Green moong dal or chilka dal is known as split green gram or split green lentils in English. It is made by splitting the whole green mung beans or sabut moong dal but still keeping the skin on. Green moong dal has a lot of health benefits. It is high in fiber as the skin is not removed and is protein-rich.
This is a quick and easy recipe to make green gram dal Indian recipe in the electric pressure cooker like an Instant Pot without soaking. It is vegan and gluten-free. It is a delicious and yummy one-pot dish and even kids will love it. Green moong dal curry is best served hot with rice or chapati and is perfect for meal planning.
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Ingredients
Green dal is an Indian curry made with a few basic pantry ingredients and Indian spices. The main ingredient is the green moong dal which is the same as split green lentils but differs from yellow split lentils which have the skin removed. This is a no-soak recipe to make green moong dal.
A few Indian spices like whole red chili, bay leaf, cumin seeds, and some powder spices like turmeric powder, red chili powder, and garam masala make this dish yummy, flavorful, and delicious.
Chopped tomatoes, onions, ginger-garlic, serrano pepper, and optionally spinach is used to make this dish. Green moong dal can be made without onion by skipping it. Water can be added to adjust the consistency as desired. While serving some lime juice and cilantro are added to enhance its flavor.
Instructions
Green moong dal curry can be made in an Instant Pot without soaking. Soaking green moong dal for 30 minutes will not really add any benefit to cooking time, it will just need 1 minute of pressure cooking.
Rinse the dal in water 2-3 times and discard the water. Turn on the Instant Pot on saute mode in the normal setting.
Once the Instant Pot is hot, add ghee. If you want to make it vegan, you can add oil. Add the cumin seeds and allow them to crackle. Add hing, and whole spices like whole red chili and bay leaf. If you are making it gluten-free, you can skip the hing.
Add the chopped onions, ginger, and garlic, and continue to saute until the onions are translucent. This can take about a minute and then mix in the diced tomatoes. If you prefer, you can also make this green moong dal without onions by skipping them entirely.
Add turmeric powder, red chili powder, salt, and water. Deglaze the pot with a spatula so that there is nothing stuck at the bottom of the pot. This will avoid getting a 'burn' message. While cooking, the green moong dal to water ratio of 1:3 works well for an Instant Pot.
Moong dal cooks fastest compared to other dals. After mixing in the rinsed green moong dal, pressure cook it on high-pressure mode for 4 minutes with the pressure knob in the sealing position.
The Instant Pot will take some time to come to pressure and then count down for 4 minutes. Once done, allow the pressure to release naturally until the silver pin drops.
If you are in a hurry, you can perform a manual pressure release after 10 minutes of natural pressure release by moving the pressure release valve to the venting position.
Open the lid, add some garam masala, and give the dal a good stir. Adjust the consistency of water and salt by adding more.
Substitutions
Moong dal - this moong dal recipe can be made with yellow moong dal as well without any changes.
Oil - instead of ghee you can you oil to make it vegan.
Variations
Spinach dal - To make green moong dal with spinach add some chopped or baby spinach after the dal is cooked and mix it with a spatula. Garnish with chopped cilantro and lemon juice while serving.
Dal paratha - Leftover moong dal can be thickened by cooking it more until the water evaporates. It can be mixed with chopped onions and serrano pepper to make some dal paratha which is a perfect breakfast item or even for meals and lunch boxes.
Spicy - add more red chili powder to make the dal spicier.
Serving suggestions
Green moong dal curry is very comforting when served hot with chapati, basmati rice, jeera rice, or pulao. While serving green moong dal add a few drops of lime juice and some chopped cilantro for enhancing its flavor.
It is also served along with Indian thali which includes vegetable curries, appetizers, sides, bread, rice, and a dessert. It goes well with Indian bread like roti, puri, or paratha.
Once the moong dal cools down or is refrigerated it becomes thick and it can be mixed with some chopped onions and serrano pepper to make some dal paratha which is a perfect breakfast item or even for meals and lunch box.
Equipment
This moong dal recipe is made in the 6 qt. Instant Pot. You can make the same batch in a 3 qt. Instant Pot as well.
Storage
Just like most lentils and beans, green moong dal curry stores well and can be made ahead of time for meal planning. Green moong dal can be stored in the fridge in an air-tight container for about a week. When you are ready to serve simply reheat it in a saucepan, microwave, or in the Instant Pot on the saute mode.
If you enjoy planning meals for the month then green moong dal is a great dish to make. It can be stored in the freezer in a freezer-safe container for a month. When you plan on serving it, just pop the container in the fridge overnight. If you forget, no worries, you can defrost the dal in the microwave and then reheat it.
If you plan on freezing it, avoid adding any lime juice, spinach, or cilantro while storing but add it fresh just before serving.
Green moong dal thickens once it cools down and after storing it in the fridge, so you might have to add some water while reheating it to regain its gravy-like consistency. Thick dal is great to make moong dal paratha!
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📖 Recipe
Green Moong Dal In Instant Pot
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 cup Green moong dal
- 3 cup Water (more if needed)
- 1 large Tomato (chopped)
- 1 cup Onion (chopped)
- 1 teaspoon Serrano pepper (chopped, to taste))
- 1 teaspoon Ginger (chopped or paste)
- ½ tablespoon Garlic (minced or paste)
Oil and spices
- 1 tablespoon Ghee (or oil for vegan)
- 1 teaspoon Cumin seeds
- 1 count Bay leaf
- ⅛ teaspoon Asafoetida powder (hing, skip for gluten-free)
- 1 count Whole Red Chili
- ½ teaspoon Turmeric powder
- 1 teaspoon Red chili powder (to taste)
- 1 teaspoon Salt (to taste)
- ½ teaspoon Garam masala powder (to taste)
For garnishing
- Lime juice (few drops)
- Cilantro (chopped)
Instructions
- Rinse green moong dal in water 2-3 times and discard the water.
- Turn on the Instant Pot on saute mode with normal setting.
- Once the Instant Pot is hot, add ghee (or oil for vegan).
- Once the ghee is hot, add the cumin seeds and allow to crackle.
- Add hing, whole red chili, and bay leaf.
- Add the onions, ginger, and garlic. Saute until onions are translucent (about a minute)
- Add the tomatoes and give it a good mix.
- Add turmeric powder, red chili powder, salt, and water.
- Deglaze the pot with a spatula.
- Add the green moong dal and give it a mix.
- Press cancel to come out of saute mode.
- Lock the lid with pressure knob in sealing position.
- Pressure cook on high-pressure mode for 4 minutes followed by natural pressure release.
- Open the lid, add garam masala and give the dal a good mix. (Optionally add more water if needed and saute for a minute).
- Garnish with chopped cilantro and lime juice while serving.
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