Urad Dal (Black Gram, Dried)

Urad Dal (Black Gram): Nutrition, History and Complete Cooking Guide

Urad dal (black gram, Vigna mungo) is a small legume closely related to the mung bean but quite distinct in flavour, texture, and culinary application. It exists in several commercial forms: whole black urad (small black beans with the skin intact, used for the famous slow-cooked dal makhani); split urad with skin (used in certain dals and pappadum production); and split hulled urad (white or cream-coloured, used to make idli and dosa batters). Urad is one of the most nutritionally important pulses in South Asian cuisine — it is central to the food traditions of Punjab (dal makhani — black urad simmered overnight with kidney beans, butter, and cream, is considered Punjab's signature dish), South India (where the fermented batter of urad and rice makes idli and dosa), and Sri Lanka. In India, urad is also used to make papad (pappadum), the thin crisp accompaniment eaten across the subcontinent, and is an important source of protein in the traditional ayurvedic diet.

Nutritional Value of Urad Dal

Dried black gram provides 341 kcal and 25.2 g of protein per 100 g — one of the highest protein pulses available — with 59 g of carbohydrates, 1.6 g of fat, and 18.3 g of fibre. When cooked: approximately 127 kcal and 8.7 g protein per 100 g. Urad provides exceptional folate, potassium, phosphorus, magnesium, iron, zinc, and thiamine. It is particularly rich in calcium among common pulses (approximately 138 mg per 100 g dry). The combination of high protein, fibre, and micronutrient density makes it one of the most nutritionally complete pulses.

How to Cook Urad Dal

Whole black urad: soak overnight, then simmer for sixty to ninety minutes or pressure cook for twenty to twenty-five minutes until tender. Dal makhani: cook soaked whole urad with a few kidney beans until very soft, then simmer in a tomato-onion-ginger-garlic gravy with butter and cream for several hours — the long cooking produces a silky, intensely flavoured dal. For idli/dosa batter: soak split hulled urad and rice separately, grind to a smooth batter, combine, and ferment overnight at room temperature until bubbly and slightly sour — the fermentation produces a uniquely flavoured, probiotic-rich batter.