Soak whole masoor dal in enough water along with pinch of turmeric powder, pinch of salt, pinch of baking soda. Soak for 8-10 hours.
Remove all water from the dal and wash thoroughly. Drain and spread dal on a kitchen towel for 15-20 minutes. so that all the moisture is absorbed.
Heat oil in a pan. Once the oil becomes hot, reduce the flame to medium and add a batch of dal into the oil. Do not overcrowd the oil and fry in batches. Stir in-between so that they don’t stick together.
You will know that the dal is fried, when bubbles in the oil will disappear and dal will float on the surface.
Remove and drain them on an absorbent paper to soak excess oil. You can also take out the dal on a fine sieve.
In the same manner, fry melon seeds.
Take fried dal and melon seeds in a bowl and add sev and all the dry spices – chaat masala, red chilli powder, black pepper powder, jeera powder, amchur, hing, black salt and salt. Mix well.
Once completely cooled, store in an air tight container.
Video
Notes
*Preparation time does not include dal soaking time