Mulyacha Chatka (Radish and Chana Dal Salad)

grated radish

Ground Chana dal and spices..

The ingredients to be ground..

After adding the tempering..

Mulyacha Chatka

Mulyacha Chatka is another winter favourite food of mine. Although radishes are available almost throughout the year in Pune, the best produce arrives only in the winter months; and that is when I like making salads with them, so the flavor is nice and sharp.

This is a traditional Maharashtrian side dish made with radish and chana dal (split Bengal gram), which can be had as a salad with roti-sabji, parathas or dal-rice. But it goes very well as a dip with pita bread and nachos as well. The thing I like most about these traditional dishes is the balance they strike with the ingredients; so while gram and radish are both hard to digest and cause flatulence, the recipe also uses ginger, asafetida and carom seeds which aid digestion; so overall, it becomes very nutritious.

Ingredients:

1 cup Chana dal (split Bengal gram/chick peas);

1 Radish, peeled and grated;

2 long green chillies (hari mirch) (these are not very hot);

½ inch piece of ginger (adrak), peeled and roughly chopped;

1 tsp lemon juice;

1 tsp cumin (jeera) seeds;

½ tsp carom seeds (ajwain);

¼ tsp mustard seeds (rai/mohri);

6-7 curry leaves,

A pinch of asafetida (hing);

Few drops of Oil;

Salt to taste;

Sugar to taste;

Coriander leaves (to garnish).

Method:

1. Soak the Chana Dal in water for 6-7 hours (or overnight). Then place in a sieve and drain the excess water.
2. Transfer the soaked Chana Dal in a wet grinding jar and add the chopped ginger, 1 chopped green chilly and ½ tsp cumin seeds to it. Grind to make a course paste. (Do not use any water for grinding, the radish will later release its own juices and the consistency will differ.)
3. Transfer the ground dal and spices to a bowl and add the grated radish, carom seeds, salt, sugar and lime juice to it. Mix well.
4. Heat a few drops of oil in a small kadhai (wok) until the oil starts smoking. Add the mustard seeds and allow the seeds to crackle. Reduce the heat and add cumin seeds, curry leaves, the other chopped green chilly (optional) and asafetida to the oil.
5. Pour this hot tempering to the dal and radish mixture.
6. Add some chopped coriander leaves and mix well. Serve as a side or salad.