Sabji diye bhaja muger dal is actually a delicious mung dal preparation of our authentic Bengali cuisine with vegetables. Dry roasted golden yellow split moong dal(bhaja muger dal), few sorted vegetables, dry fruits, and few simple yet flavourful spices mainly used for making this recipe. This muger dal is most commonly served with rice in the lunch menu of any Bengali fiest like Marriage, Annaprashan, or Poite(upanayana). Being a niramish(no onion garlic)) recipe, this moong dal is also served in Pujar bhog.
I learned this muger dal recipe from my mom who cooks it best. I have mostly seen my mom cooking this dal especially for Durga pujar bhog on the day of Maha Saptami. I was always fond of this mung daal recipe, so after marriage, I started making it at my home through mom’s instruction over the phone. Though after following her step-by-step instructions and in spite of using the same ingredients, was not happy with the exact taste I was looking for. Later I realized I was missing my mom’s cooking style so gradually rectify my mistakes and started making it right.
Initially, in our Bengali households, winter was the best time to prepare this moong dal due to the availability of the vegetables used in this recipe. But now fulkopi(cauliflower) and gajar(carrot) are almost available in local markets throughout the whole year. So I often make it at home whenever I wish to have it. Though koraishuti(green peas) are rarely available with their high price, so I prefer to use frozen peas.
This mung daal is not only delicious in taste, but it is also healthy as well. As dal, itself contains high protein and because of adding veggies, it is enriched with vitamins too. In this daal, my mom uses kaju and kismish too so I do the same. Though you may skip it if you don’t like dry fruits or are worried about more calorie consumption. But believe me, it enhances the taste of this dal.
Many of my friends love my sabzi diye muger daal recipe. I got lots of requests from them to share this recipe on my blog. So today I’m going to share this recipe for all of them.
Though rice is the best accompaniment of this muger daal recipe, however, roti, paratha, luchi or kochuri is not a bad option. Even our Bengali pulao or fried rice also a good combination with this daal. Any Bengali fries like beguni or potol bhaja wonderfully go with this daal however our jhur jhure aloo bhaja goes great with it.
Must try this recipe and let me know your valuable feedback in the comment section below.
Sabji diye bengali bhaja muger dal recipe
Prep time: 10 mins
Cooking time: 45 mins
Served in: 55 mins
Servings for: 5 people
Course: Lunch
Cuisine: Bengali
Author: Moumita Paul
Ingredients
1 cup =250 ml
- 100 gm moong dal
- 3 big florets of cauliflower
- 1 medium carrot
- 1/2 cup green peas
- 1 medium tomato
- 3/4 tsp ginger paste
- 1 green chili paste
- 20 cashew nuts
- 20 kishmish or raisin
- 3/4 tsp cumin powder
- 1 tsp special bhaja masala
- 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
- 2 tsp sugar
- 4 tbsp oil
- 1 1/2 tbsp ghee
- 4-5 cups of water
- salt(as required)
Special Bhaja masala
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 3 cardamom
- 4-5 cloves
- 3/4 inch cinnamon stick
- 1 bay leaf
For tempering of spices
- 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
- 1 cardamom
- 2-3 cloves
- a small cinnamon stick
- 1 red chilli
- 1 bay leaf
How to make sabji diye Bengali bhaja muger dal recipe
Instruction
How to make special bhaja masala
- First, we need to prepare the special dry roasted masala for this recipe. For making this masala, first take 1 tsp cumin seeds, 3 green cardamoms, 4-5 cloves, 3/4 inch cinnamon stick, and bay leaf.
- Dry roast the ingredients for 1 min with continuous stirring. When aroma comes out from the spices by changing its colour into little dark, then turn off the heat. Remove it from the pan and cool it down completely.
- Then grind it to get a finely powdered masala from it.
How to make sabji diye bengali bhaja muger daal
- Take 100 gms or 1/2 cup moong dal (preferably sona muger dal) in a pan.
- Dry roast the daal till it gets nice and light golden brown colour, for me it took 5-6 mins on low flame.
- Turn off the heat and add 2-3 cups of water to the pan and stir it continuously to remove the dirt from it. Wash and rinse the daal 3-4 times.
- Then take the same pan with the daal and add 3-4 cups of water to it. Start heating it up on high flame and bring it to boil.
- Once the dal starts boiling, add 1/2 tbsp of ghee and cover the pan. Then slow down the heat at low and let it cook.
- In the meantime, take 3 big florets of cauliflower, wash them thoroughly and cut them into small pieces as shown in the below pics.
- Take a medium-size carrot, wash it, and cut it into small cubes as shown in the pic.
- Take 1/2 cup of green peas and wash them well before using them.
- Put another pan on the other stovetop, let it heat on medium flame. Add 4 tbsp oil to the pan and heat it well. Add the cauliflower first and fry it for 1 min or till it gets light golden brown in color. While frying adds 1/2 tsp of salt to it.
- Then add carrots to the pan and sauté it for another one minute.
- Add cashew nuts and kishmish or raisin to the pan and after a little frying, remove the veggies from the pan. Don’t fry the dry fruits for a long time if it gets dark in colour that can spoil the dish.
- Once the dal cooked up to 80 percent means when the dal gets soft with retaining its original shape. You may check it by pressing the lentils down with your fingertips, as shown in the picture.
- Then add the fried vegetables with the daal and let it cook by covering the pan until the veggies get cooked. Then turn off the heat. But the veggies also must not be too soft.
- I lastly add green peas as it was already soft because of being frozen. But if you’re using fresh peas then must add it to the daal when adding the vegetables. I don’t fry the peas, but you may do it for a few seconds.
- Take the same pan using for frying veggies, temper the spices like whole cumin, cardamom, cloves, cinnamon stick, red chili, and bay leaf. Let the spices splutter.
- Add chopped tomato to the hot oil, stir it well. Then add 1/2 tsp of salt to it, mix it well, and cover the pan for a minute to make it soft.
- After 1 min, remove the cover of the pan and easily mash the tomatoes with the spatula. When it completely mashed, add 3/4 inch ginger and 1 green chili paste to the pan. Mix it well.
- Add 1/2 tsp of turmeric and 3/4 tsp of cumin powder and mix it nicely.
- After sautéing for few seconds add 1/2 tsp special bhaja masala and give it a good stir.
- Then add one cup of water and let it boil.
- Once the masala starts boiling, add it to dal and veggies. Mix it well and again bring it to boil.
- Then add 2tsp of sugar as this daal is a little sweet in taste. Though you may add the sugar while sautéing the masala.
- After few mins of boiling again add 1/2 tsp of bhaja masala and mix well with dal.
- Then lastly add a dollop of ghee, mix it well and raise the flame on high just for 1 min.
- Check the consistency of this gravy that must be thick but not too thick. Once it reaches its desired consistency turn off the heat.
- Cover the pan for 2-3 mins before serving for spreading the aroma of ghee and powdered masala all over the daal. Serve it with white rice at lunch.
Tips
- Must use unpolished daal if the sona mung is not around.
- Sona moong is itself an unpolished, tiny version of the common mug dal with a delicious taste. Even specially produced in West Bengal and Bangladesh.
- So if you’re staying outside Kolkata and Bangladesh, sona mung might be available in nearby stores that sells bengali food products, or you may search it in different bengali food product delivery apps.
- Though I directly add the water to the pan to wash and rinse the daal. But that is not mandatory, you may pour the dry roasted daal in a separate pot and then wash it thoroughly.
- Though mainly for making this daal, karai or pan is used to prevent it from overcooking. Even you may use a pressure cooker too for making its quick version only if you are habituated with it.
- You may add more water as per your requirement.
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