Dal fry

Name: Dal fry
Prep time: 14 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 39 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: India
Ingredients: 1 cup Toor dal; 2-1/2 cups Water; 1 tsp Salt; 1/4 tsp Turmeric; 3 tbs Ghee; 1 cup Chopped tomatoes; 1/2 tsp Cumin seeds; 1/2 tsp Mustard Seeds; 2 Bay Leaf; 1 tbs chopped Green Chilli; 2 tsp shredded Ginger; 2 tbs Cilantro; 1/2 tsp Red Pepper; 1/2 tsp Salt; 1 tsp Sugar; 1/4 tsp Garam Masala

By The Spice & Simmer Kitchen · Published May 3, 2026

A one-pot Vegetarian recipe with India flavors, built for busy weeknights when you want real food without a sink full of dishes. Comes together in roughly 62 minutes, serves about 4, and uses ingredients you can find at any normal grocery store. The technique is simple: build a base in your pot, layer in the main ingredients, simmer until everything has had time to talk to each other, and serve straight from the pan. If you're cooking for picky eaters, this one tends to land — the flavors are recognizable, the texture is comforting, and there's nothing weird hiding in the ingredient list. Perfect for the kind of evening where you want dinner on the table by 7pm and the kitchen empty by 7:30.

Ingredients

Makes 4 servings · 39 min total

1 cup Toor Dal
2-1/2 cups Water
1 tsp Salt
1/4 tsp Turmeric
3 tbs Ghee
1 cup Chopped Tomatoes
1/2 tsp Cumin Seeds
1/2 tsp Mustard Seeds
2 Bay Leaf
1 tbs chopped Green Chilli
2 tsp shredded Ginger
2 tbs Cilantro
1/2 tsp Red Pepper
1/2 tsp Salt
1 tsp Sugar
1/4 tsp Garam Masala

Step-by-step instructions

Wash and soak toor dal in approx. 3 cups of water, for at least one hours. Dal will be double in volume after soaking. Drain the water.
Cook dal with 2-1/2 cups water and add salt, turmeric, on medium high heat, until soft in texture (approximately 30 mins) it should be like thick soup.
In a frying pan, heat the ghee. Add cumin seeds, and mustard seeds. After the seeds crack, add bay leaves, green chili, ginger and chili powder. Stir for a few seconds.
Add tomatoes, salt and sugar stir and cook until tomatoes are tender and mushy.
Add cilantro and garam masala cook for about one minute.
Pour the seasoning over dal mix it well and cook for another minute.
Serve with Naan.

Why this works on a weeknight

Dal fry lands at about 39 minutes total — a little longer than our 30-minute target, but most of that time is hands-off simmering, which is why it earned a spot in our Skillet & One-Pan collection. The technique is forgiving, the ingredient list is grocery-store standard, and the active cooking time is short enough that you can answer a text message in the middle without ruining dinner.

Cleanup notes

This is a single-pan recipe, so the cleanup is exactly one pan, one cutting board, and one knife. While the dish rests, fill the pan with hot soapy water — by the time you are done eating, the residue lifts off with a single pass of a sponge. Skip the steel wool on cast iron; a stiff brush and warm water are all you need to keep the seasoning intact.

Make-ahead and leftovers

Leftovers keep covered in the fridge for up to three days. Reheat in a dry pan over medium-low with a splash of water or stock to loosen the sauce. Dal fry actually improves overnight as the flavors keep talking to each other, so doubling the recipe and packing tomorrow's lunch is a high-leverage weeknight move.

Filed under 🥘 Skillet & One-Pan Vegetarian India Curry Vegetarian Cake