Deconstructed Masoor Dal Cutlet Sandwich

Deconstructed Masoor Dal Cutlet Sandwich is a fusion recipe. The cutlets are made with lentils and Indian spices and served like a sandwich with veggies, cheese and chutney. This sandwich is appetizing and very filling. It also makes a great lunchbox recipe. 

I have named this dish Deconstructed Masoor Dal Cutlet Sandwich! Masoor dal is another popular lentil commonly used in Indian cooking. Lentils (also known as dal) in Indian cuisine are cooked in a variety of ways. They are also called dal, when they are cooked in a soup or stew form,  for ex – Sultani Dal. Lentils like masoor dal, chana dal, tur dal, moong dal, etc have an earthy flavor to them and is one of the earliest foods mankind has been consuming. We at home too like most Indians think that dal rice is the best comfort food ever! Most Sunday menus consist of any kind of dal along with rice and papad. They are rich in fiber, carbs, proteins and vitamins. 

While I make a lot of recipes using different lentils like Masala Dal Vada/Lentil Fritters, Masoor Dal/Pink Lentils cooked with Spinach, Moong Dal Sticks, Lentils & Black Rice Burger, and Green Bengal Lentils ki sabzi, the recipe that I made today tops the list! Deconstructed Masoor Dal Cutlet Sandwich is totally my brainchild. Most of my afternoons are spent watching cooking shows like Chopped, Iron Chef or Masterchef Australia. The chefs there make a variety of deconstructed recipes. Why the name deconstructed?  In food context, it means that you take the main ingredients from the meal and let them all come together on the plate to make the “constructed” meal that we are used to or something similar to that. Watching these shows motivated me to make my very own deconstructed sandwich.

For this recipe, I have used the regular masoor dal cutlets, shaped them like burgers and made a sandwich of it! Even the chutney I have made for this recipe is something different. It’s Scallion Ginger Chutney. I had been wanting to make a burger for a long time now. The last time I used any bread in a recipe was when making Stuffed Potato French Loaf. That was a supremely delicious dish which I and KR finished in one sitting. I love bread recipes because they are filling, you can get very creative with the stuffing, try different chutneys/sauces to enhance the flavors and they are very easy to make!

My neighbor aunty used to make spicy masoor dal cutlets. She was my inspiration behind this gorgeous creation. I had got fresh bread for the week and was wondering what specialty sandwich I should make for lunch when it struck to me to make an Indian spiced cutlet and use it as a burger filling. That way I get to have the best of both cuisines. Masoor dal cutlets are very flavorful, crispy and have a slight crunch to it. I teamed it up with Scallions Ginger Chutney and veggies to make my lunch sandwich. It was a fun process all along. 

To make the cutlet, soak masoor dal for 2 hours. Strain and grind it coarsely. In a mixing bowl, add onions and ginger, garlic and green chillies paste. Add the coarsely ground masoor dal. Mix it all together. 

Heat oil in a pan, Temper cumin seeds. Add the dal mixture and fry it for 3-4 minutes. The mixture will dry up and leave the sides of the pan easily. 

Take it off the flame and let it cool a bit. In another mixing bowl, add onions, spinach, cilantro, amchur powder, chilly powder, coriander cumin powder and salt. Mix and add the cooled down dal mixture to it. Give it a good mix. Shape them into cutlets and shallow fry them. If the mixture is too dry, add some chickpea flour and little water to bind them. 

To make the sandwich, toast the bread in a toaster. Apply Scallions Ginger Chutney on one side of each bread. Place a cutlet over it and break it lightly. Spread it with your fingers to cover the bread. Place some onions over it. You can choose to add more veggies here like cucumber, tomato and bell peppers. 

Add cheese sauce on top. Place a lettuce leaf on top and cover it with another bread. You can also grill the sandwich at this point if you want. For that, you need not toast the bread at first and you can use cheese slices instead. 

Deconstructed Masoor Dal Cutlet Sandwich is now ready to be devoured! You can serve it as is or with some ketchup. 

This also makes a great lunchbox recipe. The kids will surely love this sandwich. You can alter the spice level for them. These cutlets can be made in advance and stored. Use them as and when needed. This makes tiffin an easier task.

Deconstructed Masoor Dal Cutlet Sandwich is a fusion recipe. The cutlets are made with lentils and Indian spices and served like a sandwich with veggies, cheese and chutney. This sandwich is appetizing and very filling. One really cannot miss the freshness and spicy flavor of this sandwich. I could easily eat this all day and not get bored with it. This is surely a sandwich worth trying!

If you do try this recipe, please do share it with your friends on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest. This will keep me motivated to develop more interesting recipes. Click a pic and post it with the hashtag #cookiliciousveg — I would love to see your pictures on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter!