The 5 ingredient toker dal or Bengali raw mango dal is a comforting lentil recipe that is a must have in the summers. This dal tastes best with a bowl of steaming hot rice
As a summer ritual, I make the toker dal or Bengali raw mango dal every year to celebrate the mango season. But I have failed to document it here all the times I’ve made it. Last week when I spotted raw mangoes at my Indian grocer, I bought a bagful of them. I made this dal with some and the others I’ve saved to make some sweet chutney. Also once I made the mango dal, I made it a point to photograph and write a recipe post for it. I know, finally! Now, like most Bengali dal recipes, even the toker dal is a quick, easy and no onion-garlic recipe. In fact, this Bengali raw mango dal is just a five ingredient recipe.
Made in a simple tempering of mustard seeds and dried chilis, this dal recipe truly lets the raw mango flavor shine. All you need with this is a bowl of steamed rice to enjoy a blissful lunch on a summer afternoon. You can pair this up with some aloo bhaja or aloo posto to make your meal even more yummy. However, keeping your meal to just the dal and rice is also nothing short of heavenly in itself! The beauty of this lentil recipe with raw mangoes is that, it isn’t overtly tangy. The chunks of mangoes though well cooked in the dal, do not disintegrate. This helps the dal to retain it’s own flavors too thereby balancing out the tang of the mangoes.
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Mulor dal (lentils with radish)
Kancha aamer chatni (Bengali style raw mango chutney)
Simple and soulful
You will be surprised to realize how a simple tempering of just mustard seeds and dried red chilis can elevate the taste of a dal. I also love adding some fresh green chilis and coriander leaves once I finish making the lentil soup. While both these ingredients are optional, I love the slight heat and freshness they add to the dal. Also, speaking of it, this Bengali raw mango dal is a family recipe, my thakurma’s (paternal grandmother) to be precise. And as she always did, I too use masoor dal or red lentils to make it. The combination of this variety of lentils and raw mangoes makes for a yummy combination. However, if you aren’t a fan of masoor dal or it isn’t easily available to you, feel free to replace it with the ones you like.
However, in Bengali cuisine, the mustard seed tempering for dals is usually added to red lentils (masoor dal). But if you’ve cracked another lentil variety that goes well with it, do let me know. I’d love to try it out too. You could make this dal on a lazy day or along with your regular meal on a usual day or just have it as a lentil soup when you crave something comforting. Any which way you try it, you are going to love every bit of! And when you do, do drop me a line with your feedback, I’d love to hear from you. You could also share your food pictures with me over on Instagram. I hope this delicious and easy lentil recipe finds it place in your summer menu, every year, like ours does. 🙂
Eat hearty!
Toker dal (Bengali raw mango dal)
Equipment
- Pressure cooker
- Shallow cooking pot with lid
Ingredients
- ½ cup masoor dal red lentils
- 1 medium raw mango peeled and sliced lengthwise
- 1 tsp mustard seeds
- 2 dried chilis
- 2 fresh chilis optional
- 2-3 tbsp fresh coriander leaves optional
- 1 tbsp turmeric powder
- 1-2 tbsp mustard oil
- salt to taste
Instructions
- In a pressure cooker, add the washed and drained dal, turmeric powder and a tbsp salt along with 1 cup water to cook. Pressure cook the dal until it is fully cooked and keep aside
- Once the pressure settles in the cooker, remove the dal in a bowl and whisk it until well mixed and lump free. Keep aside
- Heat the cooking pot with the oil. Once it smokes, reduce the flame and add the mustard seeds and dried chilis. Let the seeds splutter and then add the raw mango slices
- Add a touch of salt and mix well. Add ¼ cup water, cover and cook the mangoes until they become soft (well cooked)
- Once done, add the whisked dal into the pot, mix well and adjust the salt if needed. Add in the slit, fresh chilis and simmer over medium flame for 5-7 minutes. Add the coriander leaves, mix well and remove from flame
- Serve your delicious Bengali raw mango dal with steaming hot rice and a side dish of choice. Enjoy!
Notes
- You can add more water in step 5 to adjust the consistency of the dal as per your preference
- If your mangoes are too tart, add a teaspoon or so of sugar in the dal to balance it out
- 1 cup - 250 millilitres
- tbsp - tablespoon
- tsp - teaspoon
