This Bengali Musur Dal Sheddo is a simple boiled red lentil dish often served with a dash of pungent mustard oil and chopped red onions, chilies, and fresh coriander leaves.

Masoor Dal or Red Lentils are one of the most frequently used lentils in an Indian kitchen. There are numerous ways to include it in our everyday meals, one among those being made into a side dish to be served with rice or flatbreads.

A lentil recipe can’t get any simpler than this. This Bengali masoor dal makha recipe has no carbohydrates and is power nutrient-packed with protein and vitamins.

Masoor Dal or Red Lentil Benefits

Masoor Dal or Red Lentils are super nutritious. Those who are following plant-based diets should consider including this in their daily meals for a considerable bulk of protein intake.

Other than that, here are some of the other reasons for you to buy this lentil in bulk and make Bengali masoor dal regularly.

1. Very easy to digest – Masoor dal is light on our stomachs. So, if someone is recovering from a serious ailment, they should include this in their daily diet.
2. Protein-rich lentils – Lentils are the powerhouse of protein. Those who are looking for plant-based options to include protein elements in their diet should concentrate hard on red lentils.
3. Beneficial to lactating mothers – Red lentils are extremely beneficial for lactating mothers as they provide nutrition to produce enriched breast milk for their infants.
4. Great infant meal idea – Most doctors prescribe Lentil Soup or Daal ka Pani (दाल का पानी ) when the baby turns 6 months. Boil 1 tsp of red lentil or masoor dal in 100 ml of water till the lentil is cooked completely and it looks like a soup. It is a wonderful and nutritious supplement for infants, a better substitute for plain water.
5. For quick meals – Red lentils are amazingly quick to cook. Even if you don’t own a pressure cooker or an Instant Pot, you can still make this masoor dal in a saucepan.

Ingredients for Bengali Masoor Dal Seddho recipe

• Red Lentils or Masoor Dal
• Mustard Oil
• Onion
• Green Chilies
• Fresh Coriander Leaves
• Salt
• Turmeric Powder

What is ‘dal sheddo’ or ‘dal makha’

Traditionally, the term ‘sheddo’ means boiled in the pot. As the water boiled in the pot for cooking rice, some varieties of veggies or lentils would be packed into a neat cloth parcel and dropped into it.

Once the rice gets cooked, this cloth parcel or the veggies would be scooped out of the starchy water and mashed with seasonings and oil. This would be served as the ‘prothom-paat‘ or the first side dish to the rice.

However, I don’t prefer cooking such veggies or lentils in starch water. Instead, I drop them in a pressure cooker and let it whistle a couple of times to get the perfect texture.

Another reason for me to cook them separately is that I don’t like to get the taste of my Basmati rice altered due to the addition of extra veggies or lentils in the same pot.

More Bengali Dal recipes

1. Arhar Dal with Onion-Tomato Spice Mix | Spicy Bengali Split Pea Dal Recipe
2. Arhar Dal | Bengali Split Pea Dal Recipe
3. Cholar Dal Recipe│Bengali Chana Daal Recipe
4. Kacha Aam Dal | Bengali Green Mango Dal Recipe
5. Masoor Dal | Bengali Split Red Lentil Dal Recipe
6. Kolai Dal | Biulir Dal | Bengali Urad Dal Recipe
7. Aam Ada diye Bhaja Muger Dal Recipe
8. Bengali Kacha Aam diye Motor Dal Recipe
9. Bengali Kacha Moong Dal Recipe
10. Motor Dal| Bengali Split Pea Dal Recipe

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