Dalchaدالچہ

Name: Dalcha
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 60 min
Total time: 80 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Hyderabadi
Ingredients: 600 g bone-in mutton (goat) — gosht; 1 cup chana dal (split Bengal gram) — soaked 1 h; 2 large onion, thinly sliced; 2 medium tomatoes, chopped; 2 tbsp tamarind paste — imli; 2 tbsp ginger-garlic paste — adrak lehsun; ½ tsp turmeric powder — haldi; 1½ tsp red chilli powder — lal mirch; 1 tbsp coriander powder — dhaniya; ½ tsp garam masala; 10–12 leaves curry leaves — kari patta; 3 dried red chillies — sukhi lal mirch; 1 tsp cumin seeds — jeera; 3 tbsp oil or ghee; to taste salt; handful fresh coriander (cilantro) for garnish

⏱ Prep 20m🍳 Cook 60m🍽 Serves 4🌿 Non-veg

Video: Cook With Zain (YouTube)

Dalcha is the soul of the Hyderabadi home kitchen — bone-in mutton slow-cooked with chana dal until the lentils collapse into a thick, tart gravy perfumed with dried tamarind and whole spices. It travels to the table alongside rice or khichdi, never quite fitting a single category: neither a curry nor a dal, it occupies its own warm, unhurried territory.

📍 Make it in Plano

This recipe is the same everywhere — but where you buy the ingredients and eat the dish is local to you.

Finding Desi spots near Plano…

Ingredients

▪bone-in mutton (goat) — gosht600 g
▪chana dal (split Bengal gram) — soaked 1 h1 cup
▪onion, thinly sliced2 large
▪tomatoes, chopped2 medium
▪tamarind paste — imli2 tbsp
▪ginger-garlic paste — adrak lehsun2 tbsp
▪turmeric powder — haldi½ tsp
▪red chilli powder — lal mirch1½ tsp
▪coriander powder — dhaniya1 tbsp
▪garam masala½ tsp
▪curry leaves — kari patta10–12 leaves
▪dried red chillies — sukhi lal mirch3
▪cumin seeds — jeera1 tsp
▪oil or ghee3 tbsp
▪saltto taste
▪fresh coriander (cilantro) for garnishhandful

🌍 Cooking abroad? Substitutions

Mutton — lamb shoulder works equally well; for a lighter version use bone-in chicken thighs and halve the cook time.
Chana dal — yellow split peas from mainstream supermarkets substitute cleanly; check the Indian/Asian aisle first where the real thing is usually available.
Fresh tamarind paste can be replaced with 1 tbsp tamarind concentrate from a jar (widely stocked in Asian supermarkets); start with less and adjust — concentrate is more intense.

Method

1Pressure-cook chana dal with turmeric and 2 cups water for 3 whistles until soft; set aside.
2Heat oil in a heavy pot; fry onions until deep golden-brown, 15–18 min.
3Add ginger-garlic paste; cook 2 min. Add tomatoes, red chilli powder, and coriander powder; cook until oil separates, about 8 min.
4Add mutton pieces; sear on high heat 5 min, turning to coat in the masala.
5Add tamarind paste, 1 cup water, and salt; cover and simmer on medium-low 35 min until mutton is fork-tender (or 15 min in a pressure cooker at high pressure).
6Lightly mash the cooked dal and stir it into the mutton pot; simmer together 10 min until the flavours marry.
7Tempering: heat ghee in a small pan; add cumin seeds, dried red chillies, and curry leaves — let them splutter 30 sec; pour immediately over the dalcha.
8Stir in garam masala; taste and adjust tamarind and salt. Garnish with fresh coriander and serve with rice or khichdi.

A Desi.Net original recipe · part of our Indian Cuisine library. Confirm details and adjust to taste.