Smoked Dal

When I was in New Delhi, I stayed at the ITC Maurya Hotel. Their restaurant, Bukhara is famous for their delicious Indian food, but mostly for their Dal Bukhara, a black lentil dish that is smoked for 24 hours in the tandoor oven. I asked the chef if he would show me how to make it, and I was given a tour of the small kitchen, which had three tandoor ovens. Each one was heated with flaming red coals but were kept at different temperatures to be used for various dishes served in the restaurant. The one for Dal Bukhara was kept at a lower temperature so the creamy dal could smoke all night until dinner service the next day. I make this dish often, but only smoke it for about three hours, which still results in a smoky and creamy soup that is worth the time it takes to make it. I once entered it in a barbeque contest where I convinced the judges I could make a vegetarian barbeque dish that would compete with the pit master’s meaty dishes. I actually won the competition with this smoked dal served in lettuce wraps and topped with smoked ratatouille and spicy yogurt.

---

Ingredients

Serves 8

Smoked Dal:

• 1 1/2 cups urad dal (black lentils)

• 5 cups water

• 14 ounce can chopped tomatoes, with juice

• 1 tablespoon ginger, minced

• 4 garlic cloves, minced

• 1 teaspoon ground cumin

• 1 teaspoon ground coriander

• 1 teaspoon garam masala powder

• 1/2 teaspoon red chile powder

• 1 stick butter

• 1/3 cup whole milk

• 1 teaspoon salt

Process

Put the dal into a bowl and cover with 4 cups of water and soak overnight. Drain and add the dal to an 8-quart pan with 6 cups of water. Simmer until tender. This could take up to two hours, but you can use a pressure cooker to make it much faster. In a food processor, puree the tomatoes, ginger and garlic to a paste. When the dal is tender, stir in the pureed mixture, cumin, coriander, garam masala, and chile powder. Add butter, milk, salt, and 1 more cup of water. Bring to a simmer. 

Heat a charcoal grill or smoker with coals until they are glowing red. Add 3 wood chips that have soaked in water for 30 minutes. With a metal spatula, push coals to one side of the grill, allowing the opposite side to stay cooler. Place pan, uncovered on the grill opposite the coals. Close lid of the grill and open vents to allow smoke to escape. 

Smoke dal for at least 3 hours, stirring every hour and adding more water if it gets too dry. You may need to add more hot coals if coals burn down and lose heat. After at least 3 hours remove dal and serve hot.