Calories and protein in a katori of dal tadka, with and without ghee
Also called toor dal, arhar dal, yellow dal.
The short answer
1 katori, about 150 g, normal ghee
120 kcal
6 g protein
Fat 3.5 g · carbs 18 g · fibre 4.5 g · Vegetarian
Portion: a 150 ml steel katori, filled level. Calculated from USDA FoodData Central
Most of the energy comes from the lentils, but the tadka is the part that changes most between kitchens, so the ghee level is the setting to check first.
With and without ghee
The same 1 katori, changing only the tadka poured on top. Normal is about 3 g in this portion. A little halves the recipe’s fat and a lot doubles it, so in a portion of the same weight a lot comes out a little under double. These are the four levels the app asks about, with the same numbers.
| Ghee | Added | Calories | Protein |
|---|---|---|---|
| None | 0 g | 100 kcal | 6 g |
| A little | 1.5 g | 110 kcal | 6 g |
| Normal | 3 g | 120 kcal | 6 g |
| A lot | 5.5 g | 150 kcal | 6 g |
What moves the number
- Toor dalabout 60 kcal
- Ghee (the tadka poured on top)about 25 kcal
- Moong dalabout 25 kcal
The recipe behind these numbers
Raw ingredient weights in one 1 katori, scaled from the batch recipe in the Homekcal app’s dish table, with normal ghee. Water, salt and spices add almost no energy but are listed so the recipe is complete. If your version has more of something, the numbers move with it.
| Ingredient | Weight | Calories | Protein |
|---|---|---|---|
| Toor dalUSDA: Pigeon peas (red gram), mature seeds, raw | 17 g | 60 | 3.5 g |
| Moong dalUSDA: Mung beans, mature seeds, raw | 7.5 g | 25 | 1.5 g |
| WaterUSDA: Beverages, water, tap, drinking | 121 g | 0 | 0 g |
| OnionUSDA: Onions, raw | 12 g | 5 | 0 g |
| TomatoUSDA: Tomatoes, red, ripe, raw, year round average | 15 g | 5 | 0 g |
| GarlicUSDA: Garlic, raw | 1.5 g | 0 | 0 g |
| GingerUSDA: Ginger root, raw | 1 g | 0 | 0 g |
| Green chilliUSDA: Peppers, hot chili, green, raw | 1 g | 0 | 0 g |
| CuminUSDA: Spices, cumin seed | 0.5 g | 0 | 0 g |
| Chilli powderUSDA: Spices, pepper, red or cayenne | 0.5 g | 0 | 0 g |
| TurmericUSDA: Spices, turmeric, ground | 0 g | 0 | 0 g |
| Coriander leavesUSDA: Coriander (cilantro) leaves, raw | 1 g | 0 | 0 g |
| SaltUSDA: Salt, table | 1 g | 0 | 0 g |
| GheeUSDA: Butter oil, anhydrousThe tadka poured on top | 3 g | 25 | 0 g |
How this was worked out
This is the same dish the Homekcal app logs, from the same table. Each raw ingredient’s weight is multiplied by its per-100 g values in USDA FoodData Central, the batch is added up and divided by the cooked weight it makes. Calories are rounded to the nearest 10 and grams to the nearest gram, because a standard recipe is not your recipe. These are calculated values, not weighed or lab tested meals, and home versions vary a lot.
Source: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2026. fdc.nal.usda.gov. Public domain (CC0).
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