Aunty's Melbourne Dhal

Using Winter Vegetables

When I moved to Melbourne quite a few years ago, one of the things I missed from Fiji were the tropical fruits and vegetables. Food in Fiji was a source of joy. Even the seasonality of it as the food was not taken for granted. The joys of in-season mangoes, Daruka or Naibi was unbeatable and provided something to look forward to year on year. Melbourne in contrast did not seem to serve as many vegetables or at least the number that I could name at that time.

This is why I was surprised to find that my auntie who had lived in Melbourne for quite some time was adding celery and carrots to her Maisoor Dhals. For the record, I had never eaten celery before. Celery by itself is not a tasty vegetable but provides a nice subtle taste difference in dhals. I certainly didn’t know of the holy trinity of carrots, onion and celery used in French, Spanish and Italian cuisines.

The benefits of carrots and celery are that they are available all year long here in Melbourne, and are also economical. It is quite easy to grow your own celery as well. Migration is not easy for anyone, the key is adapting to the new country. While almost all tropical vegetables are available now in Melbourne, especially in summer, it is important to me to use vegetables that can be grown locally and therefore cause the least climate damage in having to be transported over thousands of miles.

In changing the traditional dhal recipe to Melbourne dhal, I am not only becoming a part of Melbourne but changing Melbourne a bit to be more like me. I love giving this dhal to my friends. Cheers to Dhal! Perhaps our personal identities are just like recipes. We change them as we move through this world.

Ingredients for base dhal:

• 1-1.5 cups red Masoor and Mung dhal mixed and soaked

• 2 large carrots grated or diced

• 2-3 sticks of celery (hard end removed) sliced (optional, this is not traditional)

• Water

• Hing (Asafoetida) - optional

• salt

• turmeric (haldi) powder

• chilli powder

• lemon or white vinegar

Tempering:

• Oil (vegetable or olive)

• black mustard seeds

• cumin seeds

• fenugreek seeds (optional)

• freshly grated ginger (or ginger paste)

• freshly grated turmeric (optional)

• freshly grated garlic (optional)

• diced onions (optional)

• fresh or dried chillies

Additional Items When you want to change the taste a bit:

• 2 freshly grated tomatoes or tomato paste

• fresh coriander

• fresh curry leaves

• crystallised sugar (jaggery)

• black pepper

• tamarind.

Method:

1. boil the masoor dhal until the dhal is mushy

2. in the meantime, add the carrots, turmeric powder, hing and celery, with salt and chilli powder according to taste

3. add lemon juice

4. taste this mixture to ensure that there is enough salt and the dhal is slightly tangy. This is the base dhal finished. At this point, you can freeze half of it to use on another day.

5. Start making the tempering by using a frying pan and adding enough oil to it to cover the base

6. add the black mustard, cumin and fenugreek seeds to the oil. Cover the pan with a lead and listen for the seeds to pop. Once they splutter slightly, turn the heat off so you can add additional ingredients without burning your hand

7. Carefully lift the lid and add the diced onions initially and then the other ingredients. Turn the heat back on

8. Once the onions are slightly browned, add this mixture on top of the base dhal.

9. The taste for this dhal can be changed by adding the additional ingredients listed. However, just the base dhal makes a great dish on its own. The other ingredients can be used to make the dhal more tangy or sweet, depending on the taste preferences. Fresh garlic, ginger and turmeric can be added to the base dhal without frying it first too.

10. You may need to add additional water later on or butter to the dhal later on in case the mixture gets too thick.