Wash and drain the toor dal, then add it to a medium-sized pot. Add ¾ cups of water and a drizzle of oil to help it from boiling over. Bring to a boil over high heat, then simmer on low heat for 30-40 minutes, or until the toor dal is soft and mashable. If you have a pressure cooker or Instant Pot, you can use it and cook for 10 minutes or 3 whistles. Use an immersion blender to blend the dal into a smooth mixture and set aside. 

In a large pot over high heat, add ghee and black mustard seeds. Once the mustard seeds start to sputter, add the cumin seeds. Once they start to pop, add curry leaves, cinnamon stick, cloves, star anise, dried red chili and hing. Sauté for 30 seconds and turn the heat down to medium-low. Add peanuts, ginger, and green chili and saute for 1 minute. Turn the heat up to high and add tomato puree, turmeric, amchur, coriander powder, curmin powder, garam masala, and jaggery. Sauté for 5 minutes. Add the pureed dal and 4 cups of water. Stir well and bring to a boil. Simmer for 30 minutes. Stir in lemon juice, salt, and pepper to taste. Taste and adjust the flavor: add more jaggery if you like it sweeter, or more lemon juice for a tart flavor. Adjust spices as needed. Add cilantro and serve with rice or on it’s own.