🍢 SNACK
Dahi Baray (Lentil Dumplings in Spiced Yogurt)
Light, fluffy fried urad dal dumplings soaked soft in warm water, then smothered in chilled sweet and salty yogurt and finished with tamarind and green chutneys and chaat masala.
Pakistani · medium · serves 6
prep 30 min · cook 30 min · plus 7 h hands-off time
~216 cal · 5g protein · 11g carbs · 17g fat · 0g fiber · 10g sugars · 5g sat fat (estimated, per serving)
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Dahi means yogurt and baray are dumplings, and in Pakistan dahi baray are one of the fixed dishes of the Ramadan iftar table and of Eid, as well as a street snack sold from carts all year. The baray are made from maash ki daal, split and skinned urad lentils, soaked for hours and ground to a thick paste that is beaten until it is light enough to float.
Spoonfuls of the batter are fried until golden, then dropped into warm water, where they swell and soften like sponges. Squeezed gently and laid in a dish, they are drowned in yogurt whisked with a little sugar, salt, chilli and roasted cumin, and left to chill so they soak it up.
At the table they are dressed the chaat way: sweet-sour chutney, green coriander and mint chutney, a dusting of chaat masala and red chilli, and fresh coriander. Families each have their own version; some mix moong dal into the batter, and dahi phulki is the gram-flour cousin.
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Make it yours
✓ Naturally vegetarian and gluten-, nut-, egg- and pork-free. No swaps needed.
Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.
🥕 Vegetarian
🌱 Vegan
🌾 Gluten-Free
🥛 Dairy-Free
🥜 Nut-Free
🥚 Egg-Free
🐖 Pork-Free
Dietary labels are a cooking guide, not allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish; we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, read the label on every product you use, and note that a kitchen can cross-contaminate in ways a recipe cannot control.
Ingredients
US
Metric
Serves 6
- 1 cup (200 g) split skinned urad dal (maash ki daal)
- 2 cm piece fresh ginger, grated
- 2 green chillies, chopped
- 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
- 1/2 tsp salt (for the batter)
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1 l , for deep-frying
- 1 l warm water with a pinch of salt (for soaking the fried baray)
- 1 kg full-fat plain yogurt
- 1/4 to 1/2 cup cold water (to thin the yogurt)
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 tsp salt (for the yogurt)
- 1 tsp red chilli powder
- 1 tsp roasted cumin powder
- 1 tsp chaat masala
- 1/2 cup chutney (imli ki chutney)
- 1/4 cup green coriander and mint chutney
- 2 tbsp fresh coriander, chopped
Instructions
- 1Rinse the urad dal until the water runs clear, cover it well with cold water and soak for at least 6 hours or overnight.
- 2Drain the dal, keeping a little of the soaking water. Grind it with the ginger, green chillies, cumin seeds and salt, adding only 3 to 4 tbsp of the soaking water, to a thick, smooth paste.✎ Chef’s noteToo much water makes flat, oily baray. The batter should hold its shape on a spoon.
- 3Beat the batter hard with your hand or a whisk for 4 to 5 minutes, until it is noticeably lighter and fluffy, then beat in the baking soda. A small blob dropped into a bowl of water should float.
- 4Whisk the yogurt with the sugar, salt and half the chilli powder and roasted cumin, thinning it with cold water to a thick pouring consistency. Keep it in the fridge.
- 5Heat the oil in a deep pan over medium heat (about 170C, 340F). With wet fingers, drop in lime-sized portions of batter, four or five at a time, and fry for 3 to 5 minutes, turning, until golden and cooked through. Drain.
- 6Drop the hot baray into the warm salted water and leave them for 10 to 15 minutes, until soft and swollen.
- 7Squeeze each one gently between your palms to press out the water, lay them in a serving dish and pour over the yogurt to cover. Chill for at least 1 hour.
- 8To serve, drizzle with tamarind and green chutney and sprinkle with chaat masala, the remaining chilli and cumin, and the fresh coriander.
Pakistani street-food and Ramadan iftar tradition.
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🌏 While it simmers, know your destination
📍
Lahore (Punjab). Lahore is Pakistan's food capital, famous for rich nihari, charcoal-grilled karahi, and buttery breakfast halwa puri. Punjabi generosity and Mughal heritage make it a city that lives to eat.
🗺️
Pakistan. Pakistani cuisine is rich, meat-forward, and boldly spiced, from slow-cooked nihari and karahi to fragrant biryanis and tandoor breads. Punjabi, Sindhi, and Mughal traditions meet over ghee, yogurt, and generous garam masala.
🌍
Asia. A grain line runs across the continent. Rice dominates the wet south and east, wheat the drier north and west, and the tools follow it: the wok and the steamer where rice is milled, the tandoor and the griddle where wheat is ground. Tea travels the other way, drunk green, black, salted, buttered or with milk depending how far it got from China.
The story behind this dish is up top, worth a read while the pot works.
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Good to know
You’ll need: Blender, Whisk.
Storing it: Uncooked parcels freeze well and cook from frozen. Cooked ones keep 2 to 3 days refrigerated and steam or pan-warm to serve.
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Frequently asked questions
What is Dahi Baray (Lentil Dumplings in Spiced Yogurt)?
Light, fluffy fried urad dal dumplings soaked soft in warm water, then smothered in chilled sweet and salty yogurt and finished with tamarind and green chutneys and chaat masala.
Where does Dahi Baray (Lentil Dumplings in Spiced Yogurt) come from?
Dahi Baray (Lentil Dumplings in Spiced Yogurt) is a Pakistani dish from Lahore (Punjab), Pakistan.
Can Dahi Baray (Lentil Dumplings in Spiced Yogurt) be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?
This Dahi Baray (Lentil Dumplings in Spiced Yogurt) recipe includes substitution suggestions for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, egg-free, and pork-free versions. Treat the substitutions as a starting guide rather than a guarantee, and see the allergen note below.
Is Dahi Baray (Lentil Dumplings in Spiced Yogurt) safe for people with food allergies?
Our dietary labels and substitutions are a cooking guide, not medical or allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we still count coconut as a tree nut to be cautious, although the FDA stopped listing it as one in 2025), fish, and shellfish, but we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, always read the label on every product you use, and remember a home or commercial kitchen can cross-contaminate ingredients in ways a recipe cannot control.
How long does Dahi Baray (Lentil Dumplings in Spiced Yogurt) take to make?
About 8 h in all: 30 minutes prep and 30 minutes cooking, plus 7 h of hands-off waiting the method needs, serving 6.
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