Sambar is a south indian dish made with dal and vegetables. It is enjoyed with rice, idli and dosa.
My recipe is pretty basic and easy to prepare. I don not use any premade sambar powder or any store bought ones and yet very very flavorful and delicious. Working people and students can easily prepare this recipe since it takes very less time to prepare, with the fewer ingredients that are easily available.
Index
- What is sambar
- Ingredients
- How to make sambar
- Tips
What is Sambar
Sambar is a lentil and vegetable stew, most popular in South India. It is frequently made in south indian homes and served in many indian restaurants. Toor dal is rich in protein and vegetables contains lot of vitamins. This is a very healthy and protein packed dish.
Ingredients
Toor dal – Traditionally, Toor dal is used for making this dish. You can also use moong dal and masoor dal. A mix any of these can be used. Hotel Style sambar makes use of both toor dal and masoor dal.
Vegetables – This dish can be made with any vegetable of your choice. So use the vegetables which you think will suit your taste buds. I used onion, Radish and drumstick.
Tamarind – This ingredient is a must and adds a bit of tanginess to the dish. Take lemon size tamarind and soak it in water for like 15-20 mins. Squeeze the tamarind thoroughly and strain it into a bowl.
Other Ingredients – Other than the above ingredients you will need Red chilli powder, Coriander seed powder, asafoetida, mustard seeds, tomato, oil, curry leaves and coriander leaves.
How to Prepare Sambar – Step by Step Process
Wash the dal and add it to a pressure cooker with 2 cups of water, salt and turmeric powder. You can also cook in a pan or in an instant pot. If you are cooking in a pan add more water and cook it till dal softens. In Instant pot pressure cook it for 10 mins
In pressure cooker cook it for 3-4 whistles and let the pressure naturally release. Once the dal is cooked softly, mash it and keep it aside.
Now take a pan, add teaspoons of cooking oil. Once the oil heated add half teaspoon mustard seeds and curry leaves.
Add Onion and sauté for a minute and add the sliced tomatoes and cook it till the tomatoes soften.
Now add all the veggies, stir it and cook for 5 minutes. At this stage, add half teaspoon of turmeric powder and add a cup of water and cook it until the veggies are soft cooked and the drumsticks turn tender.
Now add 2 table spoons red chilli powder, 1 table spoon coriander seed powder and half tea spoon asafoetida. Also add dal and mix it well. If you feel thick you may add some water.
Let it cook for 2 minutes and add the tamarind water and mix it well. Do not add all the tamarind water, keep it a little aside. Check for salt and tamarind water, add more if needed.
Bring it to boil and add coriander leaves.
Server hot sambar with rice or idli.
Tips
1.Adding asafoetida(hing) enhances the flavor of the dish. It is mostly used in south indian dishes.
2. Add tamarind water to sambar only after the veggies are cooked softly or else the sourness in the tamarind will prevent the veggies from cooking well.
