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Serves
4
For this Basic
Tarka recipe you need
1 tablespoon ghee
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 dried red chili ( crushed or whole )
½ teaspoon asafoetida powder
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
Basic Tarka Recipe
In a ladle or small
frying pan, heat the ghee. Add the spices and
sauté for a few minutes, until well-toasted
and fragrant. Add the tarka to the dal dish and
cover immediately with a tight-fitting lid. Allow
to stand for a few minutes while the flavors blend.
Variation
:
When making a moong bean dal, use the seeds of
1 black
Cardamom pod, 2 whole cloves, and 1 teaspoon black
cumin
Seeds.
Background information
on this Basic Tarka recipe
A tarka, or spice-flavored
ghee, is prepared and added to a dish just before
serving.
There are two popular types of tarkas: those made
with garlic and dried red pepper, and those made
with cumin, cardamom, and cloves. Both contain
a pinch of asafoetida powder. With moong dal,
the cumin seed tarka is usually used.
A tarka is usually
part of a basic raita. Raitas or Yogurt salads
are an ideal summer food because yogurt is cooling
and has a regenerating effect on the system. In
winter, yogurt's cooling effect can be balanced
with the help of warming spices, such as nutmeg,
saffron, cinnamon, ginger or cloves.
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