Mysteries of dal
In my first two recipes, I’ve mentioned a few ‘dals’. ‘Dal’ is the Hindi word for lentils. The Kannada word for lentils is ‘Bele’ pronounced ‘Bay-leh’ where you roll your tongue on the ‘l’. The Tamil word for lentils is ‘Parippu’ pronounced ‘par-ruh-puh’. The Telegu word for lentils is ‘Pappu’ pronounced ‘pa-puh’. Lentils feature in a lot of Indian dishes irrespective of their state of origin. Their usage varies depending on the dish and region but they are a prominent feature. For vegetarians and vegans, lentils are a great source of protein.
I understand that some of the lentils I mention might not be familiar to some of you. I thought I should post some pictures and names as a guide but people have already beaten me to it and have done a much better job that I could have. So please check these websites out if you’d like to know what they look like and how to cook them.
http://www.indiamarks.com/guide/Lentils-Dals-Pulses-and-Beans-used-in-Indian-Cooking/374/
http://www.beanslentils.com/preparelentils.htm
http://simplyspicy.blogspot.com/2006/11/lentils.html
What I will leave you with are the English, Hindi, Kannada and Tamil words for some common lentils that I use.
Go dal!
English | Colour | Shape | Hindi | Kannada | Tamil |
Yellow split peas | Yellow | Round+flat | Toor dal | Togari bele | Thorum parippu |
Black beluga lentils | White | Oblong+flat | Urid dal | Uddina bele | Ulundu |
Split chick peas/ Bengal gram | Dark yellow | Round+thick | Chana dal | Kadale bele | Kadale parippu |
Split mung bean | Light yellow | Oblong+flat | Moong dal | Hesaru bele | Payatham parrippu |
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