Sambar

My favorite kind of Sambar is the one you get in Udupi restaurants. Which probably isn’t the authentic south Indian Sambar, but I am conditioned to like that better having grow up in Pune.

This sambar has very little dal in it. Its more like a spicy tomato soup with dal than the other way round! I enjoy it with Idlis and dosas. I will post recipes for the dosa and idli batters soon.

I currently buy homemade batter from a friend who runs a small business AND she makes the most amazing idli and dosa batter. She is from Kerala, and her batter is completely additive free, authentic and flawless every single time. I trust her expertise in this arena, and don’t venture into it. I save time, support a local buisness and get homemade batter that is beyond perfection – WIN WIN WIN!

Now for the Sambar recipe:

This recipe makes sambar enough for 4 -5 people

You will need:

2 tbsp toor dal

2 medium tomatoes – cut in pieces

3 tbsp whole raw corriander seeds

1/2 cup fresh grated coconut – loosely packed

4-6 cloves of garlic – depending on size

1 medium onion thinly sliced

1 medium potato – peeled and cut in cubes

You can also add other vegetables cut in uniform pieces such as carrot and/ or dudhi alongwith the potatoes. Make sure to not have more than a cup or so of veggies in total – I used only potatoes

2-3 dried red chillies

6-8 curry leaves

1 tbsp sambar masala

2 tsp red chilli powder

mustard seeds, turmeric, asafetida and coconut oill for tempering

Salt to taste

1-2 tbsp jaggery powder/ crushed

Chopped corriander leaves for garnishing

Procedure:

• Grind together the tomatoes, corriander, garlic and coconut and make a paste

• Pressure cook the dal till completely softened (In the pictures, I have cooked a bit extra to use it in something else) You will only need 1/4 cup of cooked dal
• In a pan, heat a couple tablespoons of coconut oil and add mustard seeds, let them crackle, add the turmeric, asafetida, curry leaves and dried red chillies

• Next add the sliced onion and saute for a few seconds. Add a pinch of salt to let the veggies sweat a little bit.
• then add the potatoes and other veggies and saute for a minute or so, and cook covered for about 5 minutes.

• The veggies should be partially cooked at this point.
• Add the tomato mixture to the pan and mix well and saute for a minute – let cook for 2-3 minutes
• add the sambar masala/ powder and red chilli powder and saute for another couple of minutes.
• Add the cooked dal and 3-4 cups of water to the mixture and mix well
• Let simmer on low flame for 4-5 minutes

• Add salt and a tbsp of jaggery
• Adjust salt, jaggery and chilli powder as needed
• Add a handful of chopped fresh cilantro leaves and bring to a boil

Serve piping hot with Idlis. People have a polarized preference for eating their idlis either dipped in the sambar or separate. I prefer to have the two separate, how about you?!