This Amritsari Dal is a deceptively simple recipe with BOLD flavours. It’s got the heavenly combination of cream, ghee, and butter – making this a rich and indulgent dish that’s just perfect for special occasions!

If you didn’t already guess from the very many dal recipes already on this blog, then let me start off by telling you how much I love dal. Be it my Langar Wali Dal (Maa ki Dal), Dhaba Dal Tadka with Double Tadka, Andhra Pappu or Dhaba Style Moong Dal, I think dals are nourishing, full of protein, and just so comforting!

And this Amritsari Dal is not exception. Made with simple ingredients that are cooked to perfection, the result is a dish that’s luxurious, aromatic, and absolutely delicious. It has got the most amazing dhaba style flavour and the most amazing creaminess. Making it ghee makes it super glossy and rich, and the texture is THICK – perfect for some garlic naan dipping action!

Ingredients for Amritsari Dal

Urad dal: We use whole black gram or kali dal to give this dal it’s signature creaminess

Aromatics: Lots and lots of onions, ginger, garlic, green chillies addd flavor and aroma

Tomatoes: Adds slight tanginess as well as balances out the flavor

Spices: Basic Indian spices like turmeric powder, red chilli powder, amchur (dry mango) powder, garam masala, coriander powder, and cumin powder add lots of flavor

Salt: For seasoning

Cream: For creaminess as well as to balance out the heat from the spices

Oil and Ghee: Use both oil (any neutral-flavored oil like vegetable, sunflower, canola, etc.) and ghee for that authentic flavor

Water: To pressure cook

How to make the Amritsari Dal

1. Clean, wash, and soak whole urad dal in water overnight. Drain the water. In a pressure cooker, add the soaked dal, 1 cup of onions, chopped ginger, salt, and 2 1/2 cups of water.

2. Pressure cook the dal mixture over medium flame for 15 to 20 minutes until the urad dal is cooked. Allow the pressure to release naturally before opening the lid.

3. Mash the cooked dal and add fresh cream.

4. Cook the dal on low flame for 10 minutes to thicken it. Set aside.

5. For tempering, heat oil and ghee in a small pan. Add the remaining onions, ginger-garlic paste, and green chillies. Sauté until the onions turn translucent. Add the chopped tomatoes and sauté for 3-4 minutes until the mixture starts releasing oil. Stir in the chilli powder, turmeric powder, amchur, coriander powder, cumin seed powder, garam masala, and salt. Sauté for 2-3 minutes.

6. Add the tempering mixture to the dal and simmer for 5 minutes. Adjust the consistency by adding ¼ to ½ cup of water as needed. Serve the dal garnished with fresh cream.

Frequently Asked Questions

Richa’s Top Tips

• Use lentils that are fresh for the best flavor. Older lentils tend to be harder to cook and change flavor over time
• Amritsari dal tends to thicken as it gets cold. So make sure to not thicken it too much when simmering
• Make sure to clean, wash, and soak the whole urad dal in water overnight. It makes the dal faster to cook and easier to digest. Texture is really important in this recipe so make sure you don’t skip this step.
• Mash the dal when it is cooked – this isn’t a common step when making most dals but we want this Amritsari Dal to be smooth and creamy. I just use a regular hand potato masher but you could use an immersion blender to do this as well.

Customisation Ideas

• Make this recipe vegan by simply omitting ghee and replace fresh cream with cashew cream. The flavors will differ slightly, but it will still taste amazing
• Although Dal Amritsari is authentically made with whole black gram, you can replace it with another lentil of your choice. Be sure to adjust the cooking time accordingly
• This recipe is not spicy, but feel free to increase or decrease the amount of chillies to suit your palette

Serving Ideas

• Warm butter garlic naan, fresh off the stove, and this creamy Amritsari Dal are a match made in heaven
• Same goes for a steaming plate of jeera rice–it’s comfort food at it’s best!
• Make a wholesome meal by serving this langar wali dal with some naan or roti, aloo ki sabzi, rice, and a simple green salad

If you’re hosting friends soon or looking to impress your family with a lip smacking meal – this creamy Amritsari Dal has got to be on your radar to make next! 

I love doing a whole spread of this dal, tandoori chicken, basmati rice, garlic naan, lachha paratha with some pickled pink onions, green chillies and green chutney on the side.

I’ll be posting a lot of dal recipes so be sure to check them out. Our humble lentils can really be so impressive. As always, if you make this be sure to tag me in your recreations on my Instagram 🙂 

Watch Recipe Video

This article was researched and written by Urvi Dalal.