FITNESS

SPORTS

CARE

MIND

STORE

Home

>
Live

>
Recipe

>
Sambar

Sambar

Name: Sambar
Total time: 54 s
Yield: 4
Ingredients: 1 teaspoon Mustard Seeds; 2 teaspoons Turmeric Powder; 2 teaspoons Red Chilli Powder; 0.5 teaspoons Asafoetida/hing; 1.5 teaspoons Sambar Powder; 0.5 cups Toor Dal; 1 tablespoon Tamarind; 1 teaspoon Salt; 2 teaspoons Refined Oil; 1 teaspoon Jaggery; 1.5 cups Pumpkin; 0.5 pieces Onion; 1 piece Tomato; 2 small pieces Brinjal/eggplant; 1 piece Drumstick; 6 g Curry Leaves

Time50 Min

DifficultyEasy

Serves4

Every South Indian cuisine fan knows a South Indian meal is incomplete without Sambar. The universal side dish of southern India is perfect for any meal from breakfast to dinner. This gravy dish made primarily of toor dal with numerous veggies is high in nutrition and taste. Most people think as there are numerous ingredients in sambar, it is complex to cook but it is actually quite a simple dish. ... The sambar ingredients primarily consist of lentils, oil, spices, sambar masala, tamarind, and mixed vegetables. As the vegetables are sautéed and then cooked with water until they turn soft, their vital nutrients stay intact. Then the boiled and mashed dal is added to the tender vegetables so the flavour of vegetables seeps into the dal. Then the tamarind pulp and sambar powder are added to this mixture, to give the unique tangy and spicy flavour for which sambhar is known for. Sambar is made in many different ways depending on the person making it. You can change the recipe as per your choice by increasing or decreasing the number of vegetables used and even the type of dal you want to use. It can be served with plain rice, idli, vada, dosa, uttapam, and even jeera rice. Depending on the accompaniment, its consistency needs to be adjusted. Anyone can have sambar as it’s full of protein and nutrients and even the kids love it. Its tangy and rich flavour makes it a popular side dish for breakfast and other meals. This everyday dish served with soft idlis or rice is the perfect healthy meal, high on nutrients and taste. Make this delicious dish with this easy to make sambar recipe.

Ingredients

Dry Grocery

Mustard Seeds

1 teaspoon

Turmeric Powder

2 teaspoons

Red Chilli Powder

2 teaspoons

Asafoetida/hing

0.5 teaspoons

Sambar Powder

1.5 teaspoons

Toor Dal

0.5 cups

Tamarind

1 tablespoon

Salt

1 teaspoon

Refined Oil

2 teaspoons

Jaggery

1 teaspoon

Fruits & Vegetables

Onion

0.5 pieces

Tomato

1 piece

Brinjal/eggplant

2 small pieces

Drumstick

1 piece

Curry Leaves

6 g

Other

Pumpkin

1.5 cups

Directions

Wash dal and rinse it. Pressure cook dal with turmeric powder, salt and water for 2-3 whistles.

Once cooked set aside. Soak tamarind for 20 min. After 20 min, mash the tamarind and strain to get the pulp. Cut all the vegetables into the dices and drumstick in 2 inch pieces.

Heat oil in a pan, add mustard seeds and curry leaves & allow it crackle . Add hing and diced onion and saute well.

Add drumstick, diced brinjal, diced pumpkin & saute for 5 minutes.

Add all powdered spices to the saute vegetables and saute for 2-3 minutes.

Now add boiled dal along with diced tomato. Mix well and simmer. Cook for 2-3 minutes.

Add tamarind pulp & jaggery together and cook for 15 minutes.

Check the seasoning & serve hot .

Interesting facts and tips

The unique flavour of sambhar comes from the aromatic sambar powder used in it. So, for that delicious sambar, use a good quality one or best to make sambar podi at home. Mostly toor dal is used as sambar dal but some people also use a mix of toor, chana, and masoor or even other dals. To make the authentic sambar, always use drumsticks in it. It is good for digestion too. Add a bit of jaggery to get a faintly sweet taste and it also enhances the flavors of the spices. Sambhar is a healthy side dish with a simple recipe that can be customized as per one’s taste. Every South Indian state has its own version of the dish. Try this easy recipe for a delicious meal.

Success!

We hope you had fun making it! Enjoy the meal.

What is Sambar?

South Indian cuisines are delightful and nothing short of a glorious treat. A blend of multiple flavours, diverse textures, and awe-inspiring taste is a standard fare. Whether it is exotic cinnamon-laced foods or traditional coconut and tamarind-based delicacies, there is so much to enjoy and relish. South Indian food is derived from rich Dravidian culture and is still largely unaffected from the Western culture. One of the basic and traditional cuisines without which South Indian food is incomplete is hot, tangy sambar. The sambar recipe may differ from house to house. If you wish to prepare authentic sambar dal, check the perfect recipe for an awesome flavour.

