1. Put both the maah and chole in a large bowl. Rinse two to three times until the water runs clear. Soak for a minimum of 30 minutes and up to 4 hours. If you are cooking your dal in the slow cooker, you can skip the soaking step. 

2. Cook the dal.

Stove top Method: Place all the ingredients listed under boil (maah, chole, water, salt, turmeric, red chili, and, ginger garlic paste) in large heavy bottomed pot, and place over a high heat. Stir only once. Let the dal come to a boil, stir again, drop the heat down to low, cover and cook for 35-40 minutes. Stir only 2-3 times while cooking. The dal is done when you can easily squish it between your fingers, and it is soft all the way through. 

Slow cooker method: Place all the ingredients listed under boil (maah, chole, water, salt, turmeric, red chili, and, ginger garlic paste) in large heavy bottomed pot, and cook on low for 8 hours. 

Note – when the dal is cooked, you should be left with about half the water in the pot (3 cups). If this feels too thick for your taste, now is the time to add a little more water. I usually add about 1 cup at this point.

3. While your dal is cooking, prepare the tadka. Start by heating the ghee over medium high heat in a heavy bottomed fry pan. Add the bay leaf and cumin seeds, toast for 90 seconds, stirring frequently to prevent burning. 

4. Add onions and cook for 4-5 minutes until they are translucent and fragrant. 

5. Add ginger, garlic, and fresh green chili (optional). Cook for 90 seconds. 

6. Add tomatoes and all powdered spices. Cook on medium high heat for 5-7 minutes, until all the moisture has evaporated and the tomatoes are pulling away from the pan. 

7. Take a few ladles of the cooked maah choliyan di dal and add them to the tadka pan. Stir together and scrape any bits from the bottom of the pan, then transfer the tadka and dal mixture into the larger dal pot. 

8. Finish with garam masala and cilantro.