To put it mildly, I have never been a great fan of mung beans. P on the other hand loves mung beans- but not the sprouted ones. He loves this one version of the mung beans- a slightly sour dal preparation from Gujarat and this one alone. Since P is not into cooking, i kind of wield control over what has to be cooked at home and can get away by cooking only the dishes that i like. Since we got married, i had hardly made dahiwala mug, which P used to miss a lot. So when i came across Sandeepa's version of the healthy mung beans, i finally decided to give in and rolled up the sleeves to make this version of dal that my aai makes.


Version 1: Do not make the dal too thin. You can use the leftover mung dal to make chaat the next day.
Version 2: Or alternatively, put some of the boiled mung beans aside for the chaat and use the rest for the dal (you can make it thinner or thicker as per your liking).


Serves 4


1-1/2 cup mung beans
5-7 curry leaves
2 green chilies-diced
4 tbsp yogurt (you can also add 1/2 a cup more yogurt alternatively if you like a sour taste)
1 tsp grated ginger
salt to taste
sugar to taste


For tempering
3 tbsp oil
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/3 tsp turmeric
a pinch of asafoetida
1 green chili -chopped
1 big clove garlic-finely chopped


1. Presoak the mung beans for 2-3 hours in warm water, Pressure cook the mung beans in 3-1/2 to 4 cups of water.
2. Do not throw away the water. Semi mash the mung beans (if you like).
3. Add salt, sugar, chili,ginger and curry leaves and blend in the yogurt. let boil for 20 minutes.
4. Heat oil for tempering and add the mustard seeds. When they pop, add the turmeric, asafoetida, chili and garlic and pour this over the dal.
5. Boil the dal for 15 more minutes, garnish with coriander and serve hot with chapati and rice.