Name: Dal Makhani
Yield: 1 pot
Ingredients: 1½ cups whole dried urad dal (black lentils); ½ cup dried rajma (kidney beans); Kosher salt; 2 tbsp. ghee (preferred) or melted butter, plus more as needed; 1 tsp. cumin seed; 2 or 3 green cardamom pods; 1 black cardamom pod (optional); 1 bay leaf; 1 tsp. whole black peppercorns; 1 cinnamon stick; 2 or 3 cloves; 1 tbsp. ginger-garlic paste (see below); 1 cup diced white onion (about 1 medium onion); 1 to 2 Thai chillies or 2 to 3 serrano chillies (depending on your heat tolerance), finely chopped; 1 tsp. ground red chilli, such as Kashmiri; ¼ tsp. turmeric powder; 2 cups canned crushed tomatoes; ½ cup half-and-half; ½ tsp. garam masala; 1 tbsp. heavy cream, to finish; 1 tbsp. melted unsalted butter, to finish; A few sprigs of cilantro, for garnish; Naan (store-bought is fine) or paratha for serving; ¼ cup peeled and coarsely chopped fresh ginger (a knob about 3 inches long); ¼ cup garlic cloves (about 1 head); 1 to 2 tbsp. neutral oil, such as grapeseed

Makhani means “with butter,” and the same chef who claims to have invented butter chicken at Moti Mahal in Delhi also claims to have invented dal makhani, which is quite the track record. Whatever its origin, it’s very much a North Indian dish, as many Indian truck stops serve Northern-style Punjabi and Sikh food to cater to the truckers from this region.

The interesting twist here is the use of urad dal, or black lentils, which are traditionally considered difficult to cook with because they take a long time to break down. To make the cook time a little quicker, this dish is often made with a mix of urad and rajma (red kidney beans), a popular North Indian variation of dal. The result, thanks to the combination of legumes and the liberal use of ghee, butter, and cream, is a particularly thick, creamy, rich, and comforting dal.

Because of the long cooking time, legend has it that a traditional dal makhani is cooked low and slow overnight in the residual heat of a tandoor oven, giving it a bit of smokiness. —Meherwan Irani, from No. 1 Best Indian Cookbook in the World

Read our interview with Irani about his new cookbook, and get the recipes for his famous Desi salad and pork chop masala.

Dal Makhani

Yield: 1 pot

For the dal makhani

- 1½ cups whole dried urad dal (black lentils)
- ½ cup dried rajma (kidney beans)
- Kosher salt
- 2 tbsp. ghee (preferred) or melted butter, plus more as needed
- 1 tsp. cumin seed
- 2 or 3 green cardamom pods
- 1 black cardamom pod (optional)
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 tsp. whole black peppercorns
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 2 or 3 cloves
- 1 tbsp. ginger-garlic paste (see below)
- 1 cup diced white onion (about 1 medium onion)
- 1 to 2 Thai chillies or 2 to 3 serrano chillies (depending on your heat tolerance), finely chopped
- 1 tsp. ground red chilli, such as Kashmiri
- ¼ tsp. turmeric powder
- 2 cups canned crushed tomatoes
- ½ cup half-and-half
- ½ tsp. garam masala
- 1 tbsp. heavy cream, to finish
- 1 tbsp. melted unsalted butter, to finish
- A few sprigs of cilantro, for garnish
- Naan (store-bought is fine) or paratha for serving

For the ginger-garlic paste

- ¼ cup peeled and coarsely chopped fresh ginger (a knob about 3 inches long)
- ¼ cup garlic cloves (about 1 head)
- 1 to 2 tbsp. neutral oil, such as grapeseed

Preparation

Make the ginger-garlic paste: Combine the ginger, garlic, and 1 tbsp. of oil in a blender or mini food processor and blend until smooth, scraping the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. Add more oil if necessary to get an even paste.
Make the dal makhani: Cover the lentils and kidney beans with water by about 3 inches and soak overnight. Strain well. Bring a pot with 6 cups of fresh salted water to a boil. Boil the lentils and beans until soft but not mushy, 45 minutes to 1 hour. Strain and reserve the cooking liquid.
In a medium pot over medium-high heat, heat the ghee or butter until melted. Add the cumin seeds, green cardamom, black cardamom (if using), bay leaf, peppercorns, cinnamon, and cloves. When the spices begin to sizzle (about 1 minute), add the ginger-garlic paste and sauté until lightly brown, 1 to 2 minutes.
Add the onions, green chillies, and a healthy pinch of salt and turn the heat down to medium. Sauté, stirring frequently to prevent burning, until the onions are well browned, 7 to 10 minutes. If needed, add a tsp. or so more of ghee or butter so the onions don’t burn.
Add the ground red chilli and turmeric and fry for another minute. Add the crushed tomatoes and cook, stirring occasionally, until the tomatoes are glossy and the oil starts to separate from the edges, 4 to 6 minutes more.
Add the boiled dal/rajma—but don’t add the reserved cooking liquid yet—and stir into the tomato masala well, smushing the lentils a bit here and there with the ladle but leaving most intact, until the flavors meld, 3 to 4 minutes.
Add the reserved dal/rajma cooking liquid, the half-and-half, and the garam masala and simmer on medium-low until thick and creamy, about 15 minutes. Add a few tbsp. of water to thin it out, if necessary.
To serve, drizzle with heavy cream and melted butter, and garnish with cilantro. Serve hot with naan or paratha.
Leftover dal keeps, tightly covered in the refrigerator, for up to 5 days.

The Best Indian Cookbook in the World cover

Excerpted from No. 1 Best Indian Cookbook in the World: At-Home Recipes from the Streets, Truck Stops, Villages, and Palaces of India by Meherwan Irani, copyright ©2026, with permission from Ten Speed Press.

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