Mung Soup with Ginger and Eggplant
इतरः पूर्ववत् कार्यः पाकः पाकविचक्षणैः । प्रक्षालितान्वरान्मुद्गान् समतोये विनिक्षिपेत् ॥ ६७ ॥ चुल्यां मृद्वग्निना पाकः कर्तव्यः सूपकारकैः । पच्यमानेषु मुद्गेषु हिङ्गुवारि विनिक्षिपेत् ॥ ६८ ॥ आर्द्रकस्य च खण्डानि सूक्ष्माणि च विनिक्षिपेत् । वार्ताकं पाटितं तैलभृष्टं तत्र विनिक्षिपेत् ॥ ६९ ॥ तैलभृष्टा मृदूभूताः क्षिपेद्वा बिसचक्रिकाः । बीजानि वा प्रियालस्य क्षिप्त्वा दर्व्या विवर्तयेत् ॥ १३७० ॥ पुनः पुनः क्षिपेत्तोयं स्तोकं स्तोकं विचक्षणः । केचिदिच्छन्ति रुच्यर्थं मेषमांसस्य खण्डकान् ॥ ७१ ॥ वृक्कान्वापि द्विधा भिन्नान्मेदसः शकलानि वा । मुहुः सूपे सुनिष्पन्ने चूर्णितं मरिचं क्षिपेत् ॥ ७२ ॥
He should put washed, choice mung beans into an equal measure of water. The cooking is to be done on the stove with a gentle fire by the soup-cooks. While the mung beans are cooking he should throw in asafoetida-water, and he should also throw in small pieces of fresh ginger. Eggplant, split and fried in oil, he should throw in there. Or he may put in lotus-stem discs, fried in oil and gone soft, or the kernels of the charoli; having put them in, he should turn them about with the ladle. Again and again the discerning man should add water, a little at a time. Some, for the sake of relish, want pieces of sheep's flesh, or kidneys split in two, or slices of fat. When the soup is well done he should repeatedly put in powdered pepper.
Ingredients
- 250 g whole mung beans, hulled mung beans, or split yellow mung dal
- 900 ml water, plus more as needed
- ¼ tsp asafoetida
- 20 g fresh ginger, finely diced
- 250 g eggplant, cut into 2 cm pieces
- 30 ml neutral oil
- 1 tsp fine salt
- ½ tsp ground black pepper
- ½ tsp ground dried ginger
- Optional: 250 g boneless lamb, cut into small pieces
- Optional alternative to eggplant: 200 g sliced lotus root or 50 g chopped charoli nuts
Method
- Rinse the mung. Combine it with 750 ml water and the asafoetida, bring to a boil, then cover partly and simmer gently.
- If using lamb, add it after the first 10 minutes and simmer until tender.
- Heat the oil in a frying pan and cook the eggplant until browned and soft. Add it to the mung with the fresh ginger.
- Continue cooking until the mung breaks down into a thick soup, adding the remaining water little by little. Whole mung beans can take 1 to 1½ hours to soften fully; hulled mung or split mung dal take 30–40 minutes. Soaking whole beans overnight shortens them to about 45 minutes.
- Stir in the salt and black pepper. Remove from the heat, add the dried ginger, and serve.