Taazi Mangori or Moong Dal Pakora Curry is a delicious curry made without onion and garlic in most Jain households during festivals. In north India, it is especially made during Anant Chaudas or Anant Chaturthi as no green vegetable can be consumed that day.
Other no onion, no garlic recipes here are chole, dal makhani, kadhai paneer.
This is one of my favorite-favorite recipe – if there is any such thing :) I love it. And of the reason for loving it is that it is associated with a festival & made occasionally only. As most of you are aware that Jain’s do not eat lot of veggies due to religious regions apart from eggs & non-veg. Prohibited veggies include – brinjal, mushroom, potato, cauliflower, onion, garlic, etc to name a few.
Today most Jain’s eat almost everything including non-veg but in the month of ‘bhaado’ (which starts from next day of rakhi) till it ends with ‘Anant Chaudas’ many Jains observe all or many religious restrictions.
The end of this month is marked with Anant Chaudas (which is today) & we make food which is non-green (i.e. without veggies) on this day. So this day we make an elaborate version using lentil – split moong dal. It is soaked, ground & deep-fried as pakoras & then made into sumptuous gravy with no tomato, garlic or onion. Just plain lentil recipe.
They taste real good with hot chapatis. Nothing beats them :) V wanted to indulge in pooris & boondi raita to celebrate oncoming festive season & set out a plate for photo to be clicked. This is his plate :)
Taazi Mangori
Ingredients
- 1 cup dehusked green gram moong dal
- 1 tsp cumin seeds jeera
- ½ tsp turmeric powder haldi
- ½ tsp red chili powder
- 1¼ tsp coriander powder dhania powder
- ½ cup whipped yogurt or buttermilk homemade curd
- 1 tbsp ghee clarified butter
- 2 pinches asafetida hing
- to taste salt
- water for soaking
- vegetable oil for frying
Instructions
- Soak moong dal for 2-3 hours. Strain it.
- Grind it into a smooth paste using a grinder. Use as little water as possible for grinding.
- Add a pinch of asafetida & salt.
- Now beat the lentil batter using a hand mixer to incorporate air into the batter. Keep adding little water using a teaspoon. Beat for 5-7 minutes till the batter appears fluffy
- In a wok, heat oil for frying.
- when oil is hot and ready for frying, drop small balls of batter to make pakoris. Remove them and drain on a plate lined with paper napkin.
- In a separate pan, heat ghee, add asafetida. Add cumin seeds. Once they splutter, add turmeric powder, red chili powder and coriander powder. Roast gently for few seconds.
- Now add water to make gravy. Allow the water to boil 4-5 mins on high to evaporate slightly and cook as well.
- In the meantime, add little water to curd to make it thin.
- Whisk the water and curd together to form a homogeneous mixture.
- Now gradually add curd mixture to the boiling water.
- Stir to mix well. Boil for few more mins & then add fried pakoris.
- Garnish with cilantro and serve hot with garam garam chapatis.
Notes
- Use a spoon which is narrow at the front for easy dropping of batter into the oil. Also leave the batter on the sides of the wok, just along the edge where oil level is there. This allows the pakoris to trap air & swell nicely. Also this avoids bursting of these pakoris which is common with this dish.
- Once pakoris are done, remove them from wok & drop them into a bowl of water. This will allow the pakoris to soak water & become soft. Once they become cold, it is difficult to make them soft.
- As no fermenting needed for the dal, this recipe can be prepared at a short notice as well.
- It makes for a tasty and different version of yellow moong dal than regular dal preparation.
- A quick recipe to enjoy with puris for festivals and party times.
- One can try variations with different dal and by adding some veggies to the gravy.
I have ate this preparation earlier and in future i will try your recipe for sure.
If you try then do share your feedback with me. :)