I am going to share the last dal recipe from the North-Eastern states. It is the daineiiong from Meghalaya. It is pronounced as Dai-Nei-Iong, and it is one of the staple foods of Meghalaya’s Khasi tribe. So what is Daineiiong? It’s the Meghalaya style dal prepared with lentils and black sesame seeds. It was quite hard to find a dal recipe from Meghalaya. During my search, I landed upon this recipe. When I further investigated, I found many of my fellow bloggers have tried this daineiiong with their variation during the 2014 blogging marathon. Initially, I planned to go with black gram dal but later decided to use masoor dal and toor dal combination. Black gram dal and masoor dal is famous in both Assam and Meghalaya. (Meghalaya was part of Assam till 1972) As I used black gram for the Assamese dal, I decided to go with masoor dal. Black sesame seeds are one of the common ingredients used in Meghalaya cuisine. As I further researched, I came across this recipe doneiiong, which is nothing but pork curry with black sesame seeds. All you need for this dal is lentils, water, salt, ginger-garlic paste, and sesame seeds. That’s all. But I did add a little bit of paprika as the dal was a little bland for us. Here comes the simple, Meghalaya style dal – Daineiiong.
Instant Pot Daineiiong | Meghalaya Style Dal with Sesame Seeds with detailed step-wise pictures
Ingredients:
Brown Masoor Dal – ½ cup Toor Dal – ½ cup Water – 2 cups Salt – 1 tsp Ginger Garlic Paste – 1 tsp Black Sesame Seeds – 1 tbsp heaped. Oil – 1 tsp Paprika – 1 tsp
Prep – Work:
Wash the dals and soak for 10 to 15 minutes.
Instant Pot Method:
Set the IP in saute mode and once it is hot, add the sesame seeds and dry roast for two minutes. Once they start to splutter, turn the IP off and remove it from IP and allow it to cool. Then grind it into a coarse powder without adding any water. Now set the IP in the saute mode and add oil. Once the oil is hot, add the ginger-garlic paste.
Then add the dals and saute it along with the ginger garlic paste for a minute.
Now add two cups of water and salt. Set the IP in manual mode and cook for 10 minutes and let the pressure release naturally. Once the pressure is released, carefully open the lid.
Set the IP back to saute mode and add the powdered sesame seed powder and paprika. Mix and mash the dal nicely. Let it simmer for two to three minutes and turn off the IP. That’s it. Daineiiong is ready. Serve hot with rice.
Pressure Cooker Method:
Heat a pan or kadai and once it is hot, add the sesame seeds and dry roast for two minutes. Once they start to splutter, turn the heat off and allow it to cool. Then grind it into a coarse powder without adding any water. Meanwhile, cook the dal by adding two cups of water for three whistles in the pressure cooker and let the pressure release naturally. Once the pressure is released, mash the dal nicely. Heat the kadai and add oil. Once the oil is hot, add the ginger-garlic paste. Saute for a minute and add the cooked dal, powdered sesame seeds, paprika, and salt. Mix them all and let it simmer for 5 minutes. That’s it. Daineiiong is ready. Serve hot with rice.
Notes:
You can any single dal or mix and match your preference, or use black gram dal. The original recipe doesn’t call for paprika, but I included just for additional spice. Adjust the salt as per your preference.
📖 Recipe
