To cook the lentils in the instant pot, wash the lentils really well and drain. Add to the instant pot with the rest of the ingredients and pressure cook for 7 minutes. Let the pressure release naturally for 10 minutes and then open the lid.

To cook the lentils in a saucepan, add the washed and drained lentils with all the ingredients for the lentils to a saucepan, partially covered, and cook (20 mins or longer). You might need to add ½ cup more water if the lentils thicken too much. Transfer the lentils to a serving dish.

For the tempering spices, add the cumin seeds and black peppercorns to a mortar and pestle and crush them. You can also use a spice grinder to make them into a coarse mixture and set them aside.

For the first tempering: heat the oil in a medium skillet, once hot, add half of the crushed cumin and peppercorn mixture then add the onion and a good pinch of salt and cook until the onion is translucent (5-7 mins). Then add the garlic, ginger, green chili, and the rest of the salt and continue to cook until the onion is golden (2-4 mins). Add the garam masala and curry leaves and cook for another half a minute.

Add this caramelized onion mix to the cooked lentils. Gently stir but don’t mix completely. You want some clusters of caramelized onion throughout the dal.

Make the second tempering: Heat the oil in a small skillet, once hot add the remaining cumin seeds/ peppercorn mixture and cook until the mixture becomes fragrant. Then pour it over the dal/cooked lentils. Garnish it with cilantro and lemon juice.