Parsi home-cooking: Easy Dhansak recipe

Sunita Kohli, Dhansak with potatoes and naan, and the cover of The India Cookbook (Aleph). (Dhansak photo by David Pursehouse from Kawasaki, Japan via Wikimedia Commons)

Frenny Billimoria, author of The Diabetic's Cookbook and The Party Cookbook, has been immensely interested in entertaining and feeding people for decades, if her friends are to be believed. A few years ago, another upholder of Parsi traditions, Gara saris, Ashdeen Lilaowala shared on Instagram that he was in awe of Billimoria's hands because not only did she lovingly make delicious home-cooked meals, but also learnt pottery to make her own dishes to serve it in.

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Frenny Billimoria is one of over 100 people who contributed to The India Cookbook: From the Tables of My Friends, selected and edited by Sunita Kohli. Some of the other recipe contributors are William Dalrymple, Pheroza and Jamshed Godrej, Monica and Charles Correa, Yamini and Ashok Jaipuria, Falaknuma Palace's Ezra Jha, and Aruna Sairam.

The books, as Kohli explains in the introduction, "is not a panoramic overview of food in the Indian subcontinent; rather, it is about the pluralism of Indian food and the variety in home-style cooking. It is about artisanal food, cooked and served in the homes of one’s many friends throughout the length and breadth of India."

DHANSAKH WITH BROWN RICE AND KACHUMBER

FRENNY BILLIMORIA DELHI

SERVES: 6–8 PREPARATION TIME: 2 HOURS

INGREDIENTS

For the dhansakh

Mutton leg or shoulder 960 gms or Chicken (not broiler) 1½ kg jointed, cut into 2-inch pieces, on the bone

For boiling

Pigeon peas 210 gms

Red lentils 60 gms

Black grams 30 gms

Bengal gram 30 gms

Red pumpkin 200 gms, cubed

Aubergine 1 small, cubed

Potatoes 2 medium, cubed

Onion 1 medium, chopped

Ginger paste 1 tbsp

Garlic paste 1 tbsp

Green chillies 4, de-seeded

Fenugreek leaves 1, small bunch

Turmeric powder 1 tsp

Chilli powder 1 tsp

Cumin powder 1 tsp

Coriander powder 1 tbsp

Dhansakh masala powder 1 tbsp

Green cardamom pods 2, crushed

Cinnamon 1 inch stick

For frying

Ghee 3 tbsp

Onion 2 large, sliced

Ginger paste 1 tsp

Garlic paste 1tsp

Turmeric powder 1 tsp

Green chillies 2, de-seeded and finely chopped

Dhansakh masala powder 2 tbsp

Chilli powder 1 tsp

Black pepper powder ½ tsp

Clove powder ¼tsp

Cinnamon powder ½ tsp

Cardamom powder ½ tsp

Cumin powder 1 tsp

Tomatoes 2 medium-sized, chopped

Jaggery 2 tbsp walnut-sized, crumbled

Salt to taste

For brown rice

Rice (Basmati) 750 gms

Ghee 2 tbsp

Onions 2, finely sliced

Cloves 6

Cinnamon 1 inch stick

Black cardamom pods 2, split

Green cardamom pods 3, split

Whole peppercorns 6

Bay leaves 2

Sugar 1 tsp

For garnish

Onions ½ cup, sliced and fried

Raisins 1 tbsp, fried

Almonds/cashew nuts 1 tbsp, fried

For kachumber

Onions 4, chopped

Tomatoes 4, chopped (same size as onions)

Green chillies 3, deseeded and chopped

Coriander leaves 1½ tbsp, chopped

Vinegar 1½ tbsp

Sugar to taste

Salt to taste

Raw mango (if in season) 1, chopped finely

METHOD

First, begin preparing the dhansakh. Wash the meat and dals
thoroughly.

Place the meat in a pot with enough water to cover. To this, add all
the ingredients listed under ‘for boiling’; bring this pot to a boil. Cook
until the meat is tender.

While the meat cooks, wash the rice and soak in water for half an
hour. Strain and leave to drain for 15 minutes.

Remove the meat and reserve. Pass the boiling liquid with the dal
through a strainer so the dal becomes almost paste-like. Set aside and
discard residue.

Heat ghee in a wok. Add onions to this and fry till golden blown.

Add ginger and garlic paste and fry for a minute.

Add all the other ingredients under ‘for frying’ and fry on a low flame till the ghee floats to the top. Add jaggery and taste for salt. Add this to the dal.

Put the meat back into the dal and bring to a boil, then take off the heat.

For the brown rice, heat ghee in a large pan and add the sliced
onions and fry them till golden brown.

Add cloves, cinnamon, cardamom pods, peppercorns, and bay
leaves and fry for a minute on low heat.

Add sugar and let it caramelize until it turns a rich brown colour.
Then add four cups of hot water and bring to a boil.

Add rice and cook covered over low heat till the rice is done and
all the water has been absorbed.

While the rice cooks, prepare the kachumber by mixing all the
listed ingredients together.

Serve the rice in a flat dish and sprinkle with fried onions and
dried fruits alongside the dhansakh (reheat if needed) and kachumber.