Dal (or dhal) is a Sanskrit and Hindi term referring to pulses which have been stripped of their outer hulls and split, as well as to the thick, spicy stew prepared therefrom, a mainstay of Indian cuisine.

The hulling of a pulse is intended to improve digestibility and palatability, but carries some cost in nutrition by reducing fiber content.

Over 50 different varieties of pulses are known in India. The most popular dals include:

Toor dal 

Made from pigeon peas.

Chana dal 

Made from Bengali chickpeas.

Mung dal 

Made from mung beans.

Urad dal 

Made from urad, sometimes referred to in English as black gram.

Masoor dal 

Made from red lentils.

A dal recipe

An easy recipe for making most any dal is:

• 1 cup dal
• 2 cups water
• ½ inch ginger
• ¼ tsp turmeric

Boil the above in a pressure cooker (five minutes) or pot until cooked.

• 3 cloves garlic
• 3 curry leaves
• ½ tsp mustard seeds
• red chile powder

In a frying pan fry the garlic until light brown, add remaining ingredients, fry until mustard seeds pop (few seconds). Add to cooked dal. Add salt to taste.

Other uses

• Dal is also the name of a fictional alien race in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who: see Dal (Doctor Who).
• DAL is the ICAO airline code for Delta Air Lines.
• A Dal Hundred is a hundred of Ostrogothia in Sweden.
• DALnet is a large IRC network.