Mamta's Kitchen

Tarka, How to Temper Dals For a Smokey Flavour?

Tarka Uttar-Pradesh Style

Mamta Gupta

Indian

When making dal, people often ask me how to give it the same Smoky flavour that they have experienced in the 'Tarka dal' they had at an Indian restaurant.

Tarka, also called a Bhugar, Bhagar, Chonk or Chaunk, gives a smokey flavour to the dals. In northern India, if you were walking down a residential street around lunch time, you will find this aroma wafting up and down the streets, where dals are being tempered for lunch in every household. In the state where I come from, Uttaranchal, onions/ginger/garlic/tomatoes were not the norm for dal tarka until recently. A Tarka basically consisted of ghee, cumin seeds, asafoetida (of good quality), whole chillies and chilli powder or coarsely ground chillies. The flavour is from the cumin seeds, asafoetida and chillies cooked very, very fast,to the smoking point, in makes the smoky flavour to infuse into the dal.

Finely chopped/crushed garlic/ginger can be added to the oil in the ladle. These days, many households add onions, even tomatoes, to their Dal Tarka. The choice is yours.

Tarka is used for all types of dals, and a few other things besides, with minor, personal variations. This recipe shows you how to get the smoky and other flavours. You see a cast iron ladle, in the pictures. This is the best for getting a smoky flavour.

Like any other cast iron pans you use, do not wash it in a dishwasher or with abrasives. A well-seasoned ladle gives the best flavour. It can be bought from large Indian grocers in UK

Quantities given here are for approximately 200 grams of uncooked dal.

Edited October 2023

Ingredients

  • A cast iron tarka ladle

  • Cooked dal of choice

  • 1-2 tbsp. ghee or oil, depending upon your needs/taste. Ghee tastes better but oil is fine too.

  • 1 full tsp. cumin/mustard seeds

  • A pinch or two of asafoetida powder (qualities vary, so ask for the best one available)

  • 2-3 whole red chillies

  • 1/2-1 tsp. chilli powder (adjust to taste)

  • Optional: garlic/ginger to taste

Instructions

  1. Measure and keep the ingredients ready.

  2. Heat the ladle on flame/heat source for a few minutes, until quite hot. A ladle that you use regularly, will already give out some smoke.

  3. Add ghee or oil to the ladle. If properly heated, the ghee/oil should give out thick smoke immediately, even inflame. Just take it off the heat for a moment, until flames die. Be careful not to panic and spill ghee/oil on yourself. Hold it away from yourself.

  4. Add cumin and asafoetida powder in quick succession and let the seeds start to splutter. If the oil/ghee was properly heated, this happens immediately.

  5. If using garlic/ginger, add it now and let it cook until nice aroma rises and it begins to turn brown. Do not let it burn, burnt garlic tastes bitter.

  6. Now add whole chillies and chilli powder, quickly stir in, using a tea spoon or fork.

  7. Lift the lid of the dal pan slightly and dip the ladle into the dal while covering with the lid. This avoids the splashing about everywhere. It will make a sharp, hissing sound and smoke will rise from the dal.

  8. Remove ladle and cover close the lid immediately. Closing the lid is essential to infuse flavours into the dal and to stop the dal from splashing all over you.

  9. Keep the lid closed until ready to serve. This will trap the smoke and its flavours into the dal well and your dal will now have a nice, 'smoky' dal.

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