Tempering OR Tadka

Spices and herbs are added one at a time to hot oil and this tempering is either done as the first step in the cooking process, before adding the vegetables for example, or as the last, pouring the tempered oil over dal. The oil extracts and retains all the sharp flavours of the rai, kadipatta, jeera, hing, etc and coats the entire dish being prepared.Also known as tadka or chonk.