It is an Indian Punjabi delicacy made up of black lentils soaked overnight and cooked on low heat for hours. The mixture of thinly chopped tomato, onion, ginger paste, red chilli powder, cumin powder and asafoetida (hing) is heated in clarified butter with herbs like 1or 2 cinnamon sticks, 1-2 cloves and 1-2 bay leaves to get the dal masala.
The dish looks reddish buttery due to the presence of whole black urad dal and kidney beans, used as the basic components. Herbs clove, cinnamon and bay leaves enhance the overall taste. Laurus Nobilis or bay leave has aromatic properties. It is also a good source of vitamin A, vitamin C, potassium, iron, magnesium and calcium. It helps in the breakdown of proteins and ease digestion.
Fresh butter is added after mixing the cooked lentils with the makhani curry to get the creamy flavour. Dollops of cream and butter with finely chopped coriander leaves are used to garnish the dish.
Asafoetida is added to dal makhani to ease digestion of lentils and butter. A pinch of the powder of Asafoetida is used in the preparation of many Indian dishes made of lentils. It has a strong pungent flavour and tastes garlicky. One can replace it with garlic to evade the strong pungent flavor.