Instant Pot Mooli Dal - White Radish Lentil Soup
Let's get cooking this super easy and healthy lentil soup/dal.
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp oil of choice
- 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
(jeera)
- 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
(rai)
- 2 whole dried red chili peppers
- 1 serrano pepper (green chili pepper) (sliced into 2 halves lengthwise)
- 1/4 tsp asafoetida
(heeng)
- 1/2 daikon (white radish) (2 cups peeled and chopped into 1.5 inch pieces)
- 1 tsp ginger garlic paste
(freshly minced or packaged)
- 1 cup split yellow moong
beans/lentils (split yellow moong dal/moong dal dhuli)
- 3.5 cups water
- 1.5 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp ground turmeric
(haldi)
- 2 tbsp cilantro (fresh and finely chopped) (dhaniya ke patte)
beans/lentils 
Instructions
Prep
- Wash the lentils a few times and discard the water. Make sure there is no residual water.
- Wash and finely chop the cilantro.
- Chop the long radish into two halves. Wash and peel one half and dice it into 1.5 inch cubes. Save the other half for use next time.
Cook
- Select sauté on the instant pot and adjust to normal.
- Add oil to the pot.
- When the oil is hot add cumin seeds and mustard seeds.
- When the seeds splutter, add whole dried red chili peppers, serrano pepper, and asafoetida. Stir.
- Then add the chopped white radish. Stir and let the radish sauté for roughly one minute.
- Then add the ginger garlic paste.
- Then add the lentils (dal) and water.
- Add salt and ground turmeric.
- Scrape off the sides and bottom to make sure nothing is stuck on the sides or bottom.
- Press cancel.
- Secure the lid on the pot and close the pressure-release valve.
- Select manual and cook at high pressure for 10 minutes.
- When cooking is complete, use quick pressure release to depressurize.
- Open the lid.
- Transfer into a serving bowl and garnish with fresh cilantro.
Serve
- Serve with steamed rice, roti or naan (Indian flatbread).