Moong dal recipe is one of best simple and tastiest of dal recipes that I make at home. All it takes is just about 20 Minutes to cook this punjabi dal in a pressure cooker.
Kids love this yellow moong dal, it tastes delicious with paratha /chapati or steamed rice. I sometimes love to have A warm bowl of comforting moong dal just like soup or as a rice and dal meal.

Yellow moong dal recipe is one of most popular dal recipe from that is cooked in a Punjabi home. One of the everyday kind of dal, we cook yellow dal a lot in our everyday meals because is very light and easy to digest. Though some people consider moong dal a pretty bland recipe, but secret lies in tadka.
You get the dal tadka right and it transforms any dal recipes from bland to awesome.In Uttar Pradesh, it is popularly know as Dal Moradabadi, but the recipe is slighly different.
The recipe I am sharing is punjabi dal recipe. Other Indian dal recipes you can try are punjabi dal palak recipe, Sabut moong dal, dal fry, . All of these which are light and easy to cook Dal recipes. If you like to try some indulgent recipes you may like to try chana dal, Healthier Dal Makhani, Masoor dal . Dhuli moong dal recipe is a staple in the most Punjabi home. When we were growing up, mum used to cook this recipe of moong dal at least once a week. However simple it might look, believe me, it tastes awesome with namak and ajwain ka parantha ( whole wheat flatbread with salt and carom seeds).
There are times when all you want is simple dal chawal and anything else simply fails to satisfy. I feel certain dishes taste heavenly only if served in right combination. If this yellow moong dal recipe tastes best with ajwain paratha, this khatti moong masoor ki dal tastes best with jeera rice.
Discussions and talks on food help me a lot in choosing the recipes, and what I talk about on the blog. Sometimes, I post the recipes that I love, and at others, I post what is popular and people want the recipes. So coming back to discussions on food, the other day I was at a get-together with friends who were with us from IAF days. That time I did not know cooking, not even the basics dishes, but wonderful senior ladies helped and guided me. Someone then suggested starting a series on some of the popular everyday recipes for the people who are new to cooking. This struck a cord, it was time to pay back .. someone helped me all those years ago, now is my turn.

Everyday Indian dishes like dal, curries and such basic stuff for completely novice in the kitchen. Being such a person myself ( read the story here ) I know how much I would have loved to have such a resource when I was learning to cook. So here it is, everyday Indian Food where I will post most simple basic Indian recipe once or twice a week. The recipes for the times when you want things less complicated, and for the times when you just want to eat that simple Ma ke hath ka khana :). You can also check my Indian meal plan section where all I have done all work for you. Recipes, grocery lists and everyday Indian meal plan all included there.
How to make Yellow Moong Dal / Dal fry
- While pressure cooking the dal, give it two whistles and immediately release the pressure with a long handle spatula or under the water. Or, just cook it for one whistle and allow to cool naturally. Otherwise, there is a risk of overcooking the dal to a mushy texture.
- For making the dal in 20 Minutes, Cook the tadka alongside while dal is being pressure cooked.
- Adding Kasuri methi/dried fenugreek leaves along with fresh coriander/cilantro for final garnish lifts the flavors and give you a tasty dhuli moong dal tadka.
- Any dal tastes amazing with a dash of lime juice, I simply love a generous squeeze of lime and ½ teaspoon of ghee to top my dal.
If you love dal here are few Dal recipes which you may want to try
Gujrati Dal, Dal Fry , Sabut Masoor Dal , Langar wali dal, Arhar ki Dal, Dal Makhani (healthy version), Punjabi sabut moong dal, Punjabi Dal Palak
Now if you love food or Indian dal fry or dal tadka or every day Indian meal plans, give me a follow on Pinterest and Instagram where I share everyday food inspirations.
📖 Recipe

Punjabi Dhuli Moong Dal tadka Recipe | How to make moong dal tadka
Ingredients
- 200 g green gram husked ( moong dhuli dal)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
- ½ teaspoon chilli powder
- 1 tablespoon ghee
- 1 tablespoon ginger , finely chopped
- 3 Tbsps onions , finely chopped
- 150 g Tomatoes ( 2 nos), finely chopped
- ½ teaspoon garam masala powder
- 2 tablespoon coriander leaves chopped - to garnish
- 1 chile small green sliced
Instructions
- Wash lentils completely till water starts to come out clean, preferably use unpolished organic lentils as they taste better and are nutritious , polishing makes them look good but takes away the healthy outer layer which contains many vitamins and minerals.
- Take a heavy pan or handi { I used this }, place the dal along with 2.5 cups of water, turmeric, red chilli powder and salt. Cook till dal starts to boil, cover it half and let it simmer till it is nearly done which will take about 15 minutes, keep checking because it is too easy to overcook dhuli moong ki dal. That does not taste change , but appearance is changed and we do not like mushy dal so I keep a watch.
- You can pressure cook it too, just cook till one whistle and immediately cool the pressure cooker under running water and open the lid once pressure is out completely. It's a quick method of cooking.
- Now to prepare the Tadka
- Take a frying pan and add a generous amount of ghee, I used 2 tablespoon sometimes I use olive oil too but it tastes better if you use ghee (clarified butter).
- When ghee melts add chopped onion and saute till translucent.
- Now when Onion start to turn pink, add tomatoes along with garam masala powder and cook it while constantly stirring with a ladle or spoon.
- Add this tadka to the cooked dal and mix well and serve hot.
Warwick
This was lovely and very easy, thank you 🙂
sana
You have not mentioned ginger garlic in the recipe whereas it's in the ingredients.
Rekha Kakkar
It is always optional there are punjabi families who don't use them.
saira huma
lovely! simple and homely moong dal recipe
Sonali
Tired this recipe today and I have to say it was simply delicious!!! Thanks a ton!
Z
When should the ginger and green chilli be added?
Z
Also cook the onion and tomato for how long?