Dal Lucknowi, is a luscious tuvar dal recipe from nawabi cuisine. Cooked with milk and tempered with spices availabe in our everday pantry. It can be served with rice or enjoyed like a soup.
Jump to Recipe
Addition of milk makes the dal, more fuller and creamier. The mildly tempered spices makes it a light accompaniment with rice. The day i made this dal, my elder one , took the dal in a bowl and enjoyed it like a soup.

Toor dal/Tuvar dal, the split pigeon pea, is most regularly used dal in tamil cooking, sambar/rasam is made with this dal. Plain boiled dal, mashed with salt is served along with steaming hot rice and ghee as the first course in every festive meal.
When i came across the Dal Lucknowi recipe, i was surprised by the addition of milk to the dal. But, that is what makes this dal rich and smooth.
The dal can be made little spicy by adding red chilies in the tadka. But i haven't added it as i felt the chilies added while cooking the dal was enough.
If making for adults, i would recommed the red chilies in tadka or increase the green chilies for the punch.

Pair this scrumtious Dal lucknowi with steaming hot rice and any dry subzi, it would be the best comforting meal you can ever enjoy.
Check the Video on how to make Dal Lucknowi
Jump to VideoIf you pressure cook the directly in the cooker without another vessel inside then you can follow the instructions directly in the cooker. I usually use another bowl inside my cooker while cooking dal. Hence i have used a kadai/sauce-pan for the rest of recipe.

Dal Lucknowi
Equipment
- Sauce pan
Ingredients
- 1 cup Toor Dal/Tuvar Dal/ Split pigeon peas
- 2 nos green chilies chopped
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
- ¾ teaspoon salt or to taste
- ¾ cup milk i have used full fat
- Fresh coriander leaves for garnish
Tempering
- 1-2 teaspoon vegetable oil or ghee
- ¼ teaspoon mustard seeds/ kadugu
- ½ teaspoon cumin seeds /jeera
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- a sprig of curry leaf
- 2 nos broken red chilies optional, i didnt use
Instructions
- Wash and soak tuvar dal/toor dal for 15 minutes. Pressure cook dal with green chillies and 2 cups of water until soft.
- Heat a kadai, add the dal and 1 cup of water to it and let it come to a boil.
- While the dal boils, heat a small tadka pan with oil, splutter mustard seeds, add minced garlic, cumin, hing and curry leaves.
- Pour this sizzling tadka over the boiling dal and let it simmer. Check the consistency if its too thick, add ¼ cup of water to it.
- After 10 minutes, add milk to the dal and let it simmer for 8-10 minutes in a medium flame.
- Once all the flavors have mingled well, garnish it with fresh coriander leaves, take it off the stove and serve it warm with rice or enjoy it like a soup.
Video
Notes
- The dal thickens as it cools, so adjust the consistency accordingly. We prefer a mildly thick and pourable dal.
- You can also add some red chilies in the tadka and make it a bit more spicy, i didnt do it, Both my kids enjoyed it much
- If making for adults, i would recommend adding 2 red chilies or increase the green chili to 3 for a punch.
- The dal can be made ahead for parties, can be diluted and reheated just before serving. Makes a great crowd pleaser.
Disclaimer
I m not a Doctor or a Nutritionist The Nutrition information provided above comes from the plugin and is only an estimate.

This Dal lucknowi can be paired it with a simple Jodhpuri Aloo or yam fry or a Raw banana fry for a delicious lunch along with some papad and pickle.
Checkout another recipe made of toor dal, a creamy, spicy lachko dal.






Nalini's Kitchen says
Delicious and healthy dal dear......
Ms.Chitchat says
Perfect comfort dal.
Archana says
O wow I love the addition of milk to dal. Will do so tomorrow.
Usha says
Milk in dal, interesting! Slurp! slurp!
Rajani says
Nice recipe. Getting to see lots of dal varieties, thanks to BM 🙂
Aarthi says
They look delicious..Thanks for posting it dear..
Aarthi
http://yummytummy-aarthi.blogspot.com/
Srivalli says
Good to have you in the BM Priya..nice dal..
Harini says
very comforting!
Priya Suresh says
Super comforting dal..
Chef Mireille says
never had milk in dal before
Pavani says
Milk is definitely a surprise ingredient in a dal. Dish looks and sounds delicious.
Unknown says
Great to run the marathon with you Priya 🙂 Dal looks so comforting.
Gayathri Kumar says
Delicious dhal...
Unknown says
yummy and comforting dal!....can have it anytime!
Unknown says
Veri comfort food dall looks yumm.
vaishali sabnani says
adding milk to this daal is new to me.
HemasAdugemane says
Nice and tempting dal, name is so attractive. Yep, milk is new in dal.
The Pumpkin Farm says
looks good, so milk is the key ingredients i believe
vidhas says
LOOKS DELICIOUS, NEW RECIPE AND VERY DIFFERNT FROM USUAL DALS.
veena says
This dal is missing in my blog. Wil surely try this out...looks very nice
Suma Gandlur says
Never tried adding milk to dal. Got to try this.
Cool Lassi(e) says
Catchy name and a lovely dhal!
Padmajha says
Milk in dal is new to me. Must be delish..
Shailender Sharma says
Dal looks absolutely fantastic and what's new to me is a gravy based on milk. Fantastic
Lata Lala says
Dal Nawabi looks really a royal treat. Cooking dal with milk is a fab idea to give it a creamy texture.
Sandhya Ramakrishnan says
Priya, adding milk is so new for me. I am in love with the creamy texture of the dal. It is truly a Nawabi recipe and so easy to make too.
Pavani says
That is such a creamy and decadent looking dal. Milk definitely makes it rich and delicious. I think my kids will love this dish. Will try for them sometime.
Swati says
Never added milk to toor dal.. must have added a rich creamy texture.. wonderful share, will try it soon
Mayuri Patel says
A dal with milk, wow, that is absolutely new for me. It definitely is so creamy and inviting. Hope to try it out soon.
Padma Veeranki says
Any kind of dal is such a comfort food...I never ever added milk in dal...totally new to me!! I'm sure it helps give the dal a very creamy texture...Looks delicious
Jagruti's Cooking Odyssey says
This lucknowi daal is our favourite too, no one noticed that it included milk in it. so comforting.
Sapna says
Dal lucknowi looks so comforting, I love these kind of soul satiating comfort food.
Ruchi says
Dal lucknowi sounds so delicious. So easy to make yet very flavourful and delicious. Very well written Post. Lovely video
Jayashree T.Rao says
This dal with the addition of milk is new to me, I will try it soon. It looks so inviting.
Sasmita says
Dal cooked with milk sounds different Priya !
Love to have this dal with some steamed rice , definitely a comfort spread 🙂