Authentic Sambar Recipe:

When planning to prepare this authentic South Indian lentil, it is imperative to use proper sambar ingredients and spices to get the perfect taste and consistency. In most South Indian homes, sambar is prepared to accompany various dishes. Here are the sambar ingredients needed for this recipe. Sambar Powder Mustard Seeds Red Chili Powder Turmeric Powder Hing Toor Daal Tamarind Paste Salt Jaggery Refined Oil Tomatoes Onions Eggplant Drumstick Curry Leaves Any Other Sambar Vegetables of Choice Once you have checked sambar ingredients in your kitchen, you can start its preparation. It takes approximately 50 minutes to make authentic sambar. Here is the step-by-step preparation of this South Indian lentil. Cook toor dal in a pressure cooker for 2-4 whistles. You can also add a little masoor dal and moong dal for extra flavour. Cook it until dal turns soft and mushy. Once the pressure releases from the cooker, use a potato masher to mash the dal nicely. Once properly mashed, set it aside. Next, prepare sambar masala. It is one of the major elements of the sambar recipe. For making its masala, you will need dry red chilis, urad dal, chana dal, coriander seeds, fenugreek seeds, and cumin. Dry roast these spices until it turns aromatic. Let it cool, and then grind in a grinder. If you wish to make instant sambar, you can use ready-to-use sambar masala available in the market. After preparing sambar masala, now prepare sambar vegetables. You can cut and diced onions, slit drumsticks, carrots, eggplant, pumpkin, and tomatoes. You can also add ladyfinger if you like it in your sambar. Now take a large pot and add refined oil into it. Saute onions for a while until translucent, and then add the rest of the vegetables to it. Saute for a while, and add a pinch of salt and red chilli powder. Add some water and cook until vegetables are soft and tender. In the meantime, soak a piece of tamarind and jaggery in a bowl. When veggies are cooked, al dente, add sambar masala and tamarind paste. Now, add mashed dal to the mix and gently stir it to mix all the ingredients properly. Taste and balance tanginess and salt by adding more if required. Adjust the consistency by adding more water if required. Now, prepare the tempering. Add oil or ghee to a pan. Add cumin seeds, mustard seeds, dried red chillis, and fenugreek. Allow mustard seeds to sputter, and then add green curry leaves and a pinch of hing. Add the tempering to the boiling hor sambar. Simmer it for a while, and it is ready to serve. It is a very authentic sambar recipe. Try it at home for the best results. One thing that is very important to take care of when trying the sambar recipe is the masala added to it. Try to prepare the masala at home to add to the sambar dal. It is the magical element that makes sambar dal flavoursome and aromatic. Use this easy sambar recipe and serve it with Rava Idli. These idlis are made using semolina and sour curd. A little fruit salt is added to it when making instant idlis at home. Sere it with hot sambar. If you are trying to make a sambar dal recipe for the first time, you can check out the sambar recipe video that shows you step-by-step instructions of making it authentically. There is no dearth of sambar recipe videos, but it is necessary to choose the one that shows you the easy sambar recipe that you can make at home without any problem. Once you are adept at making this delicacy, also known as sambar in English, you can experiment a little and come up with a better variation that carries your personal gastronomical touch. Once you have chosen the recipe of sambar you wish to follow, try preparing accompanying dishes that you can serve with it. Some popular recipes include Masala Dosa, Neer Dosa, and many other types of dosas that are typical in South India. Where neer dosa is feathery soft, fluffy, and thin, masala dosa is crunchy and is filled with spicy and tangy potato filling. Depending on your taste, you can enjoy it with a piping hot sambar. You can also try it with Mysore masala dosa which is slightly spicier and tangier than other dosa varieties available because of the red chutney spread on its inner side. South Indian breakfast is known for its light in weight rice and urad dal-based varieties. It is amazing in taste and high in nutritional value. Even if you eat a lot of idlis or vadas, you will not feel uncomfortable. You are going to relish every bite of it. When travelling to South India or any South Indian restaurant in the world, you will find a lot of South Indian food being enjoyed with authentic sambar, coconut chutney, tomato garlic chutney, green coconut chutney, and hot filter coffee. It is the staple diet of millions of people over the world. India is a land of amazing gastronomical delights. Enjoy and savour lip-smacking South Indian delicacies that are invariably served with sambar. Once you learn how to make authentic and traditional sambar, you can improvise and come up with different variations in this cuisine. Plan a party and showcase your cooking skills to your near and dear ones and impress them with your recipe of sambar.