Types of Daal: Names in English, Urdu and Hindi, Sabut vs Dhuli
Kala chana in English is black chickpea (also called Bengal gram or desi chana), matar daal is split dried peas, and matki is not moong: it’s the moth bean, a smaller, browner cousin. Most confusion about daal names comes from one pulse wearing three forms, sabut (whole), chilka (split with skin) and dhuli (split and skinned), plus different names in Urdu, Hindi and English. This page lines up every common daal in one place, shows how to tell the yellow ones apart at the shop, and points you to our full guide for each.
The short version
- Sabut: the whole seed with its skin. Slowest to cook, most fibre.
- Chilka: split in two, skin still on. Middle ground.
- Dhuli: split and skinned (“washed”). Fastest to cook, gentlest on the stomach.
- Daal: both the split pulse and the dish cooked from it.
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Pulses vs lentils vs legumes vs daal: the words, sorted
Start here, because the English words get used loosely.
A legume is any plant in the pea and bean family, and that includes the fresh pods (matar, lobia phali, sem) and even groundnut. A pulse is the dried seed of a legume harvested for food: chana, masoor, moong, rajma and the rest. International food lists usually leave soybean and groundnut out of “pulses”, since they’re mostly pressed for oil. A lentil is one specific pulse, the flat lens-shaped masoor. In fact, the glass lens got its name from the lentil, not the other way round.
And daal? In a desi kitchen it means two things. The split pulse sitting in the dabba, and the cooked, tempered dish on the table. So “moong ki daal” can mean either the packet or dinner. Nobody minds.
Every common daal: English, botanical, Urdu and Hindi names
The table is the quick lookup. The notes below it cover forms and what each is best for.
| Urdu / Hindi | English | Botanical | Forms sold |
|---|---|---|---|
| Masoor | Red lentil / brown lentil | Lens culinaris | Sabut (brown), dhuli (orange-red) |
| Moong | Green gram, mung bean | Vigna radiata | Sabut, chilka, dhuli (yellow) |
| Mash / urad | Black gram | Vigna mungo | Sabut (black), chilka, dhuli (white) |
| Kala chana / chana daal | Black chickpea, Bengal gram | Cicer arietinum | Sabut, split dhuli (chana daal) |
| Safed / kabuli chana | Chickpea, garbanzo | Cicer arietinum | Sabut |
| Arhar / toor | Pigeon pea | Cajanus cajan | Mostly dhuli (yellow) |
| Matar daal / safed matar | Split dried pea / dried white pea | Pisum sativum | Sabut, split |
| Moth / matki | Moth bean | Vigna aconitifolia | Sabut, some split |
| Lobia / chawli | Black-eyed pea, cowpea | Vigna unguiculata | Sabut |
| Rajma / lal lobia | Red kidney bean | Phaseolus vulgaris | Sabut |
| Kulthi | Horse gram | Macrotyloma uniflorum | Sabut, split |
| Khesari / teora | Grass pea | Lathyrus sativus | Split |
Two naming traps catch people all the time. In Pakistan, red kidney beans are usually sold as lal lobia, while in India the same bean is rajma. And mash in Pakistan is urad in India: same black gram, same makhani daal.
What each daal is best for
Masoor
Dhuli masoor is the fastest daal in the kitchen, soft in 15 minutes without soaking, and it collapses into a smooth, everyday daal. Sabut masoor holds its shape for a darker, earthier curry. Full timings and the tarka are in our masoor daal guide.
Moong
Dhuli moong is the lightest on the stomach, which is why it’s the sick-day and weaning daal and the base of our moong daal khichdi. Sabut green moong is the sprouting favourite. Chilka moong sits between the two.
Mash (urad)
Sabut mash makes the slow, creamy daal makhani; dhuli mash cooks into a thick, slightly sticky dry daal and is the backbone of idli, dosa and vada batter across the border. See the mash daal guide.
Chana daal and kala chana
Chana daal is simply kala chana with the skin removed and the seed split. That’s it. It’s nutty, holds its shape, and goes into daal gosht, chana daal halwa and lauki chana. Besan is ground from it too. Our chana daal guide covers soaking and whistles, and kala chana has the whole-bean curry and roasted snack.
Kabuli chana
The big, cream-coloured chickpea for cholay, chaat and hummus. Recipe and soft-cooking tricks live in our safed chana cholay guide.
Arhar (toor)
The everyday daal of much of India and a favourite in Karachi and Hyderabad homes. Mild, golden and a little sweet, it’s the one for sambar and plain daal chawal.
Matar daal and safed matar
Split dried peas are cheap, mealy and slightly sweet, good in daal mixes and ghugni. Whole safed matar makes ragda and the chaat-wala’s pea curry.
Moth (matki), lobia, rajma and kulthi
Matki is a small, tan, oblong bean, lovely sprouted or as Maharashtrian usal. Lobia and rajma go into curries, and raw kidney beans must be boiled hard before simmering (the rule is in our rajma and lobia safety guide). Kulthi, the hard little horse gram, is covered in its own kulthi daal guide.
Matki and moong: are they the same?
No, and it’s one of the most searched daal questions. Both are small Vigna beans and both sprout beautifully, which is where the mix-up starts. But put them side by side and it’s obvious. Moong is bright green, plump and round-ish. Matki (moth) is smaller, flatter and oblong, and its colour runs from tan to light brown. Matki sprouts taste a little nuttier and firmer. Moth and matki are the same bean, just the North Indian and Marathi names.
How to tell the yellow daals apart at the shop
Four yellow daals sit next to each other in every market, and a cheaper one sometimes ends up in the bag you paid more for. Matar daal passed off as chana daal or arhar is the classic swap. Pour a spoonful of each onto your palm in good daylight.
- Size first. Chana daal and matar daal are the biggest, roughly 5 to 7 mm across. Arhar is medium, around 4 to 5 mm. Dhuli moong is the smallest, around 3 to 4 mm.
- Shape. Chana daal is slightly irregular and chunky, with a rough, wrinkled edge. Matar daal is a neat, smooth half-sphere, almost perfectly round, like a split pea should be. Arhar halves are round with a flat face and often a tiny pale dimple where the sprout sat. Moong is a small oval, a little longer than it is wide.
- Colour. Chana daal is a deep, even golden yellow. Arhar is golden with a slightly glossy look (sometimes oiled). Matar daal is paler and often faintly greenish or creamy. Dhuli moong is pale buttery yellow.
- Snap test. Bite or press a raw grain. Chana daal is very hard. Matar daal is hard but breaks into a floury powder.
- Cook test. Matar daal cooks into a sweet, mealy mash with a clear “pea” smell. Chana daal stays grainy and nutty. If your “chana daal” smells like pea soup, now you know.
Dhuli masoor is the odd one out: it’s orange-pink raw and turns yellow once cooked, so don’t be surprised when it changes colour in the pot.
A fifth look-alike matters more than the rest. Khesari (grass pea) is angular, almost wedge- or tooth-shaped with a sloping edge, and a dull greyish or off-yellow colour, and it has sometimes been mixed into arhar and chana daal. It has a long safety history of its own, so if you see angular grains in your daal that don’t match the rest, pick them out and change your seller.
Desi homes have long ranked daals by how “heavy” they feel. Dhuli moong is the lightest, given to the sick and to babies. Mash and chana are the heaviest, cooked with more ghee, hing, ginger and garlic, and eaten at lunch rather than late at night. Unani texts describe masoor and mash as having different temperaments, and Ayurveda counts moong as the most balanced pulse. That’s tradition, not a lab result, but the practical advice it gives, skinned and well-cooked for weak digestion, holds up well.
Sabut, chilka or dhuli: which should you buy?
All three are the same pulse. The skin makes the difference.
- Sabut keeps the most fibre and a little more of the minerals held near the skin. It needs soaking, cooks slowest, and can cause more gas.
- Chilka is a good compromise: some of the fibre, much faster cooking, often no soak needed for moong and urad.
- Dhuli is quickest and easiest to digest, which makes it the right choice for babies, the elderly, anyone recovering from a stomach upset, and busy weeknights.
Protein barely changes between the three, because it lives in the seed, not the skin. A katori of everyday daal made from about 30 g dry pulse gives roughly 7 g protein whichever form you chose. Mixing a sabut daal into the week and a dhuli daal on the busy days gets you most of the benefit of both.
Kidney disease, high uric acid and gout change how much daal suits you, and the right amount varies with blood results, so ask your own doctor or dietitian rather than following a general list. Raw or undercooked rajma and lobia can cause severe vomiting; boil them hard for at least 10 minutes before slow cooking. Whole chana, whole moong and similar whole pulses, raw or roasted, are a choking risk for children under 5; cook them soft and mash. Anyone with a known legume allergy (chickpea and lentil allergies are real, and peanut-allergic people sometimes react to other legumes) should talk to their doctor before trying a new pulse.
Daal names and types: common questions
What is kala chana called in English?
Kala chana is black chickpea in English, also called Bengal gram, desi chickpea or brown chickpea. It’s the same species as kabuli chana, just a smaller, darker, older variety with a thicker skin.
What is matar daal?
Matar daal is dried peas split in half, sold as yellow or green split peas. It’s cheaper than chana daal, cooks into a sweet, mealy daal and is used in ghugni and mixed daals.
Are matki and moong the same?
No. Matki is the moth bean, smaller, flatter and tan to brown. Moong is the green gram, plumper and bright green. Both sprout well, which is why they get confused.
What are the other names of khesari daal?
Khesari is grass pea in English, called teora in Bengal and Bihar and known by names such as lakhori or lang in other regions. Its botanical name is Lathyrus sativus.
What is the difference between pulses and lentils?
Pulses are all the dried edible seeds of the pea and bean family. Lentils are one pulse among them, the masoor. So every lentil is a pulse, but chana or rajma are pulses that aren’t lentils.
What is arhar daal called in English?
Arhar or toor daal is split pigeon pea. In India it’s often sold as toor or tuvar, and in Pakistan as arhar.
What is mash daal in English?
Mash is black gram, sold in India as urad. Sabut mash is the black whole bean, and dhuli mash is the white split one.
Is chana daal the same as kabuli chana?
No. Chana daal is split, skinned kala chana. Kabuli chana is the larger, cream-coloured chickpea and is almost always sold whole.
What does dhuli mean in daal?
Dhuli means “washed” and refers to daal that has been split and had its skin removed. It cooks faster and digests more easily than the sabut or chilka form.
Which daal is easiest to digest?
Dhuli moong is the easiest, followed by dhuli masoor. Whole mash, rajma and kabuli chana are the heaviest and benefit most from soaking and thorough cooking.
Is rajma the same as lal lobia?
Yes. Red kidney beans are called rajma in India and are commonly sold as lal lobia in Pakistan. White lobia is the black-eyed pea, a different bean.
How can I tell if chana daal is mixed with matar daal?
Look for smooth, perfectly round, paler half-spheres among the chunkier golden chana daal. Once cooked, matar daal smells like pea soup and turns mealy while chana daal stays grainy.
Every guide mentioned on this page, and more, sits in our Grains, Daals & Pulses section.