Sambar from the South

One deccan dish relished by everyone is Sambar. It is made in different ways in different regions of the southern plateau. I am going to pitch in the way I normally make sambar at home, which is so close to the way it is served in hotels in Chennai. So this is going to be a little elaborate than the simpler way of making sambar.

Hotel Sambar

You need

Pearl onions - 4

Diced white pumpkin - 1 cup

Garlic cloves - 1

Ginger - small piece

Chopped Tomato - 1/2 cup

Cooked Toor dal - 1 cup

Sambar powder - 1 tablspoon

Coriander seeds - 1 tablespoon

Red chilly - 2

Curry leaves

Grated coconut - 1/2 cup

Mustard seeds - 1 teaspoon

Fenugreek seeds - 1 teaspoon

Green chillies - 2

Asofoetida - 2 pinches

Tamarind paste - 1/4 spoon

Jaggery

Salt

Oil

Method

• Make a paste of the pearl onions, garlic and ginger.
• To a deep pan add oil followed by mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds, slit green chillies, curry leaves, white pumpkin, Asofoetida, tomatoes and sauté for a few minutes.
• Now add the paste and sauté well.
• Add tamarind paste, required water, sambar powder, salt and allow to boil.
• Meanwhile in a separate pan, sauté the coriander seeds, red chillies, curry leaves and coconut in a little oil.
• Grind the above into a paste.
• Allow the sambar to boil until the raw smell of sambar powder goes and the veggies are cooked.
• At this point add the mashed cooked toor dal and the coconut paste to the sambar and mix well.
• Add a small amount of jaggery and boil for about 5-8 minutes.
• Garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot.