We had an amazingly good meal on our last trip to Rasa. Their dal in particular was scrumptious - why can’t I make dals like theirs? So inbetween bites I studied the dal: yellow lentils, mung beans, finely chopped tomato and spinach, but what were those black specs? Onion seed? I asked the waiter: mustard seeds! I’ve never used mustard seed in dal so I bought a pack and hit the stove. This combination of ingredients resulted in my best dal yet. I’m recording the recipe here so I don’t forget it. Too busy eating to take pictures, I’m afraid!
Start with a big saucepan. Put in just enough oil to cover the bottom and add
- 1 heaping dessert spoonful each of cumin seed and mustard seed
- a few curry leaves
When the seeds start to pop, add
- 1-inch cube of fresh ginger, finely diced
- 2 cloves garlic, slice
- 1 onion, finely diced
When the onions are soft, add
- 1 tomato, finely chopped
- 250 grams dried yellow split peas, soaked for a while, then cooked until mushy
- handful of spinach, finely chopped
- salt to taste
Mix it all together, cook until spinach is wilted. We had this with basmati rice, steamed spinach, and some green beans from a recipe in the Rasa cookbook.
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Monica, oh I love using mustard seeds! What color did you use? Some recipes call for black, but I prefer brown. There are also light colored ones I’ve never used.
I loved what you wrote about the seeds “popping”… it’s so true! That’s just what they do. Releases the flavor. And you already know how I love the flavor of curry leaves… mmmmmm… must try this!
These were the dark mustard seeds that turn kind of gray when you fry them.
You should check out Mahanandi’s blog - lots of good sea-popping goodness there.