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Home » Dal (Lentils) & Legumes

Bengali Moong Dal with Vegetables | Sobji die Bhaja Muger Dal

December 6, 2022 by Motions and Emotions 9 Comments

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Moong Dal with Vegetables is a Bengali winter delicacy cooked with roasted moong dal and various winter vegetables. In Bengali, this yellow lentil with vegetables is known as sobji die bhaja muger dal. It's a pure comfort food, a wholesome dish packed with protein and the goodness of seasonal vegetables.

bowl full of yellow dal with vegetables

Dal is part of our everyday Indian cooking. It is prepared in almost every Indian household. There are many different types of lentils available such as, masoor (red lentil), moong dal (petite yellow lentil), green gram dal, pigeon pea lentil (Toor dal), etc. You will find numerous dal recipes using each of them.

Dal is a great source of vegetarian protein that can be served with rice or roti. I was going through my blog's recipe index and realized that I have not yet added our everyday dal recipes. Here I am going to share a no onion no garlic moong dal recipe which you can enjoy even during festivals.

Jump to:
  • Ingredients
  • How to make Bengali Style Moong Dal with Vegetables
  • Substitutions
  • Serving Suggestions
  • Storage
  • Top tip
  • More Bengali Recipes
  • Bengali Moong Dal with Vegetables

Ingredients

Moong Dal (Petite Yellow Lentil): The key ingredient of this dish. If possible, use the finest quality sona moong dal to enhance the flavor of the dish.

Vegetables: As this is a winter dal (shitkaler sobji die moong dal), I always use seasonal vegetables such as cauliflower, carrots, beans, and green peas that are available during the winter.

chopped vegetables in a plate and dal in a bowl

Whole Spices: Bay leaf, cumin seeds

Spice Powders: Turmeric Powder, salt, sugar,

Others: Bengali recipes are cooked in mustard oil, so I have used the same. Ginger paste or grated ginger, ghee (clarified butter), etc.

How to make Bengali Style Moong Dal with Vegetables

Boiling Dal

In a pan, dry roast moong dal for a few minutes. Stir constantly until the yellow lentil turns light brown. At this point dal turns aromatic.
Remove from the heat and set aside for a few minutes to cool. After that, wash the dry roasted dal and transfer it to the pressure cooker. You can also boil the dal in a pot with lid but might take longer time than pressure cooker.

dry roasting and boiling dal in pressure cooker

In Bengal, musur (red lentil) and moong dal are cooked in a pan or pot rather than a pressure cooker, which takes less time. It could also be due to the quality of the dal or the water. Cooking in a pan has the benefit of preventing dal from becoming mushy and retaining the shape and texture of each grain.

Cook for 2-3 whistles, or until done, in a pressure cooker with the water, salt, and turmeric powder. The number of whistles is determined by the quality or quantity of the lentil. Allow the pressure to release.

Cooking Dal with Vegetables

Meanwhile, in a wok, heat the oil and fry the blanched cauliflower florets with a little salt and turmeric. Remove from the wok and set aside when finished.

frying cauliflower, coconut, carrot, beans, green peas

Next, add the chopped coconut pieces and fry them with salt before setting aside. After that, add the beans and carrot and sauté for a few minutes. After that, add the peas and cook for a few minutes more before setting aside.

oil with cumin seeds, dry red chilli and ginger paste and addition of boiled dal into the oil

Now add the remaining oil to the wok, along with the cumin seeds and dry red chilli. Then, quickly stir in the grated ginger and the boiled dal. Mix in all of the fried.

Adding vegetables, water and ghee in boiled dal

At this point, if necessary, add water and allow it to boil for a few minutes. Season with salt and sugar as per taste.

Finally, when the dal has reached the desired consistency, turn off the heat. Top with ghee.

Many people add garam masala, but I prefer the flavor of dal and ghee without garam masala. When I cook macher matha die muger dal (dal with fish head) I definitely add some whole spices (garam masala) into it.

Substitutions

If you're a vegan, omit the ghee (clarified butter) and enjoy this moong dal with vegetables.

Serving Suggestions

We enjoy serving Bengali-style bhaja moong dal with vegetables over steaming hot plain rice. You can also serve this with misti pulao or any other varieties of pulao. I also prefer to have this dal with roti and paratha.

moong dal with vegetables in a bowl top view

Storage

You can store sabji die muger dal for up to 2-3 days in an airtight container. You can reheat in the microwave or on the stovetop.

I occasionally dry roast the dal, cook it, let it cool, and then keep it in the fridge for up to 7 days. And when I need to prepare this dal, I add the cooked dal after frying the vegetables. This saves a tonne of time.

Top tip

Never boil the vegetables along with dal, it will turn mushy.

More Bengali Recipes

Bengali Style Chanar Dalna

Koraishutir Kochuri

a bowl full of yellow lentil with vegetables
Print
5 from 3 votes

Bengali Moong Dal with Vegetables

Moong Dal with Vegetables is a Bengali winter delicacy cooked with roasted moong dal and various winter vegetables.
Prep Time10 mins
Active Time30 mins
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Bengali
Keyword: Bengali Recipes
Yield: 4
Author: Amrita

Equipment

  • Pressure Cooker
  • Wok

Materials

  • 1 cup Moong Dal (petite yellow lentils)
  • ½ cup Cauliflower Florets
  • ¼ cup Carrot chopped
  • ¼ cup Green Peas
  • ¼ cup Beans chopped
  • 2 tablespoon Coconut chopped
  • 1 teaspoon Cumin Seeds
  • 2 Dry Red Chilli
  • 1 teaspoon Grated Ginger
  • 1 teaspoon Turmeric Powder
  • Salt per taste
  • 1 teaspoon Sugar
  • 1 teaspoon Ghee
  • ¼ cup Mustard Oil use as required

Instructions

  • Dry roast moong dal in a pan for few minutes. Stir continuously until the yellow lentil changes color to light brown.
  • At this point, remove it from the heat and allow it to cool for some time.
  • Later wash this dry roasted dal and after that transfer it to pressure cooker.
  • In a pressure cooker, combine the water, salt, and turmeric powder and cook for 2-3 whistles, or until done. Allow to release the pressure.
  • Meanwhile, heat oil in a wok, and fry blanched cauliflower florets with little salt and turmeric. When done, remove from the wok and set aside.
  • Next add chopped coconut pieces and fry them with salt and keep aside.
  • Following this, add the beans and carrot and sauté for a few minutes. Next, add the peas and fry for a few more minutes before setting aside.
  • Now add remaining oil in the wok and add cumin seeds and dry red chilli.
  • Next add grated ginger and quickly stir it and add boiled dal in it.
  • Add all the fried vegetables and mix well.
  • At this stage add water if required and allow it boil for few minutes. Add salt and sugar as per taste.
  • Finally, when the dal reaches to the right consistency, switch off the flame. Add ghee on top.

PIN to read it later!

dal and rice in a plate

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Sarah

    December 09, 2022 at 1:00 pm

    5 stars
    This looks so yummy! What a great recipe!

    Reply
  2. vidya

    December 07, 2022 at 9:40 pm

    I realize I make my own version of this dish 🙂 While we love Bengali sweets, haven't tried traditional Bengali food much and will definitely look for more such dishes to try out

    Reply
  3. Khushboo

    December 07, 2022 at 8:52 pm

    I love Bengali food. This dish looks really delicious to eat.

    Reply
    • Blair Villanueva

      December 09, 2022 at 10:13 am

      5 stars
      I would love to try your recipe and I am sure this is perfect especially during a cooler season. The ingredients are not hard to find! 5-stars.

      Reply
  4. Polly

    December 07, 2022 at 8:40 pm

    5 stars
    I've never tasted Moong Dal before, but I'd want to try it. Just by looking at the photo, it appears flavorful and delicious! I also like that the recipe is easy to follow. Thank you for sharing this!

    Reply
  5. Justin

    December 07, 2022 at 8:07 pm

    I love Moong Dal. This looks like a great recipe. I have bookmarked it to make later. Thank you for sharing.

    Reply
  6. Fransic verso

    December 07, 2022 at 3:11 am

    I've had Indian food a few times but never cooked it. It's seems easy and doesn't require a lot of things. Will recommend this to my friend as she want to try Indian food as well. Thank you for sharing!

    Reply
  7. Lyosha

    December 06, 2022 at 8:10 pm

    oh it looks delicious! I definitely feel like trying it tomorrow. I love lentils and this is a great way to have a refreshed look at it for me.

    Reply
  8. Luna S

    December 06, 2022 at 4:57 pm

    I've never had this before but it looks really delicious! Thanks for sharing this.

    Reply

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Hello and Welcome to Motions and Emotions - Food Diary - one stop blog for everyday recipes. I am Amrita, a medical writer by profession and food blogger by passion.

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