herbs before blending is what maintains the vivid green colour that defines a well-made hariyali dal.
Pressure cook dal with turmeric 4 whistles. Whisk smooth. Blanch spinach 2 minutes, shock in ice water. Blend blanched spinach, mint, coriander, green chilli and ice cubes to a smooth green paste.
Blending with ice cubes keeps the temperature below 10°C during blending, preventing polyphenol oxidase from activating and browning the blended herbs. The ice also provides liquid without diluting the herb intensity — water would require more volume and reduce the herb concentration.
Make tadka: cumin in ghee, onion 8 minutes golden, ginger-garlic, tomato, coriander powder. Add cooked dal to tadka. Stir. Add green paste — stir on low heat only. Season with salt and lemon juice. Do not boil after adding herbs.
Adding the herb paste to the combined dal-masala on low heat prevents further chlorophyll degradation. Below 75°C, chlorophyll is relatively stable for 10–15 minutes — sufficient time to heat the dal through for serving while maintaining the green colour. Boiling after herb addition would turn the dal olive-khaki within 3 minutes.