Calories in Panchmel Dal

Panchmel, or panchratna, dal is the five-dal dish of Rajasthan, traditionally eaten with baati and plenty of ghee. The recipe used here keeps to that spirit. For 4 portions it takes 50 g of chana dal and 44 g each of urad, moong, whole masoor and toor, with 100 g of tomato, 60 g of onion and 13 teaspoons of ghee. The source does not specify the bowl, so the serving is one of those 4 portions: about 11 g or 12 g of each dal and a little over 3 teaspoons of ghee. That is a main-dish helping, well beyond a side katori.

Fat supplies 44% of the energy, carbohydrate 39% and protein 17%. The proportions resemble an ordinary tadka dal; the scale does not. Each portion holds considerably more raw dal than a plain home bowl and more fat as well, which is how it reaches 335 kcal and stands last of 20 when the dals are ranked from the lightest. That fat is nearly all ghee, and so largely saturated. The five pulses bring 13.9 g of protein and 9.6 g of fibre, the best protein figure in the group.

One portion of panchmel dal is about 16% of a sedentary man's daily energy requirement and 20% of a woman's, the largest share of any dal in this comparison. Two portions come to 670 kcal and 27.8 g of protein, and three reach 1,005 kcal. For that energy it gives a lot back: 13.9 g of protein and 9.6 g of fibre in a single portion. With baati, roti or rice the protein of the meal is more complete. On a day that includes dal baati, lighter meals before and after keep the total in check.

A portion carries 16.1 g of fat, nearly all of it ghee and so largely saturated, and that is before any ghee on the baati. Anyone advised to watch saturated fat or cholesterol, or living with heart disease, should ask their doctor or dietitian how panchmel dal fits their plan. The dal itself is nourishing food; the ghee is the part to keep an eye on.