Amritsari dal

Everyday Indian curry paste

• 30 g cumin seeds
• 2 - 3 dried bay leaves
• 30 g coriander seeds
• 1 tsp whole cloves
• 12 cardamom pods (black)
• ½ cinnamon quill
• ¼ tsp black peppercorns
• 2 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder
• 1 tbsp ground ginger
• 2 tsp ground turmeric
• 5 brown onions (approx. 700 g), cut into quarters
• 2 fresh long green chillies trimmed and cut into halves (optional)
• 1 tbsp garlic paste (see Tips)
• 1 tbsp ginger paste (see Tips)
• 40 g ghee (see Tips)
• 40 g canola oil
• 30 fresh curry leaves
• 800 g canned whole tomatoes
• 1 tbsp brown sugar
• 1 tbsp Vegetable stock paste (see Tips)
• 1 tsp salt

Dal

• 100 g urad dal (see Tips)
• 80 g toor dal (see Tips)
• 250 g water plus extra for soaking
• 15 g fresh coriander leaves, stalks and roots, cut into thirds, plus extra leaves for garnishing (see Tips)
• 10 g fresh mint leaves only, plus extra for garnishing
• 30 g ghee (see Tips)
• 1 - 2 brown onions (approx. 200 g), cut into quarters
• 5 fresh long green chillies trimmed, cut into halves and deseeded, if preferred
• 1 tbsp garlic paste (see Tips)
• 1 tbsp ginger paste (see Tips)
• 400 g canned chopped tomatoes
• ½ tsp Kashmiri chilli powder
• 1 tsp garam masala (see Tips)
• 1 ½ tsp salt