Lau die Tetor Dal is a traditional Bengali dish commonly prepared during summer. You can have it any time in a year though if you love bitter gourds. Light on the stomach, it’s a healthy dal that tastes comforting with rice.
The three main ingredients are quite cooling in nature, hence easy to digest. Lau (Bottle gourd) is known as a cooling vegetable, whereas Uche (Bitter gourd), known for its bitter taste, is consumed daily in a typical Bengali lunch spread. When prepared together, these two vegetables complement each other well over the base of comforting moong dal. The preparation of this dal calls for staple ingredients that keep its taste profile subtle yet wholesome to the palate.
I hope you’ll enjoy making this dal for your family and friends. Do share your experience with me if you’re trying the recipe. 🙂
Lau die Tetor Dal / Yellow Moong Dal cooked with Bitter gourd and Bottle gourd
Lau die Tetor Dal is a traditional Bengali dish commonly prepared during summer. Light on the stomach, and tastes comforting with rice.
Ingredients
- 145g / 2/3 cup- Yellow Moong Dal
- Bitter gourd/ Karela or Korola/ Uchhe
- 1 medium-sized- Bottle gourd/ Lauki/ Lau (I used half of it)
- 1- Green chilli (halved)
- 1- Whole dry red chilli
- ¼ tsp- Cumin seeds/Jeera
- ½ tsp- Ginger paste
- Turmeric powder
- Salt to taste
- Mustard oil
- ½ tsp- Ghee/ Clarified butter (optional)
- 1 tsp- Sugar
Instructions
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If using Korola, then use two of them. And if using uchhe, use four, because Uchhe are smaller in size than Korola.
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Cut korola horizontally into rounds. Wash well and mix the korola pieces with some salt, and turmeric powder, keep them aside.
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Heat 3-4 tbsp oil in a kadai/deep frying pan. Shallow fry the korola pieces, and keep them aside.
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Peel the lau, and cut into chunks. Wash well. Now with some water, pressure cook the lau pieces. Turn off the heat after 2 whistles. Drain and keep aside. If using tender lau, then you can cook the lau pieces with the dal.
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Wash the dal well 3-4 times under running water, drain and keep aside.
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Next, add the dal in a pan/kadai. Add water, the water level should be 1” up from the dal. Add ½ tsp salt. Turn on the heat, start cooking the dal over high heat. After a few minutes some scum or foam would appear on top of the dal, with a slotted spoon discard them immediately. Continue cooking the dal over medium heat, and add the green chilli at this stage. Stir in between and cook the dal until the grains become mushy. Remove from the heat and keep aside.
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Heat 1 tbsp oil in a kadai/deep frying pan. Temper with cumin seeds and dry red chilli. Add the boiled dal, ¼ tsp turmeric powder, ginger paste, salt, sugar, boiled lau pieces, and korola pieces, mix well. To balance the consistency of the dal, add water if required, we want this dal to be medium-thick, so adjust accordingly. Give the dal a good boil over medium heat for 2-3 minutes.
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Lower the heat, add ghee, mix and remove from the heat.
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Serve hot with steamed rice and some begun bhaja (fried eggplant pieces) on the side, enjoy!
