Dal Is The Ultimate Comfort Food, And No One Can Tell Me Otherwise

There’s something quietly heroic about dal. It doesn’t arrive with the dramatic flair of a biryani or the elegance of a soufflé. It doesn’t demand a spotlight or a ceremony. And yet, it is the quintessential dish of many Indian homes, the one constant on plates across states. 

On blue days, just a bowl of yellow warmth, some rice, with mango pickle, and the world makes a little more sense. I fell in love with arhar dal over a summer break many years ago at my maasi’s house. My mother eventually had to call and ask why her daughter, otherwise an extremely picky eater, was suddenly requesting dal with such obsession. The secret, it turned out, was a finishing touch: diced onions with lemon juice and salt. That simple addition transformed the dish into the ultimate comfort food for me.

As a child, dal-rice was my safe zone, gentle, predictable, and always there. It became the first dish I truly mastered when I moved out, from Delhi to Mumbai, learning to feed myself in a city that didn’t always pause to care. 

Different Versions, Similar Emotions

This classic lentil dish has many variations across cultures and states. Though I had grown up on the flavours of dishes made by my mother, I came to appreciate the humble flavours of a konkani GSB-style dalitoy, lovingly served by my friend Padmaja’s mom, with a teaspoon of ghee and some papads, a perfect meal away from home. 

Dal’s simple beauty is in its adaptability. Everyone has a version. Ekta Sinha, digital writer at ELLE India, swears by her red masoor dal, paired with a generous helping of potato chokha, a staple Bihari lunch. “You boil some potatoes, add a tadka of red chillies and garlic, and there you have it, make a generous ball of it and serve it with your classic dal rice,” she says.

When I visited Ujjain last August, my friend’s family introduced me to dal baati, which has plenty of ghee and Ratlami sev. The crunch of sev with the softness of dal and baati is the perfect contrast. It was a beautiful experience to eat this famous dish in its most authentic form. 

Taste Of Home No Matter Where You Are

This dish is a warm hug on days you need it the most. In sickness, it is soul food, and when you're living away from home, it feels even more sacred. In Germany, Niranjan More, has made cooking a Maharashtrian-style amti dal a weekly post-office ritual. “I like to cook a side of stir-fried masala bhindi with my dal and rice to make it a complete meal. Just the way my mom makes it back home.”

There are quiet, less-appreciated versions too, like arhar dal with steamed lauki. I am aware that not many people like this version of dal. But still, it is one of my favourite dishes made by my mother. Prekshi Negi, my friend and an unwavering fan, admits, “Not many people like it. But for those who do, it’s home.”

For Ipsita Kaul, fashion writer at ELLE India, kaali dal AKA maa ki dal is incomplete with a ghee and dried red chilli tadka with some fresh green chillies on the side. She says, “Even though I’m not a fan of rice, I obviously can’t have it without rice. I love it with that proper masala made of onions, tomatoes, and garlic.”

In a world of ever-changing trends and exotic fusions, dal remains gloriously unfazed. It doesn’t need validation or reinvention. It’s the dish we return to, in celebration and sadness, in health and hangovers. The popularity of this dish is real, and just as real is my love for it. A fiery tadka of garlic and chillies poured over my dal, and I’m good to face the world, or at least my inbox.