Kandi Pappu Pachadi ~ Toor Dal Chutney ~ Yellow Pigeon Peas / Lentil Chutney

Kandi Pachadi / Toor Dal chutney, Yellow Lentils are toasted to golden brown along with some asoefetida and then ground to a coarse paste with tamarind and red onions.. This chutney take s me back to my childhood where mom would make this chutney in a snap and then mixes it with steaming hot rice and of homemade ghee. This is so comforting, hearty and earthy! This Kandi pachadi is protein packed and actually tastes better when relished right away! Mom makes this chutney at its best, mine never tasted like mom's until i actually saw mom making it. There are a few things to keep in mind, the chutney shouldn't be ground to a smooth paste but should be like coarse paste using very minimal water, we should just use soaked tamarind actually. And add onion only at the end and just pulse it. If you have mortar and pestle please use it to make this chutney and i promise you wont regret at all!

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup Toor dal / Tuwar dal/ Kandi Pappu / Yellow lentils / Split Pigeon Peas
• 3-5 Dried Red Chillies
• Gooseberry sized tamarind / 2 marble sized tamarind balls soaked in some water
• a pinch of hing
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 2 tsp oil

How to make Kandi pachadi:

• In a kadai / pan, heat oil and then add toor dal/ kandi pappu and toast them under medium heat until it turns into golden color.
• At this point add cumin seeds and red chillies, add toast everything until the lentils turn into red color and you will notice a very nice aroma. Add hing and remove from heat and let them cool.
• In the mean while coarsely chop onions into chunks and keep aside
• In a blender, add the toasted toor dal and red chillies mixture and then grind to a coarse powder and then add soaked tamarind and salt and grind again
• Once the chutney looks like shown in the picture, add onions and run the blender in pulse setting.

You can add tadka/popu/seasoning and then add to the chutney. I couldn't wait any longer and relished the chutney right away along with hot rice and ghee.. Yummm heaven!!

Note: You can store in the refrigerator, but i wouldn't recommend as the chutney will loose its crunch.

This Nutty Spicy Kandi pachadi / Toor dal chutney is on its way to:

• Cooking With Whole Foods - Toor Dal / Pigeon Peas - Jun 10th
• MLAA-34 - May 3rd stared by Susan

P.S. Everyone has unique taste palette, so please adjust the ingredients according to your taste.