House Black Daal

Source: Dishoom's cookbook

Ingredients:

• 300g whole (black) urad daal
• 12g garlic paste
• 10g ginger paste
• 70g tomato puree
• 8g fine sea salt
• 2/3 tsp deggi mirch chilli powder
• 1/3 tsp garam masala
• 90g unsalted butter
• 90ml double cream

Method

1. Put the daal into a large bowl, cover with water and whist for 10 seconds. Let the daal settle, then pour out the water. Repeat 3 or 4 times, until the water is clear.
2. Tip the daal into a large saucepan and pour in at least 4 litres of cold water. Bring to the boil and cook steadily for 2-3 hours. Sim off any impurities that rise to the surface, and add more boiling water as required to keep the grains well covered. The daal grains need to become completely soft, with the skins coming away from the white grain. When pressed, the white part should be creamy rather than crumbly. When cooked, turn off the heat and allow the pan to sit for 15 minutes.
3. In a bowl, mix the garlic and ginger pastes, tomato puree, salt, chilli powder and garam masala to a paste.
4. Carefully pour off the daal cooking water then pour on enough freshly boiled water to cover the daal by 3-4cm. Bring to the boil over medium-high heat and add the aromatic paste and butter. Cook rapidly for 30 minutes, stirring regularly to prevent the mixture from sticking. 
5. Lower the heat and simmer for 1-1,5 hours, stirring regularly to prevent it from sticking and adding a little boiling water if the liquid level gets near the level of the grains. Eventually, it will become thick and creamy. The creaminess must come from the grains disintegrating into the liquid and enriching it, not from the water being allowed to evaporate leaving only the grains behind. 
6. Add the cream and cook for a further 15 minutes. Serve with chapatis or other Indian bread.
7. Note: when reheating any leftover daal you may need to add a little more liquid. Use cream or cream and water rather than water alone